Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

Okay after getting the fuel problem sorted i took the boat on the water and found that there was no neutral or reverse. In the neutral position the boat would just start going along on idle speed and pulling the throttle back for reverse made the boat go forward, Ha made for a fun day but how do i fix this situation ?

Re: Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

What year is it to start with. Makes a difference on what manual I will link you to.
Has the drive been off, or apart for an impeller or anything like that since it worked last?

Re: Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

The boat is a 1979 wellcraft Airslot 190 with a GM 305 Merc I/O
I have no records for the boat so i cant answer that.

Re: Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

Did it ever work since you owned the boat?

Re: Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

Not that i know of, I just got it 2 weeks ago and last weekend was the first time i took it out, i also have to push in the center button to accelerate, if i just push the throttle forward the engine dies if the button is not pushed in.

Re: Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

i also have to push in the center button to accelerate, if i just push the throttle forward the engine dies if the button is not pushed in.

Click to expand...

Sounds to me like your original post was only talking about the prop moving a little bit while out of the water. When in the water the engine dies. That tells me the shift cable or something else is binding. normally a new shift cable cures most of these cases. But you bought a pig in a poke and are stuck with doing a lot of troubleshooting because you don't know any history.

First thing you need to do is pull the outdrive, then disconnect the lower shift cable from inside the boat and see if it moves very easily. If not you need a shift cable.
Also look for water in the bellows, check the gear lube (milky is bad) and have a look at the manuals. They are quite large.

1.4GB for the engine manual, here is the link
http://www-alt.mercurymarine.com/mnetdata/SERVICE/CRUISER/Servmanl/03/cover.pdf

For your drive, which includes shift cable information, here is the link. 301MB
http://www-alt.mercurymarine.com/mnetdata/SERVICE/CRUISER/Servmanl/04/cover.pdf

Re: Merc 898 no neutral or reverse

I removed the drive shaft housing from the bell housing and found the problem was just a a matter of cleaning out a gummed up cable and lever.I greased all applicable parts replaced the gasket replaced the gear oil and reassembled the drive shaft to the bell housing.
So far second problem solved.

Thanks for the links they really help now i can work on almost any problem.

Thanks again for the help, until my next outing