Johnson 115 tilt will not go down

[john3357]

My Johnson 115 (a 1984) tilt motor will go up but will not go down. I have made sure there is enough fluid. The motor runs both ways so it is likely not the relays. Help, please!

 

[boobie]

I would suggest getting an OMC factory service manual and follow the trouble shooting procedure and diagrams.

 

[Big Fish Billy]

Can we assume the trailering tilt lock is off?

 

[toddschubert]

when a relay goes bad it can cause strange results like the up button making motor go down or motor making sound but no results.
They should be replaced in pairs. $15 at autozone an automotive crossover works. It's cheap enough to try and they may even take them back.
Else, does the motor sound like its straining?

 

[emdsapmgr]

Swap the two trim relays and see if that makes any difference.

 

[toddschubert]

Swap the two trim relays and see if that makes any difference.

I had a problem once where swapping them just created different problems. If one is bad it can cause both directions to be affected.
Don't ask me why, makes no sense but it wasn't until I put two new ones at same time my problem went away.

 

[boobie]

He said the motor runs both ways. Bad relays ??

 

[toddschubert]

I know it sounds strange but I had a problem where down worked but up did not. It would sometimes make noise when I pressed up but I found it was still trying to go down. This problem did not go away until both relays were replaced.
My problem was what I call a ghost problem. Totally unexplainable but if it were me I'd try the relays
Also did we here about if the pump is making normal sound or straining sound?

 

[john3357]

Ok, yesterday, after I posted this. I was putting all my tools away and cleaning up. I tried the tilt one more time and it worked perfectly!! I did not do anything after making sure fluid was full. It did not work after filling fluid and raising and (manually) lowering. An hour later, it worked. Today it is still working perfectly. Is it possible I did something or can they just be sporadic?? Anything I can do to make sure it does not do this when going to the water?

 

[V153]

Anything I can do to make sure it does not do this when going to the water?

Don't go to the water? Kidding!

I'd clean & double check all the connections. Assuming that motor has the under-cowl trim box, there's a ground behind that box that gets a lil crusty sometimes.

 

[toddschubert]

THATS EXACTLY WHAT MINE DID! when my trouble started. I chased that intermittent problem down for months. Spend the $30 and change both relays!s
I would strongly advise.