Good afternoon. I've read lots of threads on this forum, but this is my first post (just joined officially.)
I've got a 2004 Mercury 150hp 2-stroke "Saltwater" on my Angler 21 foot walkaround cuddy boat. I've owned the boat for 9 years and it's always been fantastic. This Spring, I had routine maintenance done by a licensed mobile marine mechanic. He did spark plugs, fuel pump, oil/water separator, thermostats and impeller. When he refit the lower unit, he took the prop off to remove some braid and checked the prop seal. Before he left my home, he had me shift the controller into forward and reverse (without engine running) to verify the prop engaged in forward/reverse, then he left.
I launched the boat (an hour and half from my house) at my marina in Mystic, CT the next morning. Drove off the trailer in reverse with no issue, got into forward and took the boat for a quick "shakedown" down the Mystic River to Long Island Sound. I was thrilled that the engine temperature was where it should be...last season it was running hot at "no wake" speed, likely the result of corroded thermostats that the mechanic had shown me.
Once I got to the Sound, I went to put the boat into neutral to test my washdown pump, livewell pump, etc. It would absolutely not shift into neutral...shifter came back a bit but not into neutral, and the slowest speed I could manage was about 7 mph. When I pulled back harder, the shifter was in the "neutral" position but still in forward gear at 7mph. I was able to pull it back a bit toward reverse, but it didn't engage neutral or reverse, and actually started accelerating as the throttle cable was obviously still moving freely. I tried again into forward, accelerating a bit, then coming back, but still stuck fast in forward. I was by myself in the boat and had to get it back to the marina. I decided not to try to shut off the motor, worried I wouldn't be able to start it without engaging neutral properly.
I made a phone call to the marina owner, who had backed me in on the ramp, and asked him to leave my trailer in the water, figuring my only shot was to get back through the marina and drive it onto the trailer, killing the ignition at the last moment.
Halfway back up the river at 7mph, the engine began "grinding" as if it's being shifted between gears too slowly, and the throttle seemed to come up, all without me touching the controller. I decided safe was better than sorry and shut the motor off and threw an anchor (was in a shallow area with a strong wind) and called Sea Tow.
Got towed back to the launch, and winched my boat back onto the trailer. I left the boat at the marina for the same mechanic to come look at in the morning. He called me the next morning to tell me the motor "was shifting okay" and sent me a 15 second video of the shift linkage moving properly with the shift controller (not running, just testing the movement.) He had another appointment and didn't have time to diagnose anything. He thought it might be a bad shift cable (frayed area in the cable somewhere.)
I towed the boat home and found a local boat shop to replace the shift and throttle cables. They did the work and tested everything on muffs, saying it's "shifting great."
I towed the boat home, and the next day again drove 90 minutes to the marina, launched the boat, and all was great, until it wasn't. Fished with a buddy for 2 hours, probably running the motor a total of 20 or 30 minutes between spots, then when I reached one reef, I tried to shift into neutral....stuck in forward at 7mph. Wouldn't come out of forward. I headed for the marina at 7-9 mph over about 30 minutes. When I was close to the marina entrance, I decided to try shifting again, and the boat went right into neutral. I was then able to get forward slow and crawl into the marina at 3 mph, and was able to get back into neutral and reverse to maneuver back to the ramp.
Now the boat is back at my house, and I'm waiting to bring it back to the boat shop to look into things. One mechanic there, who admitted he wasn't an outboard mechanic, but does all their I/O work, told me to check the "Shift Interruptor Switch" in case that wasn't engaging, slowing the RPM's to shift. I looked online at my engine's Mercury diagrams and couldn't find any such switch, and today checked the motor...just a neutral safety switch located directly under the neutral spot on the shift selector.
I read about some issues with outboards being stuck in forward when a lower unit is put back on, related to the position of the shift spline on the lower unit itself. Seems that this would cause "only forward" or "only reverse", not an intermittent issue like I have. I've never had any difficulty shifting since I've owned it, and with the new cables and the controller shifting OK with the motor off, I'm not sure what's going on. I just checked my lower unit oil (was replaced by mobile mechanic at the end of last season during winterizing) just to be sure, and it was full and clear. I ran the motor on muffs just now. Shifts into forward and reverse, but I notice a "clanking" coming from the lower unit or prop that I've never heard before.
Now I'm waiting for a call from the boat shop's "outboard guy" and hopefully he'll have some insight. The mobile mechanic who worked on the boat a couple months ago doesn't seem interested in driving across the state to even look at it.
Anybody ever hear of a similar issue? Maybe a corrosion issue, lower unit issue, or something not put back on correctly after impeller? Sorry for the long story, but it's been a long Spring/Summer without my boat in the water. UGH! I'm "O for 2" on the water and have zero confidence until I can have someone tell me they found and corrected the issue. I'd hate to be miles offshore or up in Rhode Island when/if this recurs.
