Alpha I Gen II gear oil leak

[Fire1&2]

Hey guys,

First time posting, but I have been reading all winter about maintenance. I bought my first boat this fall from a dealer, and did not know too much about anything ('99 Sea Ray 190 w/ Cuddy 4.3 mercruiser engine). I hired a marine surveyor to go over the boat, and he said it was in excellent condition. Spent all winter reading up on stuff. Anyways, I found some gear oil leaking out between the upper and lower portion of the out drive. It was dripping down to the lowest part of the seam where the two halves meet with the drive fully trimmed up. Upon further inspection I also found one of the 6 bolts holding the halves together was completely loose (right front bolt). I did not notice this in the fall, but at the time, I probably would not have. The dealer said they serviced the drive, replace impeller, gaskets, ect. I'm thinking with that one bolt being loose maybe the oil gasket between the upper and lower could be loose, or its something else I have no clue about. I am confident I can remove the lower half and replace said gasket after watching dozens of videos I found in the forums, but wanted hear if anyone had other concerns I may not know about. Also another intersting symptom... It only leaks when the drive is fully trimmed up. I trimmed it all the way down for a few days, and found no gear oil leaking.

Thanks in advance for any input.

 

[alldodge]

Hey guys,

First time posting, but I have been reading all winter about maintenance. I bought my first boat this fall from a dealer, and did not know too much about anything ('99 Sea Ray 190 w/ Cuddy 4.3 mercruiser engine). I hired a marine surveyor to go over the boat, and he said it was in excellent condition. Spent all winter reading up on stuff. Anyways, I found some gear oil leaking out between the upper and lower portion of the out drive. It was dripping down to the lowest part of the seam where the two halves meet with the drive fully trimmed up. Upon further inspection I also found one of the 6 bolts holding the halves together was completely loose (right front bolt). I did not notice this in the fall, but at the time, I probably would not have. The dealer said they serviced the drive, replace impeller, gaskets, ect. I'm thinking with that one bolt being loose maybe the oil gasket between the upper and lower could be loose, or its something else I have no clue about. I am confident I can remove the lower half and replace said gasket after watching dozens of videos I found in the forums, but wanted hear if anyone had other concerns I may not know about. Also another intersting symptom... It only leaks when the drive is fully trimmed up. I trimmed it all the way down for a few days, and found no gear oil leaking.

Thanks in advance for any input.

:welcome: to iboats

My guess is someone forgot to tighten up one of the six bolts. Take a 5/8 wrench and snug them up, you probably have more then one loose. There is one seal (item 7) that passes lube from the top to bottom. When you trim up it puts more load on the halves

http://www.mercruiserparts.com/Show...c=GEAR+HOUSING(DRIVESHAFT)(STANDARD+ROTATION)

 

[Fire1&2]

Thank you!

That makes a lot of sense. I will thighten the bolts today, and then reinspect for the leak. If it is not still leaking do you think it would be wise to drop the lower unit to inspect, or just leave well enough alone? At the very least I will probably change the gear oil so I am not worrying about any water that might have seeped in.

 

[alldodge]

Thank you!

That makes a lot of sense. I will thighten the bolts today, and then reinspect for the leak. If it is not still leaking do you think it would be wise to drop the lower unit to inspect, or just leave well enough alone? At the very least I will probably change the gear oil so I am not worrying about any water that might have seeped in.

To do it right and to make sure there is no other issues. Pull the drive, drain the lube, tighten the bolts and then pressure test the drive to 10 to 12 psi for a few hours. If the drive holds pressure your good.

 

[philbullet]

How would u seal up the upper drive when separated where drive shaft goes into?
I know u can just clamp the oil passage hole but was wondering about drive shaft seals?

 

[alldodge]

You pressure test with both halves together, don't do just one end

 

[Bt Doctur]

you would need another driveshaft to insert into the seals. The gen II`s use a self-closing valve to contain the oil when the drive is removed

 

[philbullet]

you would need another driveshaft to insert into the seals. The gen II`s use a self-closing valve to contain the oil when the drive is removed

Ok thanks.

 

[Fire1&2]

Sooooo.... I replaced the little oil passage hole gasket, an it still leaked. I took it to a marina to have a pressure test done, as that it a little out of my comfort zone. They pulled the drive, pressure tested it and found no leak down. He said they did the test a couple times, and are going to look other places for the leak and let me know what they find.

Where else could gear oil leak from? Maybe the connection between the drive, and where ever it connects to the reservoir hose? Just trying to get an idea before they call back and try to tell me who knows what.

Also, this might mean that the leak isn't below the water and not that big of deal, other than I may just have to top of the reservoir every couple months.

Thanks

 

[Ozshadow]

Shift shaft seal perhaps, but I would think that would show up on the pressure test.

 

[alldodge]

Sooooo.... I replaced the little oil passage hole gasket, an it still leaked. I took it to a marina to have a pressure test done, as that it a little out of my comfort zone. They pulled the drive, pressure tested it and found no leak down. He said they did the test a couple times, and are going to look other places for the leak and let me know what they find.

Where else could gear oil leak from? Maybe the connection between the drive, and where ever it connects to the reservoir hose? Just trying to get an idea before they call back and try to tell me who knows what.

Also, this might mean that the leak isn't below the water and not that big of deal, other than I may just have to top of the reservoir every couple months.

Thanks

Did you see any lube between the bell housing and the drive when it was separated?

If so it could be your gasket and the o-ring which seals the gear lube line to the drive (item 33)
http://www.mercruiserparts.com/Show...426.png&inbr=2686&bnbr=100&bdesc=BELL+HOUSING

 

[achris]

****ALARM BELLS****

Who missed this ??? (everybody!!!)....

....'99 Sea Ray 190 w/ Cuddy 4.3 mercruiser engine)....... one of the 6 bolts holding the halves together.....

1999 should be an Alpha One Gen II, but they only have 4 bolts. A drive with 6 bolts is an Alpha One, which finished in 1990!!!

So, first question.... What do you have? Best post serial numbers. Engine, Drive, Transom....

If you are unsure about where to look for the numbers... -> http://forums.iboats.com/forum/engi...rn-drive-and-engine-serial-numbers#post645586

Chris.........

 

[Fire1&2]

Did you see any lube between the bell housing and the drive when it was separated?

Thanks, I will ask the tech at the marina to see if they will check that. I actually never pulled the drive off myself.

Chris,
I guess technically it only has 4 bolt and nut combos on either side of the drive... But it also has two more bolts, one on the front, and one on the rear of the drive that attach by screwing into the housing of the drive. I don't have the serial numbers handy right now, but I have looked up what I have by running those numbers and it came back to a alpha I gen II.
Thanks though.

 

[achris]

OK... Just clarifying...