Neutral Safety Switch?

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rkilpa

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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Oct 16, 2009
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1997 Reinell 180 w/Volvo Penta 4.3GL PLKD purchased new

I have an intermittent starting problem that has gotten progressively worse through the years.

Sometimes when I turn the ignition key, there is no reaction. No start, no click....just silence. At first, I could move the shift lever back and forth a couple of times and it would start. Lately, this action hasn't been 100% successful and I have had to "tap" the starter with a wrench to get it to start. However, tapping the starter doesn't work all the time, so I am thinking that it is just coincidence that it starts after a tap because I am moving the shift lever again before I turn the key.

Based on the threads I've read on this subject, if I don't hear a "click" when turning the key it is more than likely the neutral safety switch located in the shift lever that is causing the no-start situation.

My boat is currently 200 miles away so I can't look at it or bypass the switch to test this theory. Without seeing the unit, I am hoping someone with the same boat or experience can help me.

My questions are...

1) If it is a bad switch inside the throttle assembly, can it be replaced separately or would it be integrated into the throttle and need to be replaced as an entire unit?

2) What are the cheapest sources to purchase an OEM switch or shifter unit and does anyone know the part numbers used in my boat?

3) How irresponsible would it be if I bypassed the switch for several outings to see if the problem goes away? (I am the only operator)

Thanks in advance.
 

Don S

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Re: Neutral Safety Switch?

Pull the control and check the switch. Normally when problems like your's occure, it's just a loose switch, once tightened up all works normally.
 

rkilpa

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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78
Re: Neutral Safety Switch?

The boat is garaged at a vacation house, so I don't have the time or the ability to work on it like I would prefer. I was just there the other day and I looked over how the throttle control was mounted and determined that removing it would be more difficult and time-consuming than what I anticipated.

It appears that it is mounted from behind with simple bolts and nuts. However, the switch seams to be buried in the housing and will require complete disassembly to get to. I could see the yellow/red wires easily and was tempted to splice them together....

I just started tightening everything I could access. Everything on the back-side seamed tight. I did find that a screw on the front-side of the housing just forward of the throttle was loose. It took several full rotations to tighten it-up.

When I took the boat out, it started without issues. However, the problem has been intermittent, so I will have to go on more outings for a complete analysis.

Is it possible that the loose screw tightened the switch to the housing and that was the fix? That would be too easy.
 

rkilpa

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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Oct 16, 2009
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Sorry to bring a 4 year old post back to the front, but I noticed this post had over 1800 views so I thought others might be looking for an easy solution. I didn't want the expense or trouble of replacing a shift controller to correct the safety switch problem, so I thought of a solution that I still consider safe.

Instead of bypassing the safety switch permanently, I spliced into both wires going into the throttle control and connected them to an unused accessory toggle switch on my console. With the switch left off, the neutral safety switch still functions as intended and is where it stays the majority of the time. Only if I find myself in a no-start situation will I consciously verify that the drive is in neutral and then flip the switch to bypass the safety feature. The engine now starts every time I need it to. Once the engine starts, I flip the switch back to off so the feature is active for the next start.

Although the problem of the failing switch still exists, this solution has put me at ease when I find myself drifting towards rocks and the boat now starts on demand.
 
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bruceb58

Supreme Mariner
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30,454
Your boat likely came with the OMC control. I had exact issue. I replaced my control.
 

Jobe_Pro

Cadet
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Jul 6, 2012
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I realize this is a very old post, I also have a Volvo Penta 4.3lt V6 SX-M Cobra drive in a 1998 Glastron 185GS and I am also having pretty much the same issue, only difference if you open the engine bay up when you are trying to crank it over I noticed the fuel pump is coming on, no bendix drive click or starter spin.
The starter is barely used but I pulled it and bench test to be sure and it works perfectly, relay appears fine, tested relay in my tilt/trim and worked fine. Ignition seems good and all fuses are good. I also bypassed the kill switch and had no effect.

Also It appears that the neutral safety Maybe be working, as while trying to start as mentioned I can hear the fuel pump, but if I move the throttle lever to forward or reverse the pump shuts off, if I push in the button to be able to add throttle for starting in neutral the pump continues to work.
My next step was to bypass the neutral safety switch, but I’m not sure with this symptom.
 
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