Logo
FULL SITE MENU

Newbie - Problem with Mercruiser Shifting

8

82SeaRay

New member
Hello - I am brand new to this whole Mercruiser world. Last Fall we were out on the lake in an old 82 Searay with a 4cyl Mercruiser. When we were done for the day, we headed for the shore and when we went to pull the throttle back to neutral(after decelerating), it stuck and wouldn't come out of gear. In a panic, my wife pulled it harder and it finally popped out of gear but then it wouldn't go into reverse or forward. It was at low throttle when she couldn't get it out of gear so it's not like it was at high rpm. I thought maybe just a bad cable so I looked into it and the selector up front is moving normal and the selector at the out drive is moving back and forth. Before I tear it apart, any suggestions as to where to start looking?

We did notice before this happened, it would hit hard when we put it in gear. If it helps, we believe it's the original out drive and the serial number is: 6331232.

Thanks in advance!
 
Lower idle rpm to ~ 650-700.............if too high it makes it hard to shift.

Also remove lower drain plug at outdrive and drain some of the gear lube out and see what color it is...........if not brown or dark brown or purple you may have outdrive issues........if there is any grey color it is metal.........shifting into gear at high rpm around 1000 + can damage the gears. also if water comes out you may have a seal leak and possible gear/bearing damage..........

If you drain lube out you should drain it all and refill following proper procedures........ dont run it low on oil........

You may also have an issue with the shift interrupter switch if it will not come out of gear.........without that working it is very difficult to shift OUT of gear.

Some of this is difficult to explain to a "NEWBIE"..............So it may take time for you to catch on.........
 
Last edited:
Back
Top