98 Merc 200hp gear problem

[aquasport1998]

Sorry if this posts twice guys. Not sure where the first one is in the world wide web...

went out this morning for a last fishing trip before the oil comes in. motor started great, put in reverse to back away from dock and it shifted hard with a growl. Put it in forward and it shifted really hard and loud grinding sound. gears caught and I was off. about 30 minutes later. again motor started fine, but forward gear would not engage at all. motor would rev, but no gear. same with reverse.

Took cowling off, shift cable seems to be moving appropriately and propeller seems to go in reverse some but not enough to move boat. Some research says it might be stretched shift cable or .... any other suggestions? How to test for stretched shift cable? easy to replace? What else would you suggest?

My mechanic is out of commission for a while...working on oil clean up. Hoping this is something I can handle or may have to find another mech or let her sit for a while.

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[aquasport1998]

Re: 98 Merc 200hp gear problem

okay, here's what I've found....
from advice in another post, i checked to see if the cable was moving far enough to engage the gears. Answer is No. If I manually move the gear pin forward the prop engages. If I move with the cable attached, no. It moves further in reverse, but still not all the way.

So, I'm guessing the throttle/gear cables need to be replaced. How difficult is it? Where do I find how long the cable is without pulling it first? Or can I do that?

Thanks, men.

 

[Faztbullet]

Re: 98 Merc 200hp gear problem

Sounds like a cable or something loose in control box, it no big deal to change cable unless it a recessed side mount.

 

[aquasport1998]

Re: 98 Merc 200hp gear problem

Thanks for the reply. Center Console with a Quicksilver control box. So shouldn't be too difficult from what you are saying. How do I find the length of the gear and throttle cables? I've looked on the cables themselves and see a what appears to be a part number on the end of the cable attached to the gear shift arm in the motor -- 3992617. Not sure if that means anything or not. Have read that the length would be printed on cable about a foot from the end. have checked both ends..no printing. Could be worn off or could be my eyes. Any way to know without taking the cables out first? was hoping to use existing cables as a snake to pull the new ones through.