Wiki User Answered 2008-08-02 00:30:15. Mercury 135L Opti won’t go into any gear Not rated yet Hello. The same goes for the barbs that attach the fitting and the fuel line, and/or the hose clamps that secure them. Re: Help, Mercury 9.9 wont shift into forward gear Without starting the motor, observe the linkage rod from the housing to the lower unit by shifting F and R and check to see it's moving in both directions the same amount. Make sure you are turning the prop or the mainshaft(the one that has a spline that fits into the crankshaft) when trying to shift into F/N/R.Lower units on an outboard should be spinning to go into gear.Turn the mainshaft the same direction as the motor runs to make sure its in a certain gear or not.If that checks out ok maybe its a worn out control/shift box ? It is not stuck in reverse and will not shift into neutral or forward. We have a Mercury 135L Opti motor & just went out fishing for the first time this summer. It is about time for a new impeller anyway - assuming the unit is still usable. So if there is a problem with a spark plug that is not firing, a 4 cylinder engine will then be running on that oil/fuel/air mixture with only 3 … It … read more We pulled the lower unit to change the impeller. Top Answer. Asked by Wiki User. If it is, your problem is probably in the lower unit. I have a 2013, 25hp ELHPT mercury outboard. This happens over and over again, because many quick-disconnect fittings that attach the fuel line to the outboard are just plain cheap. I suspect it's only moving the proper amount in one direction. ... and now it won't go in gear. If the engine is not running do it gingerly and rotate the prop by hand slowly while doing it. It shifted into reverse gear with some difficulty, but would not shift back into forward gear. I have a Mercury Optimax 150HP XR6 around the 200 era. Looks like I will pull the unit and check it out. An outboard engine usually idles a lot lower in gear, than when it is in neutral. Now when we reinstall the lower unit it won't go into forwar or reverse unless you turn the prop manually. (R) Re: mercury 150 Won't go in gear Thanks for the information. Thanks again. By numbnuts, July 14, 2007 in ... because if you are trying to shift without the outboard running the reverse gear and clutch may not be aligned and therefore without spinning the propshaft it will be hard to engage. I do have the shift cable disconnected. Re: 50 HP won't go into reverse Don't be afraid to put it in reverse with the engine running. It shifted into. In this installment, we track down why my 25hp Mercury outboard won't shift into gear and come up with a solution. The reverse gear shifter is an eared "dog" that fits into a socket (one on each side of the gear) in the reverse gear. The engine is starved for fuel, and won’t start. Mercury Gear-shift Problems. We've tried installing it with the lower unit and shifter handle in neutral and we've tried it with shifter lever in forward and the lower unit also in forward. See Answer. My Mercury 85hp Model 850 outboard engine won't go into gear. Mercury 50 hp outboard won't go into gear? We got it in the water and it won’t shift into forward … The shift lever activates the mechanism in the back, on the motor, but the propeller does not go in gear, either in forward or reverse. I have a 2013, 25hp ELHPT mercury outboard.