New to Mercruiser I/O

Previously have always owned Johnson outboard boats and just picked up a boat with an 85 3.0L 140hp Alpha One. It has a few issues I was hoping someone might be able help me out with.

1 - The quicksilver remote throttle only button doesn't disengage the gear selector cable, so there's no way to give it throttle without it being in gear. Is this a common issue for this vintage remote? Easy fix? I've removed the button but can't see anything so far as to why it doesn't work.

2 - Idle speed. It idle's really choppy so I bumped it up a couple hundred rpms so that it runs smoother and doesn't kill on me. I then found out that I couldn't shift from forward to neutral or reverse to neutral. It would just jump from forward to reverse or reverse to neutral. Is this working as designed? Is there something else I can adjust to allow for idle speed I want AND be able to shift? Sorry the tach doesn't work, so I can't give an exact rpm, but I bet it's around 700 - 800.

3 - When under power if I steer to the left or right I can hear noise coming from the sterndrive and can feel a lot of vibration. Do these use U-joints or CV joints, or something else for that matter? If U-joints, does that sound like what it could be?

4 - As far as manuals are concerned, I've seen posts not to get the clymer's and to get a different one. Which one should I get and where can I get it?

5 - The Trim/Tilt gauge doesn't seem to work and I was curious where I would find the sender for this gauge?

6 - What temp should the engine be at once warmed up? Do these run a thermostat like a car, or is there water always flowing through?

Sorry for all the questions and thanks for any help in advance!

Mike

Re: New to Mercruiser I/O

1 - The quicksilver remote throttle only button doesn't disengage the gear selector cable, so there's no way to give it throttle without it being in gear. Is this a common issue for this vintage remote? Easy fix? I've removed the button but can't see anything so far as to why it doesn't work.

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Can you post a picture of the one you have?

2 - Idle speed. It idle's really choppy so I bumped it up a couple hundred rpms so that it runs smoother and doesn't kill on me. I then found out that I couldn't shift from forward to neutral or reverse to neutral. It would just jump from forward to reverse or reverse to neutral. Is this working as designed? Is there something else I can adjust to allow for idle speed I want AND be able to shift? Sorry the tach doesn't work, so I can't give an exact rpm, but I bet it's around 700 - 800.

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You need a tack, probably also need a tuneup, check the dwell (if you have points) check the timing, check the carb adjustment and get a tach. Wouldn't hurt to do a compression check since you know nothing about the engine. At least you will have a baseline to work from.

3 - When under power if I steer to the left or right I can hear noise coming from the sterndrive and can feel a lot of vibration. Do these use U-joints or CV joints, or something else for that matter? If U-joints, does that sound like what it could be?

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Sounds like ujoints. Could be just worn out, could also be because of water in the bellows. You REALLY need to pull the drive and check that and a bunch of other stuff since the boat is new to you.
You WILL need an alignment bar.

4 - As far as manuals are concerned, I've seen posts not to get the clymer's and to get a different one. Which one should I get and where can I get it?

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You will need 2 manuals one for the engine and one for the drive.
The drive manual is easy. It's online and downloadable for free.
http://www.boatfix.com/merc/Servmanl/6/6covr3.pdf
The engine manual you will have to buy. You need manual #10 assuming you have an 85 engine. That doesn't always happen just because the boat is 85. Do you have an engine Mercruiser serial number?

5 - The Trim/Tilt gauge doesn't seem to work and I was curious where I would find the sender for this gauge?

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The sender is on the outdrive. Look at the manual link I posted above.

6 - What temp should the engine be at once warmed up? Do these run a thermostat like a car, or is there water always flowing through?

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Is it raw water cooled or does it have a closed cooling system with antifreeze?