Logo
FULL SITE MENU

No Way is There a Reverse

G

Gene Yerigan

Guest
"I have gone from thinking tha

"I have gone from thinking that I had stiff controls, to not being able to find neutral (stuck in forward), to having no reverse.

I disconnected the cable at the outdrive on the volvo 280 outdrive. My helm and flybridge controls were dismantled and reassembled with fresh grease and new neutral switches. The cables for acceleration and shifting work smooth and bind free when not hooked upthe the linkage in the outdrive.

When the shifting linkage at the outdrive is unhooked, as well as the cables, I am able to shift into forward or reverse by hand actuating the eccentric. When I reattach the shifting linkage to the eccentric I can maually make the shift into forward and back to neutral, but I bottom out on the reverse lock rod. It doesn't matter if I try to shorten or make the rod longer at the pivot head.

I removed the shifting yoke and pulled the reverse lock free because it seemed so loose in the hole where it disappears going back to the retaining pawl bracket. This L shaped rod seems shorter then what is shown in the manual. It is only about 3 1/2 inches long.

First I wonder if this is a 2-part assembly that has come disonnected?
Next, I wonder is there is any way to service this retaining pawl rod / thrust rod linkage while in the water? The manual says something about damage to the thrust rod might develope if not adjusted correctly. I got a feeling that is what happened.

I'm not having any problem working by leaning over the transom to access the outdrive cover"
 
"Regarding the shifting (o

"Regarding the shifting (or lack thereof), make sure the tab 32 is locking the shift cable sleeve in place in the outdrive and that both screws 33 are in place and tight.

http://www.volvopentastore.com/INTERMEDIATE_HOUSING_AQ_DRIVE_UNIT_280/dm/cart_id .497973580--category_id.333152--list_time.1218472163--session_id.797822141--stor e_id.366--view_id.327388

If OK, then make sure that the shift cable sleeve is also properly attached to the control.

Not sure which L-shape rod you are talking about; but if you are referring to part 3 on the above link,the correct dimension is almost 6"."
 
"The place to start is a "

"The place to start is a "by the book" adjustment of the system. I've done it while my boat was in the water, although I found it easier to tilt the drive all the way up and do it from the dock. The hazard will be dropping the clevis pin (and cotter pins...should replace them anyway) that is in the yoke between the eccentric and the arm that the shift cable attaches to. My experience has been that the easiest thing to do is shift it into neutral and then detach the shift cable and then follow the manual.
FYI, that L shaped rod is one piece and short and
Yes, it just sort of "rattles around" in the shift plate.
The other possibility is that the "locking plate" that retains the shift cable jacket is loose or missing. Do you have a manual?
Also many "sloppy shifting" problems are the result of the washer missing at the point where the shift cable attaches to the shift plate and failure to tighten up the lock nut ."
 
I'm going to the boat toni

I'm going to the boat tonight if it's not raining too hard and double check everything mentioned here. Thanks very much for your responses.
 
"I checked the cable attachmen

"I checked the cable attachment(item 32)and the screws that attach it are tight. The sleeve is also tight at the helm and flybridge controls. If I unhook the cable at the outdrive, it operates smooth with no binding.

I have attached a picture that show the cable unattached and the control rod attached, but manually adjusted as close to reverse as I can move it. This is hardly out of neutral (horizontal eccentric).
216539.jpg
attached"">

The second picture shows what I need to achieve to reach the reverse position. The problem is that the gear yoke is prevented from any motion by the 'L shaped' retaining pawl rod.
216540.jpg
unattached"">

I am working by leaning over the transom and the drive is tilted all the way up. There is something preventing the retaining pawl rod from allowing the eccentric to pivot to the reverse position and I can't make it happen by the threaded portion of the adjustment rod head. I have no problem reaching these areas but is there something behind the drive that I need to access?"
 
"1)Loosen locknut on the a

"1)Loosen locknut on the adjustment rod at the eccentric.
2)Leave adjustment rod disconnected at the bottom
3) Put eccentric in Neutral
4)With shifter cable disconnected, gently push the L shaped rod #3 in until it just BARELY contacts part #45.
5) turn adjuster rod until the L just slides into its hole in the shifter plate #2. Install washer and cotter,
6) See if you have full shift range of motion. (don't bother with the shift cable at this point)

If you do,
7) lock the nut on the adjuster,
8) Put shift lever in Neutral
9) Put drive in Neutral
10) Adjust the end on the shifter cable until it
just slides into its hole in the shifter plate.
11) Install washer and cotter.

I suspect that you won't be able to do step #10 and you may have to adjust the cable length AT THE SHIFTER in order to get things to line up in the drive."
 
BTW...as a first check before

BTW...as a first check before all of this... make sure that #45 moves freely (downward or forward) and springs back when released. You can get to this by reaching around to the front of the drive in the area where it latches to the transom when down.

My guess is that this boat had a reverse kickup problem and it got "fixed" improperly.
 
"Steps 1 -5 are what I was try

"Steps 1 -5 are what I was trying to do up until this point. I have a feeling that the #45 piece is not moving freely like you have mentioned as a possibility. I will verify this tonight.

If this is the case, am I facing a haul out to service this? Thanks again."
 
"The book... Re: in water se

"The book... Re: in water service... A mask snorkle... don't drop anything. As you can see in the attached, the "yoke of the retaining catch" is what the "retaining pawl rod" ( L shaped rod) pushes on when shifting into reverse. It only rotates about 30 degrees or so when the rod pushes on it.

BTW... Did this ever work for you?

216579.jpg
"
 
"The key phrase was 'make

"The key phrase was 'make sure that #45 moves freely'. It was as I suspected and you impelled me to do. I was able to just bearly reach down to the lock brace #45 and free it up. It was very hard to push with my thumb, but it did slowly spring back. I did this as many times as I could stand and it seemed to be springing back a little better each time.

I then put a screw driver in one of the holes of the shifting yoke and used that as a handle to force the rod that actuates this lock brace. It was binding in that area but after a half dozen pushes it got a little better. I could finnaly get the eccentric to move past neutral when I hooked up linkage without attaching the cable.

Now I was able to go through the final steps 6-11.
I went to the helm and to my relief was able to move the control lever to the reverse. I fired the engine, warmed it up, lowered the rpm and eased into reverse and what joy to be straining at the dock lines.

I think this will get me through the season, but I desperatly want to service that area of the kickout. The manual that I downloaded is easier to read then the one I have on the boat, and will be a big help when I get to the offseason service.

Thanks El Pescador, and thanks very much Robert. Having to answer the questions you posed forced me to carefully consider the next step in diognosing the problem. Even if it isn't 100% at this point, at least now I have a better idea of what I'm dealing with."
 
"Don't know where you boat

"Don't know where you boat, however what often happens is that that area gets either marine growth or an over abundance of anti fouling paint. Personally ( and this is a very personal choice!) I never use spray-on anti fouling paint.
I use brush on. It takes longer, but I get as much as I want exactly where I want it. Although there are a few spots I sometimes wish I had a spray for. Anyway, I found a water based, safe for stern drives, ablative anti fouling paint that I can brush on. As a bonus, its available in white (so its does not look like the "other drive"). A quart can is good for three or four seasons (280 drive). I like the ablative since the yard that I use pressure washes all hulls on annual haul out which pretty much leaves the drive bare of antifouling paint. :)
I paint the prop as well and quite nicely, the ablative self elects to remove itself from the prop tips after a short run where I don't really need it anyway."
 
Back
Top