2015 Searay 310 transom leak

Dec 10, 2020
8
Boat Info
2015 Searay 310 Sundancer
Engines
twin mercruiser 250 sterndrives
I purchased a 2015 searay 310 in September of this year. At the time of purchase the boat was in the process of having some minor recalls (guages and vessel view) done. It had not been performed because of part backorders and shipping delays during the pandemic. During the sea trial we kept getting a warning about critical steering and low trim fluid on the port engine. This was evaluated by my local searay dealer (marine max) and they determined it was the trim cylinder and this was replaced. The warning and low fluid kept happening. It was taken back and was then told it was a leaking trim reservoir. This was replaced and again it kept happening. It was taken back to the dealer a third time and now they had to pull the port engine to follow the signs of fluid leakage. When they did they discovered corrosion to the Y pipe causing severe salt damage to the entire transom housing and are recommending complete replacement of the y piping and transom unit. This is over 7K in repairs. The mechanic states this is clearly an installation problem at the time of build or a product defect itself and that this should not occur in a boat this new. I have made the offer to searay and mercruiser to pay for the labor if they help with the parts. I feel this is a fair offer. Thus far, no luck. Any advice appreciated.
 

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Welcome to the wonderful world of outdrive maintenance......just remember, you have another one on the starboard side too....Really doubt mercruiser will help - They will likely blame the installer (sea ray) - did you buy this boat from marine max? If yes, get them to ask sea ray for help - and/or push them to help too - if this was a brokerage boat through another source, you are likely on your own....
 
Im working with searay as we speak. Thus far, they have been receptive to helping resolve.
 
Sorry to hear about your current dilemma.
I bought a 2010 310 from MM in Lake of the Ozarks in August 2020, made sure to get the maintenance records before buying and also had the boat surveyed. So here I thought because the bellows and all associated transom assembly work had been done at the end of 2019 including repairing a leaking outdrive I was good to go(bill was over 5K). Well not so fast bucko, after hauling the boat that I had for three months the repaired outdrive had water in it and also the bellows. I reviewed the repair bill with my mechanic and he agreed all these issues should have been fixed(bearing carriers both drives rotted beyond repair) when they did all the work last October 2019. Well I bought a brokerage boat so the warranty for the work does not carry forward but after reading your post I'll be contacting MM to see if they'll stand behind the work they did? One last note after reviewing the maintenance and repair records for this 2010 boat it seems this same work was also done previously in 2016! How could a ten year old boat be on it's third set of bellows, have leaking drives and now be ready for a fourth set?
 
It was taken back to the dealer a third time and now they had to pull the port engine to follow the signs of fluid leakage. When they did they discovered corrosion to the Y pipe causing severe salt damage to the entire transom housing and are recommending complete replacement of the y piping and transom unit. This is over 7K in repairs. The mechanic states this is clearly an installation problem at the time of build or a product defect itself and that this should not occur in a boat this new.

I hope you make out well with Sea Ray or MM a 2015 boat should rarely have these issues.
You don't have your boating location in your profile, I am going to ASSUME salt water for now.

I have to slightly disagree with the mechanic, this COULD be from a poor installation. In fact this is not an UN-common location for corrosion and failure.

In that void that is now full of corrosion is the top of the trim hydraulics manifold block. That block bolts on from under the outside of the transom housing. Below that block bolts the Mercathode system and the wiring for that passes thru the center of the trim block. You have likely found this out now.

So yes the block itself could have come loose allowing water to enter and collect there.
OR
the wiring hole could be leaking
OR
the Y pipe could have been loose and leaking
OR
the transom itself is leaking.

Or any other leak or water entry cause that allowed water to accumulate in the bilges and touch the bottom of the Y pipe and the bottom bolts. The hose ends and bolts are stainless steel if they sit in salt water they will have electrolysis.

Another common situation causing that water collects there from water source, and if any of the bilge pump connections hang in the water you will quickly eat away that wet aluminum.

Who is responsible depends on what leaked, without water there would have been no corrosion.

The out drive comes to a manufacturer mostly pre-assembled. The Y pipe would not be (to wide).
So Sea Ray seals the cutout, passes in all the hoses and wires mounts the external transom with all the hydraulics preinstalled, bolts up the internal transom plate with steering components preinstalled and mounts the Y pipe. Install the engine, align engine, install the drive leg.

So find the water entry and be sure that is resolved. Bellows, shift bellows, speed pitot tube, raw water fittings, steering pin, all of these are points on Alpha and Bravo drives that have been known to leak. And while the port side failed what is the condition of the starboard side? Get an inspection camera in there and check it all again after its in the water.
 
