Engine Dies once put into gear

[thirtydaZe]

Asking a question for a girl I work with.

They have an '82 Mark Twain Bow rider, I/O. Just purchased it, had the carbs rebuilt at the marine center, had water in the tank so they had that drained.

On their first voyage out every thing ran well for them. They had run the boat for about 45 minutes, at which point they shut down to float.

When they went back to go again, it started fine but when they went to put it in gear the engine would immediately die. In forward and reverse.

Ended up needing to get towed back.

Any ideas what this might be?

Thanks.

 

[ronp]

Check shifting cables for binding or crossed.

 

[Lazy Daze]

It might better for us to know whether it's a Merc or an OMC (and the drive) than what boat it is...:smt001

However, look for where the "shifting" happens on top of the engine. You'll be looking for a small microswitch that gets depressed for a split second during the shift. It's the shift interrupt switch and is designed to momentarily kill the engine to make shifting less harsh on the gears. It's probably getting hung up.

As noted above, it could means the cable needs adjusting. Or, depending on the style, you might just be able to bend the little metal arm a bit.