Volvo shift issue on lake now

[QC]

A good friend just called me and his 2005 Volvo 5.7 GXi DP is stuck in neutral. He's on the lake now, but has a tow lined up. Handle will go forward and reverse, but only revs. Says it feels like the handle is shifting, but it acts like the neutral button is engaged. His daughter was at the helm and they were pulling a tube. She went around to get them and she pulled it straight back from forward into reverse without a stop at neutral. Thinks she had the shift button (other one) engaged, but again no pause at neutral, straight thru and then nothin'. Standard Volvo control. Thoughts?

 

[Don S]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

She went around to get them and she pulled it straight back from forward into reverse without a stop at neutral.

There is a coupler between the upper and lower units that probably broke.... They are designed to do that instead of breaking shafts and gears. Usually they twist, but don't break.
When you get it out of the water, pull that plastic cover off the drive and see if the shift mechanism is moving or not (could be a cable problem)
If it moves, then it's probably that coupler.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

Man O Man,........ Is that Service or What,..??.......

Some Guy is Still sitting out in the Middle of a Lake, in his Broken Boat................

And He's Already got his Answer,.... Before He even get's to the Dock...........

iboats comes thru Again................

edit;
All Righty,....... Delray,..... You da Man,......
This is the 1st post that I can See you've got My Avatar Working...............

Man,..... Life is Great,.... Isn't It,..??..??......

and you can come back and edit your post ANY time you want

Ayuh,.......... I've been In on that 1...............

 

[Don S]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

and you can come back and edit your post ANY time you want

 

[QC]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

Thanks guys. I suggested he look under the cover, but he is not capable of that. It's outa the water and he's headin' to a shop with the info. Thanks. I just wanted to make sure it wasn't in the handle and that I could talk him thru it. Yes, awesome service, and thanks Ryan for Bondo's avatar as I just might have to talk some other guy thru the 4 stroke cycle while he's on the lake

 

[QC]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

Yes, broken coupler, and I assume the one you mentioned, Don. He's gonna get me the part number that was replaced tomorrow.

This guy is pretty funny as he is clueless when it comes to mechanical stuff. He says to me, "Why would it just break in half? Perfect break." I say, "How fast was she going (the daughter) when she grabbed reverse?", expecting him to say 8 - 10 MPH as he mentioned that she was maneuvering to pick up a down tuber when I talked to him this morning. He says, "25, uh, 30 tops . . ." Apparently when he threw the flag as the tuber came off, she pulled it straight back thru neutral and kept on pulling. He called me immediately and he said nothing about any noise, and he's revving it back and forth while I was on the phone Good think Volvo mounts the pump up front . . .

Anyway he is $450 lighter and the boat is already back in the water. Last time he and his daughter boated without proper supervision he got stuck on a mud bar and kept running her trying to get free until he cooked her (the boat, not the daughter). This is the replacement boat . . .

 

[Reel Poor]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

That part is easier to change than a mercruiser water pump. Maybe a 100 dollars worth of parts.

Unless they had to do something else also.

Oh well, it's fixed and he's on his way. Gotta pay something for speedy service.

 

[QC]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

That's one of the reasons I asked for the part number. He did say he paid a little extra 'cause they put two guys on it to get him out. He also said "It's a little faster now" . . . It's that same Chap you've seen before RP.

 

[Reel Poor]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

Here's the part #'s.

Intermediate shaft 3852268
Water pick up tube seal 3852315
Water pick up tube seal 3854595
Water pick up tube retainer 3854601
Oil Passage o-ring 3852959
Drain and vent plug o-ring (2 req) 3855081
Dip stick o-ring 3852045
Gear Lube 1141679

 

[Don S]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

I know on a broken coupling I always pull the ujoint/input shaft and gear out and inspect the gears for broken teeth, and pull the outer propshaft and carrier and inspect the lower gears also.
I also note on the workorders and explain to the customer that with high speed shifts and impacts, there is a possibility that within the next 10 hours they could see a gear failure. Once they make it past 10 hours they are usually good to go.
I've seen several fail within that first 10 hours.

 

[QC]

Re: Volvo shift issue on lake now

I am concerned as the only part number on the work order is the 3852268 shaft @ 38.98 (seems very cheap too BTW) . They charged for syn gear oil and 4 hours @ $85. Somewhere around $450 total.

It must cause some confusion this often being referred to as a coupler, I understand as it links the upper and lower. It seems it could be confused with the engine coupler. Anyway. Boat's running, mini-vacation still on track, he's happy etc. He'll probably put another 10 hours on it this trip so I assume we'll have the final answer soon, although he has no idea there is a potential sequel at this point . . .