Shifting issues related to electrical wiring

[davids1718]

Good day to all. I have a 92 chris craft concept 228 cuddy. For the 2 years ive owned the boat i have always had shifting issues that i feel are related to the wiring. Previous owner installed MSD Distributor and Coil. However the tach wire connection from distributor isnt wired nor is the black wire from coil side of harness. Engine is a GM 350 small block 5.7L. I noticed there is a set of wires (factory wires) that have been cut near the rear of distributor as well as a disconnected wire from the alternator. The 2 wires cut at tbe rear near tbe trim sender connector look like its tan black stripe and a black wire. I have the clymers manual but there is an area that is not identified. Could these 2 wires be what i need to splice for tach and ground? Also upon further investigation i noticed the purple white wire from alternator wasnt wired to the choke however a red wire was wired from the 50 amp fuse to the choke. Is it possible if i connected these 3 wires this could solve my shifting problem? I apologize in advance but i inherited alot of problems but am trying to address 1 by 1 with this being the first. Should i mention that there is not kill switch installed (might have been removed). I do believe prior owner had new cables and control box installed. The shift control box also has the second trim / tilt switch (i think thats the trailer mode if i did my research correct) but its not wired to the controller. Yes i know i took alot of chances running the boat with these issues but i am trying to correct them as much as i can. Thanks to covid i cant afford a mechanic at this time but i need to get her running right. The area in the wiring diagram i need help identifying is highlighted.

 

[alldodge]

Think the Tan/Blk and Blk is for the alarm. It connects to the oil pressure switch and water temp switch. May just be for another switch that is not connected or removed

Trouble with shifting is most likely from the ESA module. The module is used to cause a brief firing interrupt so the drive can be shifted. If it has been removed or not working.

The Blk/Gray wire from the negative side of the coil goes to the module. The same wire is also goes to the Tach

The choke should have a purple wire on it and not red from the breaker. The breaker will keep power on the choke full time even when key is OFF. The purple is powered up when the key is ON

 

[davids1718]

I really appreciate the reply. I have been losing my mind trying to figure what is actually missing. This boat wiring was sooooo jerry rigged and im doing my best to get it back to factory minus the MSD set up.
I definitely dont have any alarms connected (but did order a duplex alarm) cause i over heated once last year with no warning other than seeing smoke coming out the bilge (luckily i was idling at a dock waiting for a friend and the marina was up the road).
i will check the ESA and trouble shoot via youtube but i think the unit is ok.
Im glad i was right about the choke thanks for the confirmation
I am a little confused about the black and gray wires from the coil. Are you saying connect both to the tach? Im asking because the gray wire is from the distributor side of the harness and the black is the coil side of the harness. Do i run these wires all the way to the helms dash or can i splice into them from the main harness?
Once again thanks

 

[alldodge]

I'm using the wiring diagram you posted.

A motor with points would have one wire from the distributor to the negative side of the coil. There would also be a wire from the same post which would go to the Tach.

Your drawing shows a Blk/Gray wire connecting to the same locations

Merc and Volvo Penta use a gray wire to feed the distributor signal to the Tach

No the Blk wire is a ground

 

[davids1718]

Got it, i misunderstood what you originally said. When you said gray black i thought you were mentioning both wires. I really do appreciate this info. I get home in about 1 1/2hr i will rewire accordingly. But to clarify its only a gray wire not gray black (i guess its shadowing a black line). So do i run the gray all the way to the helm or splice into the main harness?
Question about the alarm wiring. Drawing is only showing a tan black wire high lighted in red (single wire not dual). Does this wire get ran to the dash?

By any chance would you know what the orange mark up is on the wiring diagram if it isnt the alarm wiring.

