Re: OMC Cobra wont shift into gear
I had a similar experience. I gave the shop that did the oil change a chance to work it out (they were neighbors). They appeared amiable, but I got screwed and we ended up in small claims court. I won, but was awarded only half of the total cost to get the upper fixed (not to mention the stress, hassle, and loss of use involved with the whole affair, which was worse than the money I lost).<br /><br />here are some suggestions that might help.<br /><br />First, DON'T add or drain any oil yet yourself. Note hours on the boat when they serviced it and after you discovered the damage (I assume it was either almost immediately or after very low hours, true?)<br /><br />I'd get it to a shop with alot of Cobra experience (specifically one with OMC certified mechanics) and start compiling evidence you can use in small claims court. <br /><br />1) Have them inspect the upper gearset and document what they find.<br /><br />2) Have them drain the oil, measure, and document how much was in the drive. (my 4.3L should have had 64 ozs; there was probably 40 ozs or less in there when it came bck from the shop). If the amount of oil is significantly less than the spec'd amount they probably filled it like a Merc, i.e., filled from the bottom drain plug to the level of the middle fill plug, leaving almost no oil in the upper. If the level is low but not to that extreme, they probably filled from the bottom drain plug to the top check hole, but left an air pocket which would work it's way to the upper unit & still trash the gears and/or bearings. <br /><br />3) Check your invoice from the "mobile mechanic" and see if it lists the amount of drive oil they charged you for; compare against specs for your drive. Maybe you'll get lucky. If they list an amount significantly less than specs, you shuld be golden in court. <br /><br />4) If the oil the shop drained is lower than spec, try to get the shop to write a statement on company letterhead documenting that the damage is consistent with an improperly filled (underfilled) outdrive. If you can get them to accompany you to small claims court, great; (I suspect this is unlikely, and you'd have to pay them for their time). If not, have them get the statement notarized.<br /><br />5) Have the OMC shop save any metal filings stuck to the magnetic drain plug (or that they can fish out of the bottom of the unit) for documentation.<br /><br />6) Get an OEM OMC Service Manual for your Drive and take it to court. Mark/ highlight the portions where it tells how to fill the outdrive and what can happen if you do it incorrectly. If you can't get your own copy, find one to borrow and copy the relevent pages (including the manuals cover). There are several places where this is noted, including a specifically marked paragraph warning about drive damage if you fill the drive incorrectly. I'd mark/ copy each place it mentions it in the Service Manual to emphasise the point to the judge.<br /><br />7) This could be very helpful. Take a friend along with you (someone willing to go to court & serve as a witness) to talk to the 'mobile mechanic' who actually did the oil change. Tell him you're having problems with the outdrive and ask him if he filled the drive from the bottom plug. Would be nice if the boat was there so he could actually point to the drain plug, but perhaps you could get a picture of the drive and have him point to the plug he filled it from. If he's unfamiliar with Cobras (and it sounds like that's the case), chances are high that he'll reflexively tell the truth (that he filled from the drain plug, which would be correct for a Merc, but not a Cobra). Your friend can verify his response in court if need be so it doesn't turn into a 'he said/ she said' standoff.<br /><br />8) Ask the OMC shop about possible damage to the lower unit from metal shavings, etc. I don't know if this is much of a risk - others here should be able to answer this question. If there is any risk, I'd have the shop inspect the lower unit to make sure there's no collateral damage to it as well.<br /><br />That's about all I can think of at this point; I wouldn't let the 'mobile mechanics' fix the boat after an incident like this one. If they offer to pay for repairs in order to avoid court (and perhaps a negative report to the Better Business Bureau), I'd go ahead with all of the steps I listed anyways in case they change their tune before it's all done. <br /><br />Good luck; I hope you're in for less of a hassle than I experienced! <br /><br />ps if you're interested, here's the link to my post from 2004 about what soulnds like a very similar incident. <br /><br />
http://forums.iboats.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=24;t=008398#000000
