1988 Maxum 20 5.0 Merc Alpha 1. When we bought the boat the dealer said it needed a shift cable and knocked off $150. Wouldnt go into neutral easily. As the boat is now at marina 400 miles away, I had the storage yard mechanic check it out. He said cable was OK, but drive oil was like black tar and had not been changed in years. He changed the oil. When I took it out it was still not going into neutral easily. Idle is exactly 650 rpm in gear. Got worst as the weekend went along. When I took it out of the water, I noticed that the drive was leaking oil from the lower fill plug. Mechanic said Oh, forgot the washer and refilled the drive and installed plug w/washer this time. Took about a pint of oil. Went out again this week, and it is as bad as ever. Dangerous to dock. Have to use key to turn off engine to dock. Cable seems to move freely, without stiffness. When the lever clicks into the neutral position, it takes 15 to 25 seconds for the drive to actually stop turning the prop. Control lever also moves into gear without having to push the locking button on the handle. What do you think?<br />Jim