 

[alldodge]

The middle one shows both the oil pressure switch and the oil pressure sender. Switch connects to the ground side of the alarm circuit. The sendor goes to the gauge via the Blue wire. In many cases the oil switch/sender are Tee'd together at one location

Same goes for the water temp switch

The alarm circuit will have 12V applied to it by the key switch turning ON. The other side of the alarm goes to the switches. This way if pressure goes low, or temp gets to hot, the switches apply a ground to the alarm

 

[davids1718]

Thanks again, i had no luck working on the boat yesterday and today we have a major storm. All the info you gave isbgreatly appreciated. I hooe once i get this task complete you can still assist with my other issues. Im very greatful for you and others that aim to help out those in need.

 

[davids1718]

So upon further inspection after degreasing the engine bay area the 2 wires that are snipped can now be identified as brown with black stripe and black wire. My clymers manual doesnt recognize the brown with black stripe (unless i am not looking correctly). Any idea if this changes the possibility of these wires still being used for the alarms. My apologies for the delayed request i had vehicle problems i had to straighten out before the boat. Now that the truck is good to go i can now focus my attention to the boat.

 

[alldodge]

Tan/Blk or Brn/Blk I would still think of it as the alarm wire

 

[davids1718]

Tan/Blk or Brn/Blk I would still think of it as the alarm wire

Sorry to bother you again with this but new question. Seems as though the currently installed sensors only have a single wire to them. If i am correct i don't have a tan black wire at the main harness that i can splice into (i will be cleaning up the wires from all the electrical tape residue to confirm). If there is no tan black wire at the main harness would i be able to splice both sensors and wire them all the way to the dash? And if so do i need to just wire in a ground from the gauge then to the alarm device?

 

[alldodge]

You should have the wire and it comes from pin 4 of the connector. The alarm switches have one wire because when activated they apply a ground to the engine block. If the wire is not on pin 4 then it was removed or something strange happened

 

[davids1718]

You should have the wire and it comes from pin 4 of the connector. The alarm switches have one wire because when activated they apply a ground to the engine block. If the wire is not on pin 4 then it was removed or something strange happened

Which connector the main wire connector in front of the relays?

 

[Lou C]

Not knowing exactly what you have, I looked up your engine in an online OMC catalog...
1992 OMC Stern Drive 5.7 [574APRAMH] - Parts Lookup - Crowley Marine
and it looks like your engine had originally the Prestolite BID electronic system that was used for a few years by OMC and also Volvo. The modules seem to be NLA but might be possible to replace with a Petronix. However since you have the MSD, I'm not sure that it would work with any of the available ESA units.
Just what is the shifting issue you are having? If it is that the drive won't go into neutral, then the ESA is not activiating. This could be for a number of different reasons. Bad ESA module, not correct module for the MSD ignition, or even somthing simple like a bad microswitch. You need an OE wiring diagram to figure this out and also I'd advise calling CDI electronics in Huntsville Alabama, they make aftermarket ESA units for OMCs. They may be able to tell you if any of the ESA modules that they sell will work with the MSD ignition. The other option if it won't work with the MSD is changing it to a Delco EST system which is what Volvo used after the Prestolite BID system, that is a standard system that is available from numerous vendors.
With the engine idling in neutral if you trigger the intterupt switch, does the idle lower down to about 450 rpm? That's how it should work.
PS what is your engine model #?
here's an example of what the ESA switches look like, later models did away with the over stroke switch and have an ESA with a timer built in.
PS OMC drives never had a trailer position on the remote control/tilt and trim switch as far as I know, so if that's present it was a control added later on, there are no sensors on a Cobra for that function; all there is present is the trim indicator sensor on the starboard side of the outdrive.
Part of the problem of fixing old boats is un-doing the previous owners modifications some of which may not be too well advised!
I kept my old OMC with the points igntion system just to avoid problems with the ESA, which by the way works perfect. Mine shifts into neutral with one finger pressure on the control.

 

[alldodge]

Which connector the main wire connector in front of the relays?

