Problem with Mercruiser outdrive

[HeartofDixie]

Yesterday we were out at the lake. It was really crowded being a holiday weekend. Anyway this huge boat came by us leaving about a 3ft wake behind it. When it got to me I throttled down some so as not to shoot my boat airborn off of it. I still hit harder than I wanted too. About 30 seconds later, my engine revved and my out drive lost power. Now it will run at a slow idle speed, but it I throttle up, it just revs the motor. If I put it in forward and turn the prop by hand, now there is a clicking noise that was not there before. Any ideas on what happened and how expensive to fix? It is a 1969 Glastron with a 120hp mercruiser I/O. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Problem with Mercruiser outdrive

Any ideas on what happened and how expensive to fix? It is a 1969 Glastron with a 120hp mercruiser I/O.

Either the Prop Hub, or the Engine Coupler is Slipping.........

Try your spare Prop 1st,.......
If it Still Slips,..... The Coupler is Bad.......

 

[HeartofDixie]

Re: Problem with Mercruiser outdrive

Thank you Bond-o. If it is the engine coupler, is that hard to fix? and is it very expensive? I have done sank alot of money into this boat and now my wife is telling me to get rid of it. Maybe if it's not very expensive I can talk her into letting me fix it.

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Problem with Mercruiser outdrive

Put the spare prop on first.....
If that won't work........
Did the engine overheat or start to get hot?.....
How old is the shift cable?....
Will the boat shift into fwd & rev?.....
If it is indeed the coupler.....
You will need to remove the drive & the engine to replace the coupler..
A new coupler will run 2-300 dollars new, but good used ones turn up on ebay much cheaper......
I would pull the drive, ($10 gasket set) & look at the condition of the splines on the input shaft, & take a flashlight & look through the gimbal bearing to look at the coupler itself........
If it looks chewed or you see metal shavings, it is probably the coupler....
Poor alignment will damage couplers, you will need to check alignment with an alignment tool & determine what caused it.....
IE, rotted transom, bad rear motor mounts.......​

 

[sea wolf]

Re: Problem with Mercruiser outdrive

Thank you Bond-o. If it is the engine coupler, is that hard to fix? and is it very expensive? I have done sank alot of money into this boat and now my wife is telling me to get rid of it. Maybe if it's not very expensive I can talk her into letting me fix it.

If the wife says it's too expensive get rid of HER. If my wife told me that, she'd be packing.

 

[JustJason]

Re: Problem with Mercruiser outdrive

if you put the shifter in forward and turn the prop clockwise you should hear a clicking... that is the clutch dog ratcheting and it is normal..... and i'm sure it was always there.....
now if you put the shifter in foward and try to turn the prop counterclockwise it should lock in to place.
if the prop ratchets or spins or does not engage counterclockwise then there is a problem in the shifting system or the lower unit itself....
if it's an old style hub make sure you didn't spin it first.