www.iFourWinns.com

Hi
I have a 1989 215 sundowner with a 5.8 cobra and a omc outdrive.. My problem is that when i shift to either forward or reverse the engine stalls. I would like to know is anyone else has experienced this problem

If it's stalling when you shift it may be that the ESA is staying engaged too long, perhaps because of a sticky transom shift cable. Does it shift easily both into and out of gear? Shift problems with a Cobra are typically either: shifts OK into gear, but will not come into neutral or, it shifts into gear, but it jumps out of gear under acceleration (this will ruin the shift dogs on the lower gears). Your idle speed should be between 500 and 600 rpm with the boat in the water and in foward gear. When you shift from either forward or reverse to neutral, you may feel the idle drop down lower (this is the ESA lowering the idle so the clutch dogs will release, so it will go into neutral). If the cable is sticky it may be pulsing the idle too long, or your idle is too low to start with, or the engine is not in a good enough state of tune to run smoothly at that speed. I have gotten mine to the point when it can idle at 600, and when the ESA engages it drops to about 450 but it's so brief a time period the engine never stalls.

A couple of things that you need to do to make a Cobra shift well:
Transom shift cable has to be in good adjustment and not stiff; I take the drive off each season and clean out the area where the bellcrank is in the pivot housing because crud can build up there which keeps the bellcrank from moving smoothly.
Lube all the pivots of the shift and throttle cables with OMC triple guard grease.
Make sure the engine is in tune so it can idle smoothly at 600 that will help the shifting (lower idle is best for these) and also keep it from stalling when shifting.

There is a website set up by a guy called Stuart Hastings, he has all the know Cobra shift problems detailed there, do a search you will find it.

A properly adjusted Cobra will shift very smoothly with 2 fingers, you should not have to force it. Mine did not want to go into neutral, I took it to a good OMC mechanic and he got it shifting perfect, and all I have had to do to keep it that way is maintenance...

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

My idle is good and engine runs smoothy, the second i touch the shift control to move it the engine dies. Once I do get it into gear it will run all day and go back into neutral and idle, if I try to shift then it dies. What is the ESA and where is it located.

Sounds like a shift interupt module issue. Easy to test on that boat. Check the athe switches are working correctly while shiftin and if all looks good, change the module. Mine went bad and would not let me go back to nuetral. Alll the module dies is sense a transition from neutral to gear or gear to neutral. It then responds by a very brief "ignition kill" so the engine unloads for a brief momemnt and lets the outdrive cogs release. Sounds like yours is killing the ignition too long. But check the switchs and shift adjustments first since the module is ~$100.