I/O taking on water while sitting not moving

[04fxdwgi25]

Well, maybe if he finds the leak and can supply accurate info, only then can we assist with some how to answers to assist.

Unknown location = unknown problem or fix.

 

[BRICH1260]

You need to determine if your water is engine cooling water or outside lake water coming in. Engine cooling water will be warm, outside water will obviously be cooler. Engine water should be easily found by looking the entire engine over thoroughly. Outside water could be the result of a bad bellow or bellow seal, bad transom seal, bad thru hull fitting or leaking onboard water tank/line if you have one. BTW, I`d pull the drive again and make sure your oil seal that you replaced is holding and to double check for water in the bellows.

 

[Buzzsaw420]

Check to see if the drain plug is loose or worn.

 

[FelixDaKat]

First off let me say how much I appreciate the responses. They are all helpful in one way or another. With that being said I was able to located the source of the leak. The thing is I either had two leak issues or I got taken for a ride on the fitting that was leaking which is probably what happened seeing as how the mobile mechanic that found it tried to upsell me on rebuilding my entire outdrive for a leaking seal. In any event, I noticed that the outdrive silicon sealant had cracked around the bottom of the transom plate, this was odd to me seeing as how it had recently been done. I seal it back up again just to see and drop it in the lake the next day - no water coming in for 20 mins just sitting -take it for a spin - I stop after a couple mins of cruising, with no water taken in DURING the cruise, then I hear water coming in. Drop the inspection camera to the back of the boat and find that there is water coming in from what I think is the bottom of the transom plate housing. We take it out drain it, drop it again, no water coming in, Cruise around and its taking water. Take it back to garage my bro in law wedges his jolly green giant self into the bilge to try and get a good look at it and notice that the bottom bolts on the transom plate are loose. they took a lot of spinning before they stopped. Obviously we cannot get to any of the other bolts without removing the entire motor so we try the best we can with what we got. It did slow down the leak but did not stop it tho. I'm looking for opinions on how this could possibly be done without motor removal, tips or tricks. I know that if I have to remove its one hell of a job because I am not equipped to pull a motor out of engine bay that is 4-5 feet off the ground. Is it normal for transom seal to go bad? The transom itself does have cracks or anything between the housing and the drain plug which I understand would be telltale transom rot if it was. Video of leak attached. Sorry for the long post but I need some help, this is my first foray into boat ownership and while I expected some issues I wasnt expecting something this difficult to present itself after only 2 uses.

 

[BRICH1260]

You may have a bad/rotten transom that is flexing under forward thrust if tightening the loose nuts did not help. However it is possible that the rubber transom seal is bad and needs to be replaced.

 

[alldodge]

Should never see any kind of sealant on the transom, if you do then it has started to leak and someone used a bandaid

If transom bolts are ever loose then transom is soft, they never get loose otherwise

You need to rebuild the transom

 

[FelixDaKat]

Should never see any kind of sealant on the transom, if you do then it has started to leak and someone used a bandaid

If transom bolts are ever loose then transom is soft, they never get loose otherwise

You need to rebuild the transom

I feel no flex in the transom when I bounce on the outdrive tho. I guess the only way to know for sure is to remove the damn motor?

 

[briangcc]

Theoretically, your boat is wood free. At least, that's how my 200Le in my signature was touted which was the same model year as yours.

Quick call to FourWinns would confirm this seeing how they're still in business.

But yes, if you had a few bolts loose, and it's never been serviced, it's probably due for at the very least a seal kit of sorts. This a Merc or Volvo?

 

[FelixDaKat]

Theoretically, your boat is wood free. At least, that's how my 200Le in my signature was touted which was the same model year as yours.

Quick call to FourWinns would confirm this seeing how they're still in business.

But yes, if you had a few bolts loose, and it's never been serviced, it's probably due for at the very least a seal kit of sorts. This a Merc or Volvo?

Its a Volvo Sx-M outdrive

 

[briangcc]

I feel your pain. Everything Volvo is 2-3x more than comparable Merc part. Nice drive setup but horribly expensive.

Good luck!

 

[JASinIL2006]

Silicone around the transom and loose transom shield bolts together are usually not a good sign... Whether or not your boat has wood, something isn't right back there and you likely are facing some disassembly to get at the problem.

