Hi All,
I'm purchasing a 1987 Sylvan 18' with a Mercruiser 3.0/Alpha1 combo. I went to take delivery today and we were going to go for a test ride to verify everything works. The motor runs great but there was a shifting issue. They assured me they will take care of it before I have to sign a check, which is awesome, but I'm curious as to what it could be so I know what to look for in the future.
Here's what was happening. When shifting into reverse to pull the boat away you could hear the reverse gears engaging, I haven't spent much time around I/O's so I'm not sure how much grinding is too much. It ground a little then would engage. In an attempt to shift to forward the shifter was moved but reverse never disengaged. The guy taking me for the test ride thought the shift linkage might be miss-adjusted or that the gear was sticking in the lower unit (is that even possible?). The motor ran great the whole time and there were no unusual noises other than the slight grind going into R. What would you think the problem might be?
I'm purchasing a 1987 Sylvan 18' with a Mercruiser 3.0/Alpha1 combo. I went to take delivery today and we were going to go for a test ride to verify everything works. The motor runs great but there was a shifting issue. They assured me they will take care of it before I have to sign a check, which is awesome, but I'm curious as to what it could be so I know what to look for in the future.
Here's what was happening. When shifting into reverse to pull the boat away you could hear the reverse gears engaging, I haven't spent much time around I/O's so I'm not sure how much grinding is too much. It ground a little then would engage. In an attempt to shift to forward the shifter was moved but reverse never disengaged. The guy taking me for the test ride thought the shift linkage might be miss-adjusted or that the gear was sticking in the lower unit (is that even possible?). The motor ran great the whole time and there were no unusual noises other than the slight grind going into R. What would you think the problem might be?
