Lower unit

[Joeyptcb]

I have a silly question... Is there a Mercury i/o motor that does not require you to change your lower unit oil?

 

[achris]

I have a silly question... Is there a Mercury i/o motor that does not require you to change your lower unit oil?

No.

 

[Rick Stephens]

No.

Usually a man of many words

 

[harringtondav]

Any gear box requires lube or oil to live. Sooner or later all need to have that lubricant changed. Out drives and lower units operate under severe conditions. Under water. Very high gear stresses. These require frequent lube changes. No way around it.

 

[tacx]

Why do you ask???

 

[TyeeMan]

Perhaps the OP has a late model Evinrude outboard. If memory serves I think they say you can go something like the first 5 years without changing lower unit oil.

 

[Scott Danforth]

really early low hp outboards had grease in the lower units.

however as far as I/O's go, every one from every manufacturer has lubricating oil of some kind

 

[poconojoe]

If you live in a climate that gets below freezing don't chance it. If for any reason water has gotten into the oil, it can freeze and damage your drive.
I know my drive oil looks used even after a moderate summer of usage. This summer rained so much that we probably only went out maybe 10 times. Maybe 10 hours of run time and the oil looked bad.
For what it takes to change the outdrive oil, it's a no brainer. A couple quarts of the proper oil, a drain pan (I use a throw away aluminum foil pan), two replacement gasket washers for the drain plugs and the cheapo oil pump tool that screws onto the oil bottle.

 

[achris]

If you live in a climate that gets below freezing don't chance it. If for any reason water has gotten into the oil, it can freeze and damage your drive.
I know my drive oil looks used even after a moderate summer of usage. This summer rained so much that we probably only went out maybe 10 times. Maybe 10 hours of run time and the oil looked bad.
For what it takes to change the outdrive oil, it's a no brainer. A couple quarts of the proper oil, a drain pan (I use a throw away aluminum foil pan), two replacement gasket washers for the drain plugs and the cheapo oil pump tool that screws onto the oil bottle.

Yep, all good. But after only 10 hours the oil is bad. Bad oil, in such a short time can be caused by overloading it... What revs are you getting at WOT (and what should you be getting)?

Chris......