rotten wire in outdrive

bigdan1

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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Aug 9, 2010
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95
bought a 1985 doral 164 with a 140HP mercruiser 3.0L and outdrive ....

engine block is cracked from not being drained for winter ....
I already have the replacement engine on hand .....

when i pulled the engine out , i noticed that there is two double wires coming out of the outdrive .one goes to the trim pump (split in two )
the other one is totally rotten ......

are those wires exclusively for the trim pump ?

if so ,do I have to remove the whole outdrive to fix those ?

and then, where can I download my outdrive service manual ?

thanks a lot for your advices ...;-)
 

bigdan1

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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Aug 9, 2010
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95
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

included is a pic of the wires the rotten one already cut but it wont weld at all ,too damaged .



<a href="http://s292.photobucket.com/albums/mm16/bigdan911/?action=view&current=P1160274.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm16/bigdan911/P1160274.jpg" border="0" alt="fils outdrive">
 

paultjohnson

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1,560
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

Most likely its for the trim limit switch The other one would be for the trim sending unit - to the dash gauge
 

paultjohnson

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1,560
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

And yeah outdrive and bellhousing gotta come off At that point you should change ujoint and shift cable bellows, and water hose, check gimble bearing and u joints
 

Fishermark

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Oct 19, 2003
Messages
5,617
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

Most people forget trying to replace the trim limit switch and the sender. A lot of work for very little gain.

Having said that, you do need to pull the outdrive if you haven't already to check the various parts as mentioned above. You will also need to check your engine alignment when you reinstall your new engine.
 

bigdan1

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

second attempt on pic
 

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Fishermark

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

Here's the pic you tried to post. (If you copy the "IMG CODE" link from photobucket, then all you have to do is paste it here):


P1160274.jpg
 

Fishermark

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

Looks like we were posting at the same time. ;)
 

bigdan1

Petty Officer 3rd Class
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Aug 9, 2010
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95
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

the previous owner says that he had the outdrive rebuilt 3 years ago for over $1200.00 ....funny that they dint change this wire :mad:



because if those wires are only for the limit switch ....ill take great care of not going too far ;)

but in any case , where can I download the outdrive manual ?
 

Fishermark

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Joined
Oct 19, 2003
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5,617
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

The wires are not actually in the outdrive - they are part of the transom assembly.

I'm not sure of the manuals are still available in the stickey at the top of the page or not... I think they were removed. But you may take a quick look at see.
 

bigdan1

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

thing is , know nothing about boats ......

just dont want to break something when stripping

Id like to fix those two wires ,but if I have to tear down the whole thing to bare parts just for a gauge reading , i doubt it is worth it !

the good wires go to the pump control
 

bigdan1

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

fishermark , you think I woulndt have to remove whole outdrive to fix the wires ?
 

paultjohnson

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

If your trim limit switch still functions you could just splice wire to the broken ones inside the boat. Take your trim limit switch off Its the one on the port side of the drive that covers the hinge pin. See if its rusted to sh!&. and get yourself a meter and run a test thru the cut off wires from inside the boat and see if you have continuity. You may be able to jury rig it if the switch is still functional. On the starboard side is the sending unit that sends a signal to a dash gauge to indicate the position of your drive Do you even have a trim indicater on you dash ? If not dont even wory about the starboard switch. I dont think there is a way around removing the drive and bellhousing to run the wires thru the transom . If you follow the wires from the switchs on the outdrive up to the transom you will see they disappear into never never land above the u joint bellows. There are i believe 2 screws that have to be acessed to remove the gromet that holds the wires from the aft end of the transom. As I said before then you should do [or at least inspect] the whole works Bellows, water hose, check gimble bearing alingment u joints etc
 

bigdan1

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Re: rotten wire in outdrive

correct me if i`m wrong ...looks like the "rear end "
is in two parts : transom & outdrive ....

can I remove the outdrive as a whole unit and check the wires at the transom ?

there seems to be four bolts holding the outdrive to the transom
is this right?
thanks again !
Dan
 

Howard Sterndrive

Rear Admiral
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Nov 5, 2008
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4,603
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

not all Mercruiser powered boats have a trim gauge.

On my boat, those wires are just hanging there.
 

antsmands

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Joined
Apr 24, 2007
Messages
58
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

Here's the pic you tried to post. (If you copy the "IMG CODE" link from photobucket, then all you have to do is paste it here):


P1160274.jpg

Looks like the tilt /trim limiter wires. Mine are rotten an I gotta replace them also. Do it while the drive is off!
 

Fishermark

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Oct 19, 2003
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5,617
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

can I remove the outdrive as a whole unit and check the wires at the transom ?

It sounds like you pulled your engine without pulling the drive - correct? That is possible to do, and it is even possible to put the engine back in without removing the drive. But it is a real bad idea.

The outdrive is easy to remove and you need to learn how to do it as it needs to come off periodically for maintenance.

You will need to put it in forward gear and then remove the SIX nuts holding it on (not four). You will also need to remove the trim rams where they connect.

Here is a site that I haven't recommended in awhile, but since the manuals are not available... they have some good general info: General Mercruiser info
 

rbh

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Mar 21, 2009
Messages
7,939
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

Do you have mercathode system???
 

bigdan1

Petty Officer 3rd Class
Joined
Aug 9, 2010
Messages
95
Re: rotten wire in outdrive

It sounds like you pulled your engine without pulling the drive - correct? That is possible to do, and it is even possible to put the engine back in without removing the drive. But it is a real bad idea.

The outdrive is easy to remove and you need to learn how to do it as it needs to come off periodically for maintenance.

You will need to put it in forward gear and then remove the SIX nuts holding it on (not four). You will also need to remove the trim rams where they connect.

Here is a site that I haven't recommended in awhile, but since the manuals are not available... they have some good general info: General Mercruiser info

when i bought the boat , the engine was already removed ,

I just removed the outdrive by putting it in forward gear , not that hard really , just had to take my time and do visual all the time ..... now it` siting on my bench ....
still no access to those wires ....cant even move them to see wich side they go ...I have two sensors (one on each side )

the gimbal bearing seems ok .....I push on it from outside and turn around no rubbing or hard spot at all real smooth ..... lots of grease in that area !

ID rather have the gauge workingin dash then the limiting switch .....wich is the gauge on the right or on the left (pilot view) ?

thanks againto all of you !
 
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