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drekar wrote: Tue Apr 15, 2025 9:41 pm I'm doing the exact same thing as you did.

A few questions,
Does the switch work with the battery off or does it need to be left on (I guess my question is if it's hardwired)
How did you know what order for the green, red, and blue?

Thank you, it's my first project in the spring.

On mine it does. I have a Mercruiser and it plugs in between the harness and the trim pump so it works with the battery switched off.

Yes, that's what I thought. It appears the MerCruiser's allow for the remote trim to work without the battery on because they have a direct connection to the battery. I wish the VP had that option, it eliminates one step and one of the reasons of having the switch.

bruceb58 wrote: Thu Apr 17, 2025 12:24 pm

drekar wrote: Tue Apr 15, 2025 9:41 pm I'm doing the exact same thing as you did.

A few questions,
Does the switch work with the battery off or does it need to be left on (I guess my question is if it's hardwired)
How did you know what order for the green, red, and blue?

Thank you, it's my first project in the spring.

On mine it does. I have a Mercruiser and it plugs in between the harness and the trim pump so it works with the battery switched off.

drekar wrote: Fri Apr 18, 2025 8:39 am Yes, that's what I thought. It appears the MerCruiser's allow for the remote trim to work without the battery on because they have a direct connection to the battery. I wish the VP had that option, it eliminates one step and one of the reasons of having the switch.

Nothing is stopping you from wiring the switch so it is hot all the time. I would certainly do that. Just wire the "common" to battery through a fuse!

I feel dumb asking this, as I've never had a transom mounted switch for the outdrives, what is the reason for wanting this?

Lowrider03 wrote: Sun Jun 08, 2025 12:48 pm I feel dumb asking this, as I've never had a transom mounted switch for the outdrives, what is the reason for wanting this?

I use mine mainly when I work on the drive when the boat is on the trailer. When I store my boat, I always store with the drive down so once I back it into its spot, I lower the drive without having to hop in the boat.

Same here, I have to store my boat in dry storage with the drive trimmed up (I know, don't like that, but that's how it is). It's convenient to trim it up after I have the cover on etc - I also use it when the boat is on a washrack. I always had these on my Mercruiser powered boats and just got used to it. It's a convenience, not a necessity.

Sorry to all for starting a new thread and then finding 2 others that could have helped. I am in a pickle because my drive is in the down position and the throttle switch "Up" isnt working. Because of a severe drought, my boat is stuck on the lift and the skeg hits bottom before the boat can lift off, so need to tilt up first.

BillK, my post related to adding a Transom switch and wanted to see if I could consult your knowledge. I did a search related to the part that I thought was needed but not sure this is the proper one. Has a round connector and all the connectors I see are the flat rectangle type like in your pictures. The part number that you mentioned doesnt come up in any online search.

Switch I bought: Wiring:

Assuming you have a newer system where the trim pump is build into the transom assembly outside the boat. The “part” I used is a custom switch that Cobalt makes and puts in boats at the factory. Nothing special, a Carling switch and the wiring harness. I looked all over for something, but had my Cobalt dealer order one from Cobalt. It was kinda expensive for a switch and wiring, but it was OEM, plug and play and exactly like Cobalt would install at the factory. It plugs into the plug in your picture with a red,green,blue wire. If you just need to move your drive up for now, jumping a wire between the red and blue or green wire should move the drive - unless something else is wrong.

There is a T harness for the trim switch. I used one from Mercruiser that was plug and play. This link shows a kit and the switch looks just like what comes from the factory. When I added mine I used the Volvo switch shown above, however I had to cut the round plug off and make my own plug that was wired into the Mercruiser T harness I got off eBay. When using the Volvo switch the red button will not be connected to anything as it is designed for the older Volvo trim systems.

https://www.mercruiserparts.com/815200a ... iQS0dsai1x