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Esa 1989 305

pbrad118

pbrad118

Member
I have a 1989 bayliner with a 305, have a Electronic distributer in it. i have got it to start, but when i have the purple and gray wire pluged up from the ESA it will not start. but when i unplug the esa it will start. is their something that i am missing. any help with this as always will be a great help
 
Re: ESA

you need a upgraded esa, i don't trust the fix you can make up from radio shack.

Me i unplugged my esa 7 years ago a week after i got my boat.

There is one other way wire it like a merc,

. You must shift quick l it will stumble the engine just like a merc,

Your idle should be around 600 in gear warm motor.
 
Last edited:
Re: ESA

Chiefs right...either the ESA is bad or an old one that won't work with electronic ignition. Company called CDI/Rapair makes the newer style, or the Pertronix diode fix (most have mixed feelings about it) or the interrupt switch as the Chief mentioned.
 
The ESA i have from my understanding is new and never been use, and is for a electronic ignition. on heregot it from a guy on here name rcahill31
 
The esa module you are using works with the points? Then it won't just work with the new elect. dist. without the diode fix, thats a fact.

You need a new module that works with the electronic dist.

Hey it's not me it's the way it is.

You asked i told.

Wire it like a merc. To the block.

The interrupt will then stumble the engine for a second when shifting.

Please re-read my first reply concerning idle.
 
The new style ESA's will work with electronic or points ignitions. Is there any name and numbers on it to verify it's the new style?
 
pbrad118 said:
The ESA i have from my understanding is new and never been use, and is for a electronic ignition. on heregot it from a guy on here name rcahill31
Click to expand...

If you must have ESA, get rid of the mirco switch and activate it with a waterproof button installed on instrument console. You don't need to scramble the firing order going into gear, only coming out. Only use it as needed. Relying on the OEM mechanical contraption to activate it is a waste of time.
 
ESA = Electronic Shift Assist. When activated, voltage from coil to spark plugs is interrupted to intentionally make your engine run crappy, puts less load on shift dog making it easier to pull away from drive gear.
 
floater1 said:
What does ESA stand for and what does it do?
Click to expand...

Electronic Shift Assist

It stumbles the engine to make directional shifting easier. Easier on the cable and control.

When functioning properly, an OMC drive shifts really nice- two finger, butter smooth shifting.
 
Some common Cobra problems with ESA activation:
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1. Micro-switch not working and/or shorted.
2. Micro-switch not sitting at bottom of "V".
3. Weak "V" block spring.
4. Wrong "V" block spring.
5. "V" block pivot binding.
6. Transom shift cable binding or just stiff (vertical drive must be pulled).
7. Threaded keeper at drive end of shift cable causing binding (vertical drive must be pulled).*
8. Shift rod binding in wiper (vertical drive must be pulled).
9. Shift rod/bell crank misalignment (vertical drive must be pulled).
10. Stiff bell crank pivot (vertical drive must be pulled).
11. Improper transom shift cable adjustment (vertical drive must be pulled to adjust properly).
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Once all of the above are working perfectly, you'll have two finger - butter smooth shifting.
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