I bought a 2015 searay 310 DA from an individual here in Hilton head last July. It had just completed its 300 hour service at our local marine max. On our sea trial we discovered a critical steering warning that was related to a trim fluid leak. The boat was already scheduled to have some minor warranty items replaced that hadn’t been done yet secondary to part delays. They said they would look at that when they did the warranty work. When they did this they said the trim fluid was leaking from a trim cylinder on the port engine and replaced this. It was at marine max approximately 5 weeks for this. When I picked it up it was immediately getting the same warning and I noticed trim fluid in the bilge area. It took about 3 weeks before marine max could work me back in. This time they said it was the trim reservoir that was leaking. There another month. When I picked it up again, still immediately with the same warning. Now I could see trim fluid leaking in the water as well as my bilge area. This time marine max sent a tech to my boat slip and determined that the leak was coming somewhere behind the port engine and they would have to pull the engine to find it. The boat was brought back to them on November 30th. After two weeks they called me to come look at the boat. Their mechanic showed me the damage. He said that the y pipe had eroded behind the port engine allowing salt water to erode through the transom assembly where the trim hoses were running to the lower unit. He said this shouldn’t happen on a boat of this age and that it was likely a part defect or an installation defect at the time of the build. He said I would need to replace the entire lower unit, transom assembly, and the y pipe. This was around 8k. Searay graciously agreed to offer money towards this and I was very appreciative of that. Marine max called me around the first week of February to tell me that the engine work was completed but their mechanic was having trouble getting the engine hatch to open and close properly after putting it back together. They finally figured this out and I went to pick the boat up on Friday February 26th. On Sunday February 28th I was delivering the boat for bottom painting as it had been delayed so long. On the way there after being underway approximately 30 minutes I got a warning on the helm that the lube to the starboard drive was low and that I should shut down and return to dealer immediately. I turned it off and there was a fire in the engine bay. I realized the fire suppression system had not engaged and I pulled the pin and activated manually. Nothing happened. At this point the cockpit was starting to be engulfed in flames and my wife and I had to bale in the sound. The boat burned to the water line and is now a complete loss. I post this for everyone’s education. Be very careful of marine max mechanic work. Also, be sure your insurance policy covers boat salvage. It’s not like a car loss. Many marine policies do not cover salvage. This is going to cost me over 20k to haul the salvage. Unfortunately, marine max is yet to take any responsibility. I wanted to reshare the entire final story with everyone!
 

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Holy cow what an awful saga. Glad you and your wife are safe, that sounds like a terrifying experience.
 
Holy cow what an awful saga. Glad you and your wife are safe, that sounds like a terrifying experience.
It was one of the worst days of my life. My birthday, nonetheless. But yes thank god no one was injured. That’s all that matters at the end of the day. I appreciate your response.
 
Wow Philip. Sorry to read this. Glad you and your family are safe.
 
WOW! That is beyond the worst scenario anyone could have anticipated! I'm so glad that you are both safe!! This will most likely be an insurance war with finger pointing between your insurance and MM's insurance. If it were me 9:01 Monday(today) I'd be calling my attorney!! Please keep us updated as the outcome could be helpful to others. I'm having issues with my boat as I previously had posted due to poor workmanship by the same company different location.
 
WOW! That is beyond the worst scenario anyone could have anticipated! I'm so glad that you are both safe!! This will most likely be an insurance war with finger pointing between your insurance and MM's insurance. If it were me 9:01 Monday(today) I'd be calling my attorney!! Please keep us updated as the outcome could be helpful to others. I'm having issues with my boat as I previously had posted due to poor workmanship by the same company different location.
I was hopeful that MM would be reasonable and offer to make this correct. As my insurance paid for the boat and motor, I would ask MM to cover the cost of the boat salvage and the personal items lost that was not covered by insurance. At the end of the day if this was my faulty work I would want to inspect the boat to learn what happened a d how to prevent it in the future. Fortunately nobody was injured here but that doesn’t mean someone wouldn’t be in the future!
 
I wouldn't count on MM covering anything which is why I suggested contacting your attorney. This appears to be a result of their workmanship. It needs to be investigated but you shouldn't be paying out of pocket for anything!
 
I wouldn't count on MM covering anything which is why I suggested contacting your attorney. This appears to be a result of their workmanship. It needs to be investigated but you shouldn't be paying out of pocket for anything!
I do have an attorney. That being said, I was hopeful to avoid litigation. At the end of the day, the attorneys are usually the biggest winners after dragging out as long as possible.
 
I get it but have zero confidence in MM doing the right thing. Keep us posted. Best of luck to you, I really hope it get resolved to your satisfaction.
 
Any updates? I spoke with a woman at MM corporate who was very attentive and said I'll look into it and get back to you but you guessed it i never heard from her again. I called several times and left her messages but she ghosted me so now I will NOT be buying any future purchases from MM.
 
Never really hard back from anyone except marine max said it was in the attorneys hands. Searay has ghosted me completely. Thus, I can either live with the fact or pursue litigation. Whatever I decide I will never buy or have a boat worked on by marine max.
 

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