I have owned my 72 85hp Hydro Electric Shift Johnson (black end plug control box) since about 1978. It has been my baby and always ran great. To me it was the perfect outboard, plenty of power, quiet and smooth running, and great on gas. Now, I have a problem with it and I as well as a few outboard mechanics are stumped. It starts and runs but quits. I could be running full throttle-38-40 mph and BAM it just quits! It almost throws us out of the seats it shuts down so fast. No sputtering, nothing. Completely without warning it just shuts down. Then it won't start at all. I have to wait about 45 minutes and it starts right back up! It is completely unpredictable. Sometimes it will run fine for hours and then other times I can get about 20 minutes out of it. Needless to say we are getting tired of getting towed back to the dock. The motor feels cool to the touch when it breaks down and doesn't appear to be overheating. I had it to the shop several times and have tried and replaced everything 2 or 3 times. Points, coils, dist, wires, plugs, stator, wpump, carbs, fuel filter, etc to no avail. We even replaced the CDI Power Pack 3 times @ 350.00 each! I am actually embarased at how much cash I have sunk into her over this problem. Still the problem exists. I appreciate any insight you guys might have on this. I don't want to get rid of her if I don't have to. Thanks in advance.
