Only moves at idle

[Sheetsfa]

I have a 1976 Chrysler 55 hp outboard. I finally took it out on fathers day and the motor starts and seems to run fine but it would only move the boat at an idle if I tried to go any faster it would just stop moving. Does this sound like a lower unit issue?

 

[redneckboater]

Re: Only moves at idle

Sounds like a spun prop. Is there any grinding when it stops moving? When you say "try to go faster it stops moving" do you mean it revs up and wont go or the engine stalls out?

 

[cruzin1a]

Re: Only moves at idle

In my situation the motor was an I/O Merc 260. I could start it and put it in gear and move at idle speed. However, once I gave it any throttle it would die. I removed the water separator and poured out the contents, noticing quite a bit of liquid that wasn't gas. I reinstalled and the boat ran great... Not to say it's the issue but it was the cause of my problem.

 

[Sheetsfa]

Re: Only moves at idle

Thanks for the replies, when I say it stops i mean that the motor revs just fine and doesn't shut off and it sounds like it is under a load but when I try to go any faster than a idle the boat stops moving. Almost like the prop stops moving but I'm not sure of it yet, the way the boat is it makes it hard for me to see if the propeller is spinning when I have it in the lake, the prop seems to be fine and the shaft that it goes on doesn't appear damaged at all.

 

[tater76]

Re: Only moves at idle

The hub of the prop may be bad. I have an old 8X10 with a spun hub, it appeared to be tight when spun by hand in gear. However, as some of the pro's on here have said, you are not strong enough to tell if the hub is spun by simply trying to turn it by hand when it is in gear. It sounds just like what happened to my 8X10, the engine shifted into gear, we began to move, I throttled it up to WOT, and it quit moving. I have an extra 10X10 that may fit your motor if you want, just pm me we can work something out.