Expert: tyler boehner - 2/13/2008

Question
I have a 1985 Blue Water 16 ft boat. When shifting from nuetral to forward or reverse the engine runs fine but when shifting from forward or reverse into nuetral the engine dies. I was told the interupter switch needed adjusted. Can you tell me the proper proceedure for this?

Answer
If the motor is dieing, the interupter switch is doing it's job.  You probably need a new cable.  The interupter switch kills the engine when one of the cables, usually the intermediate shift cable has worn out and is hanging up.  Is the boat hard to shift.  Does the control box feel like it is getting harder to get in and out of gear.  If so, you need a new cable, your switch is probably fine.  The shift cable from the control box to the motor isn't too hard to replace, but the intermediate cable that runs from the motor to the outdrive is usually the one that goes bad and is extremely hard to replace if you don't know how and don't have the tools.