The main engine connector. Look at the drawing you posted

If the wire is not there, then OMC didn't install it. If not installed, then this might also mean the switches are not there either

 

[davids1718]

Not knowing exactly what you have, I looked up your engine in an online OMC catalog...
1992 OMC Stern Drive 5.7 [574APRAMH] - Parts Lookup - Crowley Marine
and it looks like your engine had originally the Prestolite BID electronic system that was used for a few years by OMC and also Volvo. The modules seem to be NLA but might be possible to replace with a Petronix. However since you have the MSD, I'm not sure that it would work with any of the available ESA units.
Just what is the shifting issue you are having? If it is that the drive won't go into neutral, then the ESA is not activiating. This could be for a number of different reasons. Bad ESA module, not correct module for the MSD ignition, or even somthing simple like a bad microswitch. You need an OE wiring diagram to figure this out and also I'd advise calling CDI electronics in Huntsville Alabama, they make aftermarket ESA units for OMCs. They may be able to tell you if any of the ESA modules that they sell will work with the MSD ignition. The other option if it won't work with the MSD is changing it to a Delco EST system which is what Volvo used after the Prestolite BID system, that is a standard system that is available from numerous vendors.
With the engine idling in neutral if you trigger the intterupt switch, does the idle lower down to about 450 rpm? That's how it should work.
PS what is your engine model #?
here's an example of what the ESA switches look like, later models did away with the over stroke switch and have an ESA with a timer built in.
PS OMC drives never had a trailer position on the remote control/tilt and trim switch as far as I know, so if that's present it was a control added later on, there are no sensors on a Cobra for that function; all there is present is the trim indicator sensor on the starboard side of the outdrive.
Part of the problem of fixing old boats is un-doing the previous owners modifications some of which may not be too well advised!
I kept my old OMC with the points igntion system just to avoid problems with the ESA, which by the way works perfect. Mine shifts into neutral with one finger pressure on the control.

First off thanks for looking into my issue and taking the time to research before responding. With that said holy crap that is alot to absorb lol, but i will be looking into getting rid of this dam MSD set up. Seems like nothing but problems. I will update when i get home to see what i can find.

 

[davids1718]

You should have the wire and it comes from pin 4 of the connector. The alarm switches have one wire because when activated they apply a ground to the engine block. If the wire is not on pin 4 then it was removed or something strange happened

Im going to dig into the harness today when i get home. First time in 2 weeks no rain so i have to take advantage and get this figured out. Man what a job previous owner did. No wires leaving the ignition back to the fuse panel, throttle controller, etc. No wonder i had issues for 2 years since ive owned the boat.

 

[Lou C]

First off thanks for looking into my issue and taking the time to research before responding. With that said holy crap that is alot to absorb lol, but i will be looking into getting rid of this dam MSD set up. Seems like nothing but problems. I will update when i get home to see what i can find.

Yep I've had one of these Cobras almost 20 years so I am pretty familiar with the shift system. When its set up correctly they shift with 2 fingers, very easily. If your ESA system does not work you can bend parts and stretch shift cables trying to get it into neutral. I pull the drive at the end of each season and clean and lube the shifter bellcrank in the transom mount. So your main priority is getting your shift system set up right and making sure the ESA works, without that I would not even put the boat in the water because if you can't easly get it into neutral, it can be dangerous.

 

[davids1718]

Yep I've had one of these Cobras almost 20 years so I am pretty familiar with the shift system. When its set up correctly they shift with 2 fingers, very easily. If your ESA system does not work you can bend parts and stretch shift cables trying to get it into neutral. I pull the drive at the end of each season and clean and lube the shifter bellcrank in the transom mount. So your main priority is getting your shift system set up right and making sure the ESA works, without that I would not even put the boat in the water because if you can't easly get it into neutral, it can be dangerous.

Yeah i know all about the shifting issues, 2 seasons 2 cables. Not a good feeling at all when the cable goes. So glad these forums exist and such a good amount of people always willing to help others.