Mariner 15 hp 2003 cannot be lowered down

"A weird problem has occured w

"A weird problem has occured with my 2 stroke 15 hp mariner that I bought new on 2003 (2003 model). One day, after 3-4 months of use, suddenly, after I raised the enfine, I just could not lower it down as I used to before. I never understood what is wrong. Apparently, this has nothing to do with the lock-unlock switch, which has been always in the unlock position. Although I have greased the pins (in particular the one with the spring) the problem has not been fixed. Therefore, since then, I have simply tied a rope to the tilt mechanism on the back of the engine, which I push in (when I am in the boat) and then the engine is lowered down. What could have gone wrong? Note that the engine was almost new when this happened and the dealer had no idea. I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks,

Dimitris"

"Hi Dimitris, just my two cent

"Hi Dimitris, just my two cents' worth - could it be that there is something in the mounting of the motor that is preventing it from tilting all the way up, those last few fractions of a centimeter it needs to travel upwards beyond the lock position to disengage the tilt lock?

At least on my older 15 hp I often really have to work on releasing the motor just because of the way the control cables and steering bracket have been installed on the boat. They seem to get into the way of the motor moving upwards past the top locking position, and getting the tilt lock to release seems to be a question of tilting the engine up a few extra millimeters.

However, the fact that the problem occurred suddenly might suggest some other explanation in your case.

BR, Tom"

"Tom,

Thanks much for your

"Tom,

Thanks much for your reply. To be honest, I had suspected that there might have been something to get into the way when moving up the motor. I checked it again, after your comment, but still I do not see any obstacle. I will try to lubricate everything again, and may be remount the engine all over from the beginning. I wonder if the problem is related to the fact that I have not screwed the bottom screws that penetrate through the boat body (that is the motor is simply attached to the boat throught the two transom clamp screws). I also wonder if the problem could be related to the lubrication of the tilt tube lubrication fittings, which I have not ever lubricated.

Best regards,

DK"

"Strange indeed. I would imagi

"Strange indeed. I would imagine that it shouldn't make much difference whether the clamp bracket is bolted to the transom or simply screwed on with the clamps (mine is also not bolted).

However, you never know - maybe not using the bolts will allow the mounting to flex a tiny bit, making it difficult to reach the top slot of the tilt mechanism where the pivot pin (I think that's what it's called) needs to travel to get back down around the top edge of its pathway and thus release the lock. Might try to bolt it through myself if I have time at some point.

At least if you have the motor off the boat and on a work table, it will be a lot easier to get a look at the mechanism and try to see what is causing the problem. Took me a while to figure out how it works, as it's not immediately obvious when looking at it upside down over the transom...

Good luck!"