Merc 15 hp questions

I have an 06 15hp 4 stroke mercury outboard that I have a few questions about as I can't seem to find and of the manuals online

First off, the motor used to lock in the upwards position, and to let it down I would have to shift it into gear. after taking the boat out for its first time with me it no longer does this. Any ideas?

Next, whenever I shift into reverse the motor seems like it wants to jump out of the water, shakes the entire boat and is pretty **** loud (is this normal?) also when in reverse I sometimes will have to push the motor down to keep it from pulling itself out of the water.



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Sounds like you have problems with the mechanism that locks the motor down. When you put it in reverse it should lock automatically. Most motors will be locked in Neutral and Reverse but unlock when you put it in forward. I'm not saying yours is definitely like this but most work that way.

How would I go about checking this. I don't have a service manual and I don't know these outboard like I know cars

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Only way I know would be to look at the parts schematic for what all makes up the locking mechanism. Then go out to your motor and remove the cowl or any covers that obstruct your view (any that are easily removed) and operate the shift lever from Rev to Fwd and watch the mechanism. Hopefully you can discover or figure out what is causing it not to operate properly.