1984 Sea Ray Mercruiser Alpha One Shift Problem - Lower Cable

The issue started when I lost neutral and reverse. Was going to pull up to the sandbar and when I put the boat in neutral it remained in forward gear at low RPM. I shifted it to reverse to avoid hitting another boat and it continued to move forward. More throttle in reverse = higher RPM and faster forward thrust. *just before pulling up to the sand bar I pushed the trailer button to bring the trim up. My trim was intermittent so I tried that. Not sure if it has anything to do with it.
I got the boat home and shut it off until I could work on it. It sat about a week. After the week it started right up - I thought this would be an issue because neutral was forward when I left it. The boat is now always in neutral. Forward on the throttle increases RPM but boat is in neutral. Same in reverse position on the throttle. When in forward throttle position the prop spins freely both clockwise and counterclockwise. When in reverse throttle position the prop spins freely in broth directiona as well. No clicking.
I thought I may need to adjust the throttle cables. Watched a few videos and when I went to measure the play in the lower throttle cable it moved a few inches. Is this my issue or is it something bigger?

[@barddzen]

I have a 1988 pretty much the same boat and engine type and this video is a great start for me. However, at the end you didn’t mention how you actually “fixed” the “in neutral but still in gear”. This is exactly what is happening for me.

[@stevelattner726]

Once your lower cable is disconnected, moving the gear selector won't do anything. Check to make sure your prop is engaging when you manually push / pull the lower cable. If so, then you know the gear box is ok. A few inches of play in the lower cable is not normal, you probably need to replace it.

[@mikegamer6104]

Looks like your shift cable is broken between the dash and the engine

[@ramonruizcalderon]

hello I need help to adjust the cable shuif of mercruiser 4.3 V6 1990, was going to pull is ok , an when it passes to neutral it problem stops a not power, please help