Official 280 Sundancer Thread

Has anyone had any problems with their steering? I can't even turn the wheel! Is it the cable? Pump?


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I can't imagine it has anything to do with the power steering. That wouldn't stop the wheel from turning, just make it stiffer. Also, shift cables don't normally just completely fail. They progressively get worse and worse. So since you state you can't turn it at all, I would take a look at the drive for some type of obstruction. It could be something with the steering box or on the inner transom plate, but it the most likely thing (just playing the odds here) would be a physical obstruction.
 
You got anymore info? What happened? When did it work last? Did you check the power steering fluid? Did you check the engine belts?

The wheel does not turn at all. I bought the boat at a repo auction after sitting for 2 years. The fluid is full and the belt is turning. I disconnected the rack from the cable and it looks a little rusty.


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Well, that info changes things a bit. Disconnect at both ends and see what moves and what does not. Under normal circumstances, sitting for two years shouldn't cause the steering system to completely fail. But there may be more missing info - whether you know about it or not. Try to free up what you can (if possible) after seeing what moves/does not move, replace the rest.

Again, the power steering pump has nothing to do with this issue.

So... now that you disconnected... what moves and what does not? What looks rusty... the rack or the cable? How bad is it? Does it move?

Could be a nice boat when you're all done - take your time and do it right. Good luck with it!
 
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Does everyone usually leave their battery selector switches to both or all when hooked to shorepower? Not sure if my bilge pumps will work otherwise.
 
Well, that info changes things a bit. Disconnect at both ends and see what moves and what does not. Under normal circumstances, sitting for two years shouldn't cause the steering system to completely fail. But there may be more missing info - whether you know about it or not. Try to free up what you can (if possible) after seeing what moves/does not move, replace the rest.

Again, the power steering pump has nothing to do with this issue.

So... now that you disconnected... what moves and what does not? What looks rusty... the rack or the cable? How bad is it? Does it move?

Could be a nice boat when you're all done - take your time and do it right. Good luck with it!

Thanks. i will disconnect and check the cable. its already turning out great :wink:
 
Does everyone usually leave their battery selector switches to both or all when hooked to shorepower? Not sure if my bilge pumps will work otherwise.

Chris, just an fyi, many of your questions can be answered through searching as they are quite common and have come up numerous times throughout the years. This avoids making threads unnecessarily longer than they have to.

Now, have you tried operating your float switches with the battery switches in different positions, including off? That would be the number one way to find out. However, if things are wired as they would have been from the factory, battery switch position will have no impact on the auto bilge function.
 
Is there a trick to removing the steering cable. I spent 2 hours just trying to remove the damn thing. The twins are so close together there is virtually no room to access the cotter pin. Please help. Any advice is appreciated.


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What is? Do you mean your bilge pump doesn't work via the float switch or the dash switch (with battery switch on)?

Yeah the bilge pump. Found Its hardwired to a battery. Got a new one now and wired it directly to a deep cycle battery.
 
Yeah the bilge pump. Found Its hardwired to a battery. Got a new one now and wired it directly to a deep cycle battery.

Good. This is probably what you meant, but just to be sure... the float switch should be wired direct, not the actual pump.
 
Noticed i don't have screens on any of my oval porthole windows. Is that normal?

At 15 years old, yes, probably somewhat normal (unless a PO kept up with maintenance/replacement). Originally there would have been screens glued in (possibly the newer style at 2002). Get some screening from HD, cut it to fit behind the rubber, tack it (and the rubber) back in place with rubber cement or double-sided tape. Or just get new rubber.

If you happen to have the newer style rubber gasket, it will have slots in it to accept framed screens. Available from Bomar, online retailers or local dealer (or make your own).
 
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At 15 years old, yes, probably somewhat normal (unless a PO kept up with maintenance/replacement). Originally there would have been screens glued in (possibly the newer style at 2002). Get some screening from HD, cut it to fit behind the rubber, tack it (and the rubber) back in place with rubber cement or double-sided tape. Or just get new rubber.

If you happen to have the newer style rubber gasket, it will have slots in it to accept framed screens. Available from Bomar, online retailers or local dealer (or make your own).
Will do. Thanks!
 
New to us 2015 280 DA. Is the main overhead cabin light on a 3 way switch? The switch right inside the cabin door seems to turn it on and off but it is opposite of the floor light switch ( ie. of turns it on). There is a switch on the side of the galley cabinet near the front "bed" However this switch doesn't seem to turn anything on or off and does not seem to impact the functioning of the switch inside the door. The fact the door switch is backwards tells me it is on a 3 way but I either don't know where the 3rd switch is or it isn't working if it isbye bed. Any ideas?
 
Has anyone had any problems with their steering? I can't even turn the wheel! Is it the cable? Pump?


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If you decide the problem is the steering cable (and that's my guess, considering it was probably a saltwater boat) and you want to do that cable replacement yourself, here's a huge time-saver. Don't try to remove the existing cable, where it goes through the section along with other cables and wires. Simply use a hole saw and cut a new hole a few inches away from that area. Of course, be sure there's nothing that can be damage on the backside before cutting the hole. When I replaced my cable, I wasted a lot of time trying to remove the cable from it's original placement, before I gave up and cut the new hole.

BTW, this was on a single screw 280, but it's probably a similar setup on yours.
 
I have a 03, and I don't remember how I did it anymore, but I wired relays to press a button on my dash pad to power the relay, and it fools my old Clarion head unit to accessory mode - then I wired to hook up to my IPhone. Now I use a JL Audio converter to Bluetooth - all using the old head unit, and two wired original Clarion remotes. Point being, you could get a bit newer (2004?) used Clarion head unit that has built in auxiliary inputs and wire that to your dash with a RCA to Bluetooth convertor...then your original Clarion wired remote(s) will still work.

Anyone ever swap their stock clarion head unit with a different kind? It looks to be a double din size. I'm wanting something that has Bluetooth audio capabilities for my 02.
 
Has anyone removed the steering cable from the housing on the