Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

[chucks440]

Hello,new to the forums,at least as far as postings go. I have followed the forums for a year or so and have found them very helpful. I do have a question regarding my 3.0 Mercruiser. Usual situation..boat hasnt run since early last year..full tank of gas,stored with stabilizer,...stored covered but outside. I,ve been trying to get it back up and running and after a little persuading got it up and going today,,starts easily..idles down nicely..but as soon as I drop it into gear it dies. Tried numerous times to get it to run while in gear and it just dies under load. My first thought was maybe the accelerator pump due to bad gas,but I,m wondering if theres something else I need to check first? One note...after I finally got it up and running,I let it idle a minute or so,shut it off and it wouldnt start.After double checking plugs,fuel flow,points etc..I ran the controls back and forth about 10 times..then it fired right up! Is this a related issue? After doing that,it has started every time,but wont take going into gear. Any thoughts? Thanks ahead of time!!

 

[dubs283]

Re: Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

more than likely the lower shift cable is worn and dragging causing the shift interrupt switch to engage improperly and killing the ignition

the only fix for it is a new lower cable

 

[chucks440]

Re: Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

Dubs,when I was rotating the controls back and forth I did notice that they were a little stiffer than I remember them being.Is that also an indicator of a bad lower shift cable? If thats the problem,what kind of job is that? I,m pretty good mechanically,but havent done much on the boat as its been fairly reliable ( 1989 Maxum) and trouble free for me. Thanks

 

[dubs283]

Re: Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

with the boat in the water, you can check the operation of the shift interrupt switch by observing it when someone is shifting at the helm

where the shift cables are attached at the engine, notice the v-shaped spring/notch assy that activates a switch when it is pushed either up or down - this is the shift interrupt assy

watch what is happening when someone is shifting INTO eithe FWD or REV, there should be little to no movement of the assy - the shift interrupt system only works for coming OUT of gear

read more here:

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?p=1930449#post1930449

and download the manual for your drive and read about installing the cable here:

http://www.4shared.com/document/zz_5pj9o/Service_Manual_06.html

 

[chucks440]

Re: Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

Dubs....Thanks for the info!

 

[chucks440]

Re: Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

Just an update....Got home from work this morning and sprayed the crap out of all the cables w/ Tri_Flow..also around the interuptor switch.Then ran the controls through the cycle about 20 times working everything really good.The switch seems to be working ok,at least from what I could tell as I was moving the controls. Then let everything sit for about 6 hrs.After that, it seems to be shifting into gear ok without cutting out! So,in the end I may still need that lower shift cable,or my existing cable may need a little adjusting,but I,m putting it in the water this week and we,ll see what happens. Thanks again Dubs,your help is appreciated!

 

[mrchev]

Re: Mercruiser running issues!Dies when going into gear!

been there done that, and right now its sitting in the garage with the out drive off and new cable on the way. it was a short term fix.