1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

[Hobson]

My Yamaha Saltwater Series II V250 OX66 (L250TXRW) has stopped going into gear (forward and reverse). This winter I replaced the throttle gear box for my twin outboards after having trouble with two of the engine tilt rocker switches. When I launched, starboard engine was fine, but port was rough when going into gear, but sounded ok as it was given more gas. It sounded as if it was having trouble moving into forward and reverse gears, but ran well once it caught. Thought it might be a cable adjustment related to new throttle controls. Ran fine for 15min on launch day, but second time out, 10 min into trip at cruising speed engine lost forward movement. Engine sounds fine in neutral, but will not go into forward or reverse. Checked all cable and controls and their movements match those of working twin. Everything up to the pin/bar that rotates before it dissapears into the bottom looks good. Local mechanic told me gears in lower unit, and would need new one. I ordered and switched out a new lower unit Saterday. No change. I have never replaced a lower unit but was given lots of direction, and it went well. So that's everything so far. Advice?

 

[rodbolt]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

did you carefully inspect the prop hub?
if its spun it wont provide much thrust at all;

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

The mechanic was able to spin the prop while in gear to show me that it was a gear issue on the old lower unit. The new lower unit would not spin in gear without the prop on.

 

[99yam40]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

So, you did not compare them the same way?

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

I did not write that last post clearly. I have run the same tests on the new lower unit that the local mechanic ran on the old lower unit. I tested it first before the prop was mounted to see if the shaft would spin. It rotated slowly when I started the engine, but did not spin faster in forward gear, and did not stop and spin the other direction in reverse. I mounted the prop before I put the boat back in the water but nothing changed in the water. The engine revs higher when I move the throttle forward but does not move the prop. I ran the test that the mechanic ran with the engine off, I moved the throttle into gear and the prop spun freely. He had told me this showed a problem with the gears stripped or bad in the lower unit. He said everything looked good in the upper area and thought my problem was gears in the lower unit. The new lower did not solve the problem. So I believe the upper gear mechanisms are working properly(based on my comparison with twin and mechanics evaluation) and the lower unit is new.

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

There is a metal rod in the center of the upper engine area that the throttle gear cables eventually end at. I can only see the top of it, and it looks like it is rotating properly (when compared to the twin engine). Even though it looks good up top, can what this connects to be broken, and would that explain my symptoms?

 

[cousinabe]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

i would drop the lower unit and inspect the shift rod #41 and make sure its moving correctly.
when assembling, make sure the linkage connects into the lower unit spline correctly. put everything in neutral first.

http://www.boats.net/parts/search/Yamaha/Outboard/1998/S250TXRW/CONTROL/parts.html

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

That did it. Thanks. I dropped the new lower unit slowly, and saw that I had missed the shift rod connection. I put the unit back together correctly and it now goes into gear. One problem solved!

New problem. After a few minutes the alarm goes off, and stays on. Water pump seems to be operating correctly, engine goes into gear fine. It was late last night so I have not spent the time to evaluate issue. Any thoughts on what I should look for first?

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

Update: I was able to run the engine in nuetral for 3-4 minutes before the alarm started to sound. I noticed the high temperature indicator on my guages was flashing once the alarm started to sound. So it seems the alarm is related to overheating. There looked to be a good stream of water coming from the upper unit, so the pump would seem to be operating.

Before I shut the engine off, I put it into gear to make sure the gear issue was resolved, and although it went into forward and reverse correctly, it did not sound smooth once in gear. It sounded like it was possibly rubbing against something, or was in some way constricted. In nuetral everything sounded great.

 

[cousinabe]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

let's get some maint history on the motor? what have you done in the past 3 years?

do you have a winky blinky to check for any codes while the motor is running?
your high temp issues could be related to a bad water pump/wear plate, faulty thermostats, stuck open poppit valve, scaled water jackets or faulty temp sensor.

regarding the lower unit, how does the lube look? normally, i wait till my engine warms up before i shift into gear. they do make a noise too. be firm when shifting.... always shift from idle too(700-800 rpms).

are the stripers still biting in CT?

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

Engine recent history: At the beggining of last season my engine froze, and the local machanic said it was the lower unit. He had a used one that he put onto the engine (30 day warranty) and all was good for the rest of the season. Ran fine for 50-70 hrs until I stored it for winter. Changed lower unit oil at the end of season (oil was dark, but clean of debri and looked normal). New plugs and gas filters before launch, and everything sounded great for first outing (30 minutes @ cruise) while in gear. I heard it clicking when going into gear (not normal) but it was fine once in gear. Back at the dock the clicking continued going into and out of forward and reverse at low RPM, but a little gas and it went away. Secon outing, clicking continued, and 15 minutes into cruise @ 3200 rpm the engine lost forward thrust. There were no alarm issues, the engine just revved, and would not go into gear.