 

[Lou C]

It is possible the transom is OK but the seal is bad, or there is corrosion between the seal and the gasket that is letting in water.
this is one of the real headaches of I/Os, there are many places where they can leak water even beyond the bellows.

 

[FelixDaKat]

It is possible the transom is OK but the seal is bad, or there is corrosion between the seal and the gasket that is letting in water.
this is one of the real headaches of I/Os, there are many places where they can leak water even beyond the bellows.

What is a telltale sign that it's a bellow leak vs say the actual transom seal? If any

 

[tpenfield]

I'll make a few comments to hopefully help.

Odds are that there is a leak at the transom seal. These are often caused by the transom rotting.

Not sure about 4Winns being wood-free, but maybe. Often the stringers are synthetic, but the transom is wood core. Boat companies usually do not want you to know how their boats are made (else you might not buy them )

Another possibility is the Y-Pipe leaking. There is usually a gasket where the bottom of the Y-pipe (exhaust pipe) mates to the transom assembly. If the gasket fails, then the boat will leak at the gasket.

Another possibility, which has been touched on is a leak at the raw water intake line (hose/fittings/etc.) When the engine is running the intake line is under suction, and so it won't leak, but possibly will draw some air into the raw water flow. When the engine is off, the intake line is under some pressure from the outside water, and therefore can leak.

Leaks at/around the transom assembly can be difficult to find, as much is hidden. A borescope can help pinpoint the source. There are some scopes that are not all that expensive, but can be helpful both now and in the future.

Most often the engine does need to be removed in order to both verify the source of the leak and to fix it. The priority of fixing it depends on were the leak is coming from. It depends on what you find and can verify. A transom issue would be a high priority to fix . . .

 

[FelixDaKat]

I'll make a few comments to hopefully help.

Odds are that there is a leak at the transom seal. These are often caused by the transom rotting.

Not sure about 4Winns being wood-free, but maybe. Often the stringers are synthetic, but the transom is wood core. Boat companies usually do not want you to know how their boats are made (else you might not buy them )

Another possibility is the Y-Pipe leaking. There is usually a gasket where the bottom of the Y-pipe (exhaust pipe) mates to the transom assembly. If the gasket fails, then the boat will leak at the gasket.

Another possibility, which has been touched on is a leak at the raw water intake line (hose/fittings/etc.) When the engine is running the intake line is under suction, and so it won't leak, but possibly will draw some air into the raw water flow. When the engine is off, the intake line is under some pressure from the outside water, and therefore can leak.

Leaks at/around the transom assembly can be difficult to find, as much is hidden. A borescope can help pinpoint the source. There are some scopes that are not all that expensive, but can be helpful both now and in the future.

Most often the engine does need to be removed in order to both verify the source of the leak and to fix it. The priority of fixing it depends on were the leak is coming from. It depends on what you find and can verify. A transom issue would be a high priority to fix . .

I posted this vid last time but here it is again - I figure the more people who see it the better to get some sort of answer.

 

[Lou C]

What is a telltale sign that it's a bellow leak vs say the actual transom seal? If any

one way to know is to pull the drive and look in the bellows
the other way, is to wait till your gimble bearing starts grinding and your u joints start knocking lol.

BTW, this boat is my first boat owned and maintained 20 years. Based on my experience (which on the I/O side, not bad at all) I still would never ever buy another I/O for my boating needs.
They made sense when outboards were loud and smokey and I/O engines were simple and cheap to repair. Now, that's all changed.
The day when I swore I'd never have another one was the only major problem I ever had, the small hose between the transom mount and P/S cooler on the back of the engine popped off and filled the bilge with sea water and overheated the engine (7/2013). That can't happen with outboards!

 

[tpenfield]

I posted this vid last time but here it is again - I figure the more people who see it the better to get some sort of answer.

It may be hard to pinpoint the exact location of the leak beyond what can be seen in the video. A borescope can help, but you may have to start taking things apart. Pulling the outdrive would be a whole lot easier than pulling the engine. So, start there.

With the outdrive off, you can get a good look at the bellows and certainly see if there is/was water in the driveshaft bellows. You can also get a look at the inside the Y-Pipe.