1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

[89 Sea Sprite]

Good afternoon. Last year I inherited a 89 Sea Sprite with a Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0. Although I am familiar with this particular boat I only know bits and pieces about its history. Before coming to me it had been stored poorly outdoors for about 5 years and had a tree fall on it. Everything seems to be there.

Today I was tracing out the wiring to see why the ignition switch would not spin the starter. Turned out that the safety interrupt in the shifter was the issue. But to get the throttle lever back to neutral I had to disconnect the cable from the top of the engine to the drive unit. That cable does not seem to be shifting.

The propeller turns freely.

What should I look at next? Is there any way to access the end of the shift cable to determine why it is not moving?

Mark

 

[Don S]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

I would disconnect the lower shift cable from the engine side and see if you can shift gears by moving the cable in and out by hand. If it shifts ok there, check the cable that goes to the control. It could be froze up as well.

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

The cables from the control to the engine are free. The cable from the top of the engine to the drive unit will not move.

 

[Bondo]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

The cables from the control to the engine are free. The cable from the top of the engine to the drive unit will not move.

Ayuh,.... I guess ya might as well pull the drive, so's ya can replace the lower cable...

Ya gonna have to fight it, being in neutral, insteada forward....

Ya probably gonna have to cut the ole cable some how, somewhere to get the shift foot/shoe aligned fore 'n aft, to get the drive off...

 

[Don S]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Ya probably gonna have to cut the ole cable some how, somewhere to get the shift foot/shoe aligned fore 'n aft, to get the drive off...

You can also just drop the lower unit from the upper, then the shift shafts are not a problem.

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

The boat sat for about 5 years with the throttle lever forward of neutral. Any thoughts for why this might affect the shifting or to cause the shift cable to lock up? I am guessing that I will need a manual to understand what I am looking at before I try to tear it apart. What is the best way to get a manual?

 

[Don S]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Here's the manual http://www.4shared.com/document/zz_5pj9o/Service_Manual_06.html

There is also the sticky at the top of this forum that has a lot of the information you need.
http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=288430

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Thank you. I will check this out.

 

[Bondo]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

The boat sat for about 5 years with the throttle lever forward of neutral. Any thoughts for why this might affect the shifting or to cause the shift cable to lock up? I am guessing that I will need a manual to understand what I am looking at before I try to tear it apart. What is the best way to get a manual?

Ayuh,... It sat 5 years,.... The cable was probably junk when it was parked....

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Actually, I do know that the boat ran fine when it last came out of the water. Today I looked at the cables and disconnected the cable that runs from the engine to the drive unit. The cable has about 5/16" of play and when I move the cable end back and forth I can hear it making sounds in the drive unit. It seems to be stuck just forward of neutral but not far enough forward to lock into gear. I am still in the process of digesting the manual so that I can understand the best course of action to take next.

 

[Don S]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Actually, I do know that the boat ran fine when it last came out of the water.

But that was 5 years ago. :facepalm::facepalm:

 

[Bondo]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

I am still in the process of digesting the manual so that I can understand the best course of action to take next.

Ayuh,.... Are ya turnin' the prop shaft, while tryin' to shift it,..??

Pull the drive, 'n see if it'll shift manually, by hand....

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Ayuh,.... Are ya turnin' the prop shaft, while tryin' to shift it,..??

Pull the drive, 'n see if it'll shift manually, by hand....

Good morning. Yes, we were turning the propeller while attempting to move the cable.

When you say "pull the drive" - exactly how much do I need to take off? I am assuming that you are recommending that I separate the drive shaft housing from the transom unit.

For reference, photos of the engine and air inlet cover tags are attached.

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Good evening. I was able to spend some time with the boat this evening. I have no spark and although I have voltage at the points I suspect something amiss with the coil. But worse than that I was looking at the shift shaft linkage and found what you see in the attached photo.

Based upon what I see here I am assuming that I need to pull the gear housing and likely need to remove and replace the shift shaft - that is if the shift spool is workable at all. Does this sound correct?

 

[Bondo]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

Based upon what I see here I am assuming that I need to pull the gear housing and likely need to remove and replace the shift shaft - that is if the shift spool is workable at all. Does this sound correct?

Ayuh,.... I'd sooner think the cable is seized, 'n holdin' things up....

That picture is in neutral, ya need forward to pull the whole thing....
You'll have to drop the lower, then the upper....

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

There was not much space to get the camera, so I don't think that it is clearly showing that the two halves of the shift shaft coupler are not connected - they are one behind the other and at 90 degrees to each other. Short of suspecting sabotage, I am assuming that when the tree fell on the boat it drove the shift lever forward so quickly that the shift shaft separated at this point.

I am confused however because when I look at the manual I can't see the relationship between the figure I see on 2A-16 and the figure I see on 3B-19. One shows the shift shaft coupler and the other shows the top of the shift shaft. I cannot find in the manual how the shift shaft coupler separates from the shift shaft or housing.

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Re: 1989 Mercruiser Alpha 1 3.0 - Engine not running yet - transmission not shifting

OK, it has taken some time, but the drive unit is apart and we found that everything appears to be in order except for the shift shaft coupler. Here is a photo of the coupler after it was removed.

 

[johnjay28]

how did you remove the shift shaft

 

[GA_Boater]

how did you remove the shift shaft

He did it over two years ago and has forgotten. Also the member is now a no show. Please do not post in old topics. Start a new topic of your own

 

[89 Sea Sprite]

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Once the lower unit of the outdrive is removed the shift shaft and the shift shaft coupler are surprisingly easy to access. The good folks on this site were very helpful and except for some oxidation around the studs that hold on the lower unit the project was very simple. I would not hesitate to do it again. Boat has been in the water and running like a top for the past three seasons.