new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

[gabby1]

i bought a new 14 foot grizzly tracker jon boat,got a great deal,in all my excitement,i never measured the transom,well it is a 20 inch transom and my old motor was a short shaft 15 inch so i saved some pennys and bought a new 2004 25 hp mercury long shaft,after mounting and centering the motor off to the river i went,all i can say is it was scary,the boat pulled to the right,bad bad,bad,i am a big boy and was having a hard time holding it,and god forbid,you let off the tiller handle any!!i adjusted the little fin above the prop and it did not help at all,the dealer called mercury and they said to raise the motor some so i raised it an inch with a board and that helped but it still pulls right while planing out,plus i can not raise it any more due to the clamps on the motor are now only an inch below the top of the transom,i am not happy,i do not think i should have to block up a new motor on a new boat,the transom on the boat is a hair over 20 inches the shaft on the motor is 22 inches,i just do not get it the last 2 letters in the serial # are ml manual start long shaft,after all this expense and trouble,the boat still pulls to the right,the dealer is no help,any ideas?do you think mercury will make it right?please help

 

[Vlad D Impeller]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

you might wanna check and see that it is not the hull thats causing the problem.

 

[gabby1]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

how do you check the hull

 

[ntoracn@yahoo.com]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

You need to be at the dealer who sold you the stuff on doing whatever they need to do to make it right. Don't wait, get down there tomorrow and take it all the way to the owner if you have too. Then let us know what they did to fix it.

 

[gabby1]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

i agree fast,but i bought the boat at one dealer and the motor at another,i have been back to both dealers with no results they changed the prop with no results,now they are going to get a prop from a different manufacturer.i did put the motor on a different boat and it pulled bad to the right to,so i have to believe it is the motor.raising the motor helped,but i am as high as i can go,if i could raise it another inch or two i believe that would cure the problem,i do not understand why the shaft on the motor is 22 and half inches long?everything is still under warranty,so i will keep fighting untill i get it fixed,the dealers do not really care.today i am calling mercury and tracker,we will see if there is any customer service,hard to come by these days!!

 

[wilde1j]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

I don't think you adjusted the torque tab correctly ... it should be moved in SMALL increments to the side of the pulling, starting with the tab in line with the boat's keel. I doubt a different prop will make any difference. Are you sure the motor is centered on the transom? Are you sure the shaft length is correct? Measure from the inside of the mounting bracket where it rests on the transom to the cav plate. Stds are 15, 20 and 25" in small motors, and your motor should be close to one of those.

 

[Navigator]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

gabby,<br />I've not had any experience with the merc 25, but does the motor pivot extremely easy? Most engines have a bolt or some device that enables you to add resistance to the pivot. If the engine swings too easy, then when you let go, the tiller will immediately start swinging and it will get scarry.<br /><br />Try tightening the pivot and see if the problem is reduced.<br /><br />Nav

 

[ntoracn@yahoo.com]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

I would agree that the above should be checked. I would remind these people that your the customer who spent good money to buy their stuff. If they are unwilling to make it right by you, you either want your money back or the two dealers start talking to each other and decided what is wrong and who's going to fix it. If they don't start helping you out, your going to tell evryone you know the lack of service or care they provided you and you will get it fixed elsewhere and sue them in Small Claims Court for the cost of fixxing the problem.

 

[ehenry]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

Gabby, I have the exact engine you have and experience the same problem. After adjusting the tourque tab on lower unit it still pulled some just not as bad. I also raised the engine so the cavitation plate is even with the bottom of the boat and it still pulled some. <br /><br />If you look in between the mounting bracket and the lower part of the power head you will see a red lever that is your friction adjustment. If after moving it to tighten the steering up you still experience a tourque pull, there is a nut on top of the friction adjustment that you can tighten to give more friction adjustment. this is what I had to do to fix my problem. The only time I dont tighten the friction adjustment down is when I'm in a tight spot and needing to manuver alot..otherwise I keep fairly tight while up on plane and cruising. HOpe this helps.

 

[gabby1]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

thanks for the help,the friction adjustment is set where i am comfortable with it,wildeone the torque tab has been ajusted in small increments,makes no difference,still pulls to the right,the motor is centered perfectly on the transom,the boat transom is 20 inches any way you measure it,the shaft on the motor measures 22 inches,i raised the motor to the top of the transom per mercurys instructions according to dealer,and this helped,but still pulls right while planing,also i do not think that after buying a new boat and motor i should have to put a piece of wood under the moter to raise it but it did help,i have had jon boats all my life and have never had this problem,if i could raise the motor another inch i think it would help a bunch,but i am at the top of my transom now.this makes me sick the dealers are not much help,mercury is no help,do not really know where to turn now.any ideas how i can get the motor up another inch?i raised it one inch with a block of wood,that put my motor clamps only one inch from the top of the transom,would a jackplate or something along those lines work? efhenry do you still have this problem?have you had any other problems with your motor?thanks to all of you

 

[ehenry]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

Thats the only problem I've had and adjusting the friction its what did the trick for me.

 

[wilde1j]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

BTW, adjust the tab for neutral helm @ WOT, not a lower power setting.

 

[ehenry]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

Gabby1, did you ever get your problem fixed? You never said where the cavitation plate was in relation to the bottom of the hull. I'd like to know if you got it straightened out.

 

[gabby1]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

e,f henry hello,no i have not got the problem fixed,but i am not done trying,i plan on taking this problem as far as i have to to get it taken care of!!!the motor was recommended by the dealer for the boat,that is why i traded my 1981 35 hp johnson in on it,never ever had a problem with the old johnson,but it was a short shaft and i needed a long shaft,that is the only reason i traded,after i had the pulling poblem with the new motor,i told the mechanic to measure the motor shaft and he said he allready knew that it was 22 and a half inches long,and said that is how they make them to accommodate a wide variety of boats,well in my eyes a long shaft is suppose to be 20 inches,if the motor was up two inches off the transom i believe my problem would be gone,i blocked the motor,per mercurys instructions, up 1 inch and that helped a bunch,but the motor clamps are only one inch down from the top of the transom now,so i can not go any higher with it,by the way the transom is 20 inches,i have to get back to the dealer for a different prop if that doesnt help the mechanic said,the next step is going to be to get there mercury rep involved.hey if you get a chance measure your shaft for me and let me know what it measures please.well enough for now,have a great day

 

[JOHNNY BOAT]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

GABBI ,go to this site and look under engines then outboards what it seems is that you have a 2 1/2 inch extension on a 20" shaft. http://www.mercurypartsexpress.com

 

[ehenry]

Re: new 2004 25 hp mercury problems

I'll measure it this afternoon when I get in from work and post tomorrow. I"m pretty sure mine is a short shaft.<br /><br />Where is the cavitation plate of the engine in relation to the bottom of the boat? Is it below the bottom of the boat? Even with the bottom? Everything I've read on this forum is that the cavitation plate needs to be even with the bottom of the boat.