Thanks for any input/advice.
Pete
I've got a 2004 Mercury 150hp 2-stroke "Saltwater" on my Angler 21 foot walkaround cuddy boat. I've owned the boat for 9 years and it's always been fantastic. This Spring, I had routine maintenance done by a licensed mobile marine mechanic. He did spark plugs, fuel pump, oil/water separator, thermostats and impeller. When he refit the lower unit, he took the prop off to remove some braid and checked the prop seal. Before he left my home, he had me shift the controller into forward and reverse (without engine running) to verify the prop engaged in forward/reverse, then he left.
I launched the boat (an hour and half from my house) at my marina in Mystic, CT the next morning. Drove off the trailer in reverse with no issue, got into forward and took the boat for a quick "shakedown" down the Mystic River to Long Island Sound. I was thrilled that the engine temperature was where it should be...last season it was running hot at "no wake" speed, likely the result of corroded thermostats that the mechanic had shown me.
Once I got to the Sound, I went to put the boat into neutral to test my washdown pump, livewell pump, etc. It would absolutely not shift into neutral...shifter came back a bit but not into neutral, and the slowest speed I could manage was about 7 mph. When I pulled back harder, the shifter was in the "neutral" position but still in forward gear at 7mph. I was able to pull it back a bit toward reverse, but it didn't engage neutral or reverse, and actually started accelerating as the throttle cable was obviously still moving freely. I tried again into forward, accelerating a bit, then coming back, but still stuck fast in forward. I was by myself in the boat and had to get it back to the marina. I decided not to try to shut off the motor, worried I wouldn't be able to start it without engaging neutral properly.
I made a phone call to the marina owner, who had backed me in on the ramp, and asked him to leave my trailer in the water, figuring my only shot was to get back through the marina and drive it onto the trailer, killing the ignition at the last moment.
Halfway back up the river at 7mph, the engine began "grinding" as if it's being shifted between gears too slowly, and the throttle seemed to come up, all without me touching the controller. I decided safe was better than sorry and shut the motor off and threw an anchor (was in a shallow area with a strong wind) and called Sea Tow.
Got towed back to the launch, and winched my boat back onto the trailer. I left the boat at the marina for the same mechanic to come look at in the morning. He called me the next morning to tell me the motor "was shifting okay" and sent me a 15 second video of the shift linkage moving properly with the shift controller (not running, just testing the movement.) He had another appointment and didn't have time to diagnose anything. He thought it might be a bad shift cable (frayed area in the cable somewhere.)
I towed the boat home and found a local boat shop to replace the shift and throttle cables. They did the work and tested everything on muffs, saying it's "shifting great."
I towed the boat home, and the next day again drove 90 minutes to the marina, launched the boat, and all was great, until it wasn't. Fished with a buddy for 2 hours, probably running the motor a total of 20 or 30 minutes between spots, then when I reached one reef, I tried to shift into neutral....stuck in forward at 7mph. Wouldn't come out of forward. I headed for the marina at 7-9 mph over about 30 minutes. When I was close to the marina entrance, I decided to try shifting again, and the boat went right into neutral. I was then able to get forward slow and crawl into the marina at 3 mph, and was able to get back into neutral and reverse to maneuver back to the ramp.
Now the boat is back at my house, and I'm waiting to bring it back to the boat shop to look into things. One mechanic there, who admitted he wasn't an outboard mechanic, but does all their I/O work, told me to check the "Shift Interruptor Switch" in case that wasn't engaging, slowing the RPM's to shift. I looked online at my engine's Mercury diagrams and couldn't find any such switch, and today checked the motor...just a neutral safety switch located directly under the neutral spot on the shift selector.
I read about some issues with outboards being stuck in forward when a lower unit is put back on, related to the position of the shift spline on the lower unit itself. Seems that this would cause "only forward" or "only reverse", not an intermittent issue like I have. I've never had any difficulty shifting since I've owned it, and with the new cables and the controller shifting OK with the motor off, I'm not sure what's going on. I just checked my lower unit oil (was replaced by mobile mechanic at the end of last season during winterizing) just to be sure, and it was full and clear. I ran the motor on muffs just now. Shifts into forward and reverse, but I notice a "clanking" coming from the lower unit or prop that I've never heard before.
Now I'm waiting for a call from the boat shop's "outboard guy" and hopefully he'll have some insight. The mobile mechanic who worked on the boat a couple months ago doesn't seem interested in driving across the state to even look at it.
Anybody ever hear of a similar issue? Maybe a corrosion issue, lower unit issue, or something not put back on correctly after impeller? Sorry for the long story, but it's been a long Spring/Summer without my boat in the water. UGH! I'm "O for 2" on the water and have zero confidence until I can have someone tell me they found and corrected the issue. I'd hate to be miles offshore or up in Rhode Island when/if this recurs.
Thanks for any input/advice.
Pete