Hello,<br /><br />I bought a 1997 Ranger R70 with a Mercury 115 on it last spring. It has turned out to be a pretty good(and more important reliable) boat. After fixing some other minor electrical issues, one still exist.<br /><br />It appears that the trim unit possibly has a short. When we are launching the boat, if I wait to trim down the motor until the boat is in the water, it will short something out. This short will keep the motor from firing because the motor is connected to the same battery. The fix is to pull the cable for the accessories of the battery and put it back on. Everything is fine from there on out. If I trim down right before the boat is in the water, everything is fine.<br /><br />This problem has actually gotten a little worse. As I was slowing down in a no wake zone and trimming down, it shorted out this weekend. Since the accessories are on the same battery as the motor, it also killed the motor. The same fix worked though. Unplug the cables and replug them back in and all is good. <br /><br />I have inspected the trim housing and nothing looks frayed or cracked. Can I possibly coat the trim motor with something to protect from water? I think that would solve the problem.<br /><br />The battery(all battery's) was replaced at the beginning of the year. We can also hook the cable up to one of the trolling motor battery's and it will do the same thing. <br /><br />Thanks for any help offered.<br />Jeff
