Re: 1974 Evinrude 9.9 won’t idle at low RPMs, need help

[Don]

quote pugetsoundboater:

When did OMC change the design on the upper water tube grommet,what years had the better one?

1979 was the first year for the bad grommet. Unfortunately, the part number for the good grommets used on older engines supercedes to the newer bad grommet! So, I usually clean up and reuse original grommets on older engines rather than replace them with the newer bad grommet.
In 1985, the design of the water tube and grommet was changed. An improvement over the bad grommet but still had some problems in salt water. The latest water tube kits I have seen are improved again because the water tube is slightly taller keeping the grommet from being unsupported and getting crushed.
The problems I have mentioned are usually not an issue for fresh water engines.