JoLin
Vice Admiral
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2007
- Messages
- 5,146
1997 Johnson 175 w/Fast Track PT&T
I grounded the motor on a sandbar at about 20 mph. When I stopped it and looked over the transom the water was full of hydraulic fluid. When i hit the trim switch up/down the engine jitterbugged a little, but wouldn't trim in or out. I hauled it out of the water and dismounted the whole assembly from the engine.
At the front of the unit that sits up against the boat transom (the side opposite the pistons and reservoir), there's a small weep/relief hole that goes through the valve body casing and into the "barrel" in the valve assmbly that the Manual Release Valve screws into. It was leaking fluid and water out of that hole.
I bought a full reseal kit and a new manual release valve and replaced every seal and o-ring in the unit, along with the manual release valve. Per the instructions in the manual, I filled the tilt cylinder, both trim cylinders, the top of the pump and the reservior with fluid as I closed everything up.
It took a few days for me to get the right paint to finish the unit, and during that time I stored it upright in the same position it would be when installed on the boat. During those few days I noticed a puddle of oil coming from the same weep/relief hole. Didn't seem to matter whether the relief valve was opened or closed, either. I was hoping at that point that the unit was just overfilled and that it would be okay when I hooked it all up again.
Today I did that, and the unit dloesn't work. Motor runs in both directions, but the pistons don't move. The Manual Release Valve is closed, as it should be. A few more drops of oil came out of that hole again, though, and dripped down between the unit and the transom.
Anybody know what's wrong with this thing? That was a hard, dirty job. The only other thing I can think of is an internal problem with the valve body assembly which, according to the manual has "no user servicable parts" inside it.
Any help greatly appreciated.
John
I grounded the motor on a sandbar at about 20 mph. When I stopped it and looked over the transom the water was full of hydraulic fluid. When i hit the trim switch up/down the engine jitterbugged a little, but wouldn't trim in or out. I hauled it out of the water and dismounted the whole assembly from the engine.
At the front of the unit that sits up against the boat transom (the side opposite the pistons and reservoir), there's a small weep/relief hole that goes through the valve body casing and into the "barrel" in the valve assmbly that the Manual Release Valve screws into. It was leaking fluid and water out of that hole.
I bought a full reseal kit and a new manual release valve and replaced every seal and o-ring in the unit, along with the manual release valve. Per the instructions in the manual, I filled the tilt cylinder, both trim cylinders, the top of the pump and the reservior with fluid as I closed everything up.
It took a few days for me to get the right paint to finish the unit, and during that time I stored it upright in the same position it would be when installed on the boat. During those few days I noticed a puddle of oil coming from the same weep/relief hole. Didn't seem to matter whether the relief valve was opened or closed, either. I was hoping at that point that the unit was just overfilled and that it would be okay when I hooked it all up again.
Today I did that, and the unit dloesn't work. Motor runs in both directions, but the pistons don't move. The Manual Release Valve is closed, as it should be. A few more drops of oil came out of that hole again, though, and dripped down between the unit and the transom.
Anybody know what's wrong with this thing? That was a hard, dirty job. The only other thing I can think of is an internal problem with the valve body assembly which, according to the manual has "no user servicable parts" inside it.
Any help greatly appreciated.
John
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