Steering Cable Question 2001 205v

[ferrarispider95]

My steering is sticky in my 2001 205v, and I tired to grease it, but it appears that I need a new cable.

My Mastercraft dealer is over 100 miles away, so I would rather do it myself and save the hassle of driving it all that way.

Where can I buy one? Skidim? If so which one do I need?

How hard is it to replace?

Any help would be much appreciated.

[jrhollow]

I have a 2003 X-2 which should be the same boat. I ordered my part for Mike (www.mymastercraft.com). Replacing it wasn't too bad. It took me a few hours, but after doing it once I could cut the time in half.

Steps:
1. Disconnect the steering cable from the rutter and bracket. You'll have to do a little bending to get to the ends.
2. Attach a rope to the end of the cable.
3. Remove the steering cable under the dash (4 bolts).
4. You'll see that the cable runs under the dash towards the front of the boat. Lift up the bow seat cushion and you'll see were it runs to the back of the boat. start pulling the cable through there.
5. If the cable gets stuck after a few feet, it's becuase there is a hole that it needs to go through at the edge of the gas tank. You'll have to pull the center floor up. To do this remove the 8 scews that attach to the middle of the back bench so it can move enough to pry the floor out. If you look at other posts on Steering cables someone outlined how to do this.
6. Once it is pulled through attach your new cable and pull it back.
7. Reattach everything and try to line it up.
8. If your steering wheel is not straight, when you're out on the water remove the cable from under the dash and re-aline it.

Hope this helps. PM me if you have questions

[mitch]

I got mine from Mike too. Mine's a 2000 DD PS205, but it should be similar. 2 hours

[ferrarispider95]

Thanks, mc dealer is only charging 70 bucks to do it, but I think I will give it a shot.

[Workin' 4 Toys]

100 miles or $70.00........
It probably worth it to try it first before you blow $25.00 in fuel and 6 hours for 200 miles.

[beatle78]

ferrarispider95,

did you replace the cable yet? My steering is "sticky", but moreso it's really tight when I try to make sharp turns.... I struggly to turn the wheel to the extreme left/right.

I'm trying to see if it's the cable or the rudder??? I greased everything and it's the same...grrrr

[etakk7]

I did my steering cable last night on my 2000 205V. I didn't do the final connections and alignment yet, but the dirty work of fishing the cable is done.

[beatle78]

NICE!!! How hard was it to pull the old cable out and the new cable through?

[etakk7]

It took a little while - but after having done it I could do it in half the time. I'm GLAD I didn't waste the money paying somebody to do this.

The key is to bring up the cut-out floor panel right away, don't even attempt to do the work without pulling up the floor. In order to bring the floor up, take the back seat cushions off and remove the cooler. Take off three bolts per side, starting from the floor, that hold the middle part of the back seat to the side seats. The bolts are easier to locate if you look from the inside of the cooler area towards the outside of the boat. When you have the bolts out, the seat won't be completely unattached, but it will be loose enough to give you the ability to squeeze out the floor panel. Use a larger (for strength) flathead screwdriver to pry up the floor panel, starting from the bow side of the panel. The floor panel is not attached in any way, so once you pry it up, pull a bit towards the bow at the same time and it will squeeze out from under the rear middle seat.

Under the dash, you need to take off the 4 bolts from the backmount rack to un-attach it from the steering wheel. I recommend turning the steering wheel all the way to the side that compresses the cable in the back. You will thank me later for this, it will make it much easier to fish the cable through the floor. My dealer told me I would need to take off the kick panel under the drivers side in order to get the rack through the gap and into the under-seat area of the bow, but I found this to be very difficult to do, even after taking the necessary screws out. I was able to tug the panel forward just enough to squeeze the rack through the hole. If I were you, I would try to do the same thing before attempting to loosen all the screws. What a pain in the ***. Hard to take out the screws because of their location and I stripped every one of them in the process.

Once you've got the rack end into the bow area, go to the engine bay and disconnect the old cable. You will need to disconnect it from the rudder first, then disconnect the large nut of the steering cable from the steering cable holder thingy that is attached to the floor. When it is all loose, tie a rope to the end of the cable in the back, and go the front and start pulling the cable through. It might get a little bit stuck at the bow end of the gas tank, as it needs to clear the end of the tank and get over some other cables. You should be able to help it along through this area.

When the cable is competely fished through the hole in the floor of the bow, disconnect the rope from the old cable and attach it to the similar end of the new cable. Using duct tape, wrap up the metal end completely of the new cable to stop it from extending while you are fishing it through. Use plenty of tape or you will be doing this again and again, like I did. I promise the tape will be easily removed and will not leave residue. Fish the cable through the hole in the bow and start pulling on the rope from the back of the boat. It will get hung up at the same spot at the front of the gas tank, and you may struggle with it for awhile, but I was able to get the cable though this spot finally, without having to pry up the gas tank as others have indicated. If you get past this, you can reattach everything and you'll be done. Make sure to grease up the new cable well before calling it a day.

By the way, the proper part is a 19 foot Teleflex Backmount Rack steering cable. I paid $155 at the MC dealer for the part.

Let me know if you have any more questions. Sorry I couldn't document with pictures. It was at the storage location of the boat, and it was 8 degrees at the time of installation, so I wasn't thinking about picture taking much!

[beatle78]

THANKS etakk7.

There is a NEW MC dealer opening on Sat Dec 9th in MA and I might go see him to order the parts I need. (Cable and Platform mounts).

Tis the season to be broke