Power Tilt and Trim problems - help please

[T man]

I have a 1998 Mariner (Mercury), 90 hp.. I came back to the ramp today (everything was fine, until then, and the motor would not tilt up (it would go down).
I tried both the switch on the throttle/gearshift lever, and the switch on the side of the motor.

I believe the battery is OK (the starter will turn over just fine).
Because I can not load the boat and pull it out with the motor down; I was trying anything. So, I got my 12v portable power pack out of the truck, and hooked up the jumper cables to the connection posts on the boat battery. I flicked the switch down then up, and thank goodness, the motor tilted up.

I pulled it out of the water, put the transom saver in place, and it's now in my driveway.

Now, the motor will not tilt up, from either switch, with or without the 12v powerpack. The starter motor will still turn over just fine (on just the boat battery).

I did a search of the archives, and only found a couple of old posts that might help. Seems to point towards the "solenoid(s)", on the starboard side of the engine block, I guess.

I am not a mechanic, but willing to try a few simple things to save the expense of taking it to the shop.

HELP PLEASE.
T man

[perchjerker]

look for a pair of relays. They are little black plastic 1" cubes. One is the up relay the other down. See if they are clicking, or try swapping them around and checking the connections to them. Let us know what you find, we can go from there.

Common problem if they are at fault.

There are trim relays on that motor. They are black and about 1 1/2" square. They will be on the startboard side on the engine. They simply plug into a socket. They cost like 12 bucks and replace them both, because if one went, the other is not far behind.

[FJH1]

Since it will not work from either switch I would strongly suspect a loose ground. This same thing happened to me in a tournament. We had run to a spot, trimmed up the motor to get it out of the water a little. We went to run to another spot and the trim would not work from the bow panel, throttle, or motor switch. We ended up starting the motor, holding in the switch in the down position and throttled up the engine. The prop caught and forced the motor down (I don't know how, but it worked :-)). Anyway, when we got the boat on the trailer we had to undo the pressure relief and manually lift the motor. My buddy took the boat to his mechanic and he said it was only a loose ground on the motor. He tightened it up and it has been fine for 5 years since. Hope your problem is this simple. Maybe someone here will know where the ground is located...because I don't.

Best Regards,

FJH

[T man]

First, let me clarify: the motor will go down, but not up.

I found what I believe to be the (two) solenoids. By tapping / wiggling (the front) solenoid, while pushing the switch on the outside of the engine, I was able to tilt the engine up - yea!.
I guess the dockside success with the 12v power pack was strickly accidental.

That enabled me to remove the transom saver, tilt the motor down, and get it into my garage. I was able to tilt the engine up and down, but sometimes had to tap / wiggle the front solenoid to get it to go up.

As you said, it appears to be the (forward) solenoid. I will try to replace both of them, as suggested.

Any tips for getting these things out? I'm not sure where to have my chubby fingers start - ha!
Looks like they have some sort of rubber (vibration isolator?) between each solenoid, and the block.

Do they "just" unclip - leaving the socket and rubber isolator in place? Or what?

Thanks again.

T man

[perchjerker]

not exactly sure on that particular engine, Im sure someone else will know.

Or, get the new ones and take a look at them, Im sure you will be able to figure it out.