"May want to start with some o
"May want to start with some other basics...
Make sure you have a fully charged and good battery.
Make sure the battery terminals are clean...use a wire wheel on a electric drill to clean them.
Make sure the wing nuts on the battery are tight. Tighten them with a wrench...not just your hand.
Then to the engine...
Continue to check a few more electrical things before going to the tilt motor.
Check the main battery cord coming into your engine. Its ground attaches to the starter. Be sure that connection is clean and tight.
Check the positive connection at the starter solinoid. Clean and tight
Also check the cable for any wear or gnawling by critters during storage.
Now check the ground connection for the power tilt relays. It is located just to the left of the oil filter. There should be several wires attached there.
Basically, if you do not hear clicking...
-You are missing battery or ground to the tilt relays.
-No voltage is coming from the switch to the relays.
-Or the relays are bad.
If you hear clicking when you push the tilt switch, the relays are working. Still make sure all of the battery connections previously talked about are good. If there is a bad connection or bad cable, the voltage will read good until theree is a load put on it. Then, due to the resistance in the bad connection, there will be a voltage drop, hence the motor will not operate.
Then you want to go to the large round connector that connects the trim motor to the relays. It is located to the left of the trim switch down in the cowling. It has two large wires going to it from the trim motor.
Pull it apart and check for voltage when you push the trim button. Be careful...if you have an analog meter (the non digital meter). The polarity will change when you press up to when you press down. If you have a digital meter, you should be ok.
If you have voltage that reverses polarity at that point, then try to apply 12v and ground directly to the motor. It will spark a lot, but just make the connection for a couple of seconds. It the motor does not run, then you have a faulty motor.
If there is no clicking...
I assume you are trying to operate the tilt from the switch on the engine.
Your neighbor can check the voltage coming from the switch by tracing the wire to bullet connectors under the black cover (over a connector holder) on the port side of your engine. When you push up, +12v should be on the light green lead. If you push down, +12v should be on the light blue lead. They should be about 5 or 6 connectors down from the top of the connector holder.
A wiring diagram is in the back of your owner's manual.
You say your engine cranks...as I said the power cable grounds to the starter and the power goes directly to the starter solinoid.
The power to the trim and tilt goes to the tilt system from there.
Sorry, this was so long winded, but essentially you just have to follow the voltage and ground until you do not have it.
Youd neighbor may be measuring voltage at the engine, but not necessarily at the points where the tilt and trim need them."