Local mechanic (different then the one who sold me last years lower unit), said the unit was the lower unit. Puchased new one and installed it myself (first time installation of a lower unit). With help from this forum, I was able to install the new lower unit and the gear issue is resolved.

The new issue is the overheat sensor and the feeling (sound) that the prop shaft is rubbing against something. It just does not sound smooth(the twin engine sounds clean and this new lower unit sounds forced). I noticed a grease point on the lower unit, and I did not grease anything before i put the new unit on. I do not have a winky blinky but I can try to locate one. With no overheat issue before I installed the new lower unit, I am focused on my installation and something I did not do correctly, or even a problem with the new unit out of the box.

 

[99yam40]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

Did it come with the water pump and housing attached or did you have to install a new pump?

Did you fill the lower unit with gear lube?

Is the prop rubbing on the casing? Could be the thrust washer or spacer is not right thickness

Was it a Yamaha or an after market lower unit?

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

- New lower unit came with water pump, and the stream looks good up top

- I filled the lower unit with new oil

- I will check the prop clearence and rotation after work with the engine off and in neutral to determine if it rotates cleanly and make sure it feels similar to the twin enginge

- I believe it is an after market unit. The box did not say Yamaha on the outside, but I need to make sure the box was not from the supplier, and the unit a Yamaha. I will check.

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

Update: Overheat issue and tight sounding new lower unit
1. Nothing new on overheat that i could determine. After 3-5 minutes idle, the warning alarm for overheat starts. Water stream looks good.

2. Compared twins prop spin (with engine off) to new lower unit, and the new unit was not spinning freely. I removed the prop, and the prop shaft spins freely. So the new lower unit and old prop have an issue. Same setup on the old lower unit was ok, this new unit and old prop seems to be rubbing the metal. I need to learn about the thrust washer or prop spacer mentioned above by 99yam40.

- The new unit is an after market, and not a Yamaha

 

[99yam40]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

If you believe the water pump is good then you need to be looking at the thermostats and the PRV

I am not sure the what the difference in the aftermarket lower units are , but I would think you could call the place you bought it from and ask them what needs to be done

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear

OK, I located the spacer from the old lower unit. I don't usually remove it at the end of season, so I did not notice it was missing on new unit. The rubbing issue should be gone when I install everything properly tonight. Thanks for your help.

I am now focused on the overheating. I will look into the thermostat and PRV to evaluate those two items first.

 

[Hobson]

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear and engine overheat

Re: 1998 Yamaha SSII V250 not going into gear and engine overheat

I was finally able to get back onto this overheat issue, and started with looking at the PRV. There was some sand particles in the valve, and I cleaned everything and put it back together.

I ran the engine for 10 minutes at the dock with no overheat alarm. I will take it out tonight to run it, but it lools like a stuck PRV was the problem.

Thanks to all who replied and worked with me on each of my issues.

This was a frustrating, time consuming, but ultimatly rewarding learning experience, thanks to the helpful advice found on this forum.

 

[Hobson]

1998 Yamaha SSII V250 overheat alarm at idle

1998 Yamaha SSII V250 overheat alarm at idle

I started this thread with a gear issue that was solved with a new lower unit. I now have an issue with an overheat alarm, and blinking temp signal on the display that appears and sounds 5-8 minutes after the engine is started. If I turn the engine on, and go into gear within a few minutes, there is no alarm or overheat signal on the display. So the alarm is only sounding when in neutral for a period of time just after I start the engine. If I put the engine in gear before the alarm goes off, and run it at cruising speed, the alarm does not sound, and after cruising for 20-30 minutes the engine can be put in neutral with no alarms (tested in neutral for 20-30 minutes as I came back into harbor on one engine with problem engine in neutral). Next day at dock, turn engine on, wait 8 minutes, and alarm goes off. Turned off, get to harbor mouth on one engine, turned back on and soon after put into gear, no problems cruising for day.

I first cleaned and replaced the PRV, and thought it was solved at dock after a 10 minute time with no problems. When I came back next day, before I could get out of the harbor alarm sounded. I ordered and replaced all the parts to the PRV (spring, gasket, rubber) except the plastic center valve which had been ordered incorrect and so did not arrive with the other items. No change, still overheating in neutral. I did not yet replace the center plastic valve, but I am not sure that will fix my issue.

Any ideas for my next steps would be appreciated.