Repair manuals

Joined
Aug 27, 2006
Messages
9
im curious what is recommended for a good service manual for a four winns with vp 5.0. My local dealer has Clymer manuals for $40 which they say is better than the seloc kind. Supposedly the clymer is like 3" thick. Is this what I want?
 

southkogs

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Jul 7, 2010
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14,785
I've worked off a Seloc for my OMC (When I had it). Ultimately, I tracked down a service manual. For the Mercruiser, I'll wind up going straight to an OEM service manual. I think the consensus here will be that you do the same.
 
Joined
Aug 27, 2006
Messages
9
Hmm.. they are a four winns dealer and they said they use a clymer manual in the shop. How much can I expect to pay for an oem manual? I can't seem to find one to download online. ...1998 four winns 200, 5.0
 
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jbcurt00

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Oct 25, 2011
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Don't be surprised that the manual they sell is the manual they recommend
 

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
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Jul 23, 2011
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clymer, hayes and seloc make good reading in the out-house. that way you have paper for when your done laughing at all the inaccuracies

go to the VP site and get a manual. used to be able to download for free.
 

mr 88

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Nov 3, 2010
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2,115
Any questions I have on just about any marine motor are answered right here in the Engines Forum. I wouldn't spend a dime on a manual with all the free info on here ! Are you after anything specific or do you just want to spend money on a manual ?
 
Joined
Aug 27, 2006
Messages
9
Well I've asked my fair share of dumb questions over the years so I thought I'd get a manual for this "new" boat. Mainly for wiring schematics and torque specs. I know my 98 fourwinns is notorious for wiring issues with the vdo gauge cluster. And currently I have the outdrive removed for winter maintenence since my LU drain plug stripped out. Most guys on here recommend a manual so I thought I would invest in one to keep some of these generous people from answering dumb questions. I was hoping the manual would also tell me how to set the adjustment on the shift cable upon re installation of the outdrive. I don't think vp manuals are a free download these days and I couldn't even figure out how to order one from their complicated worldwide web page. I hate websites that the first thing you gotta do is tell em you're from Merica.
 

Chris1956

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Mar 25, 2004
Messages
27,036
Get the OEM manual. You cannot trust the other brands to give accurate info, and sometimes inaccurate info can hurt you or the engine. Heck, I would bet the basic specs are wrong in the non-OEM manuals.
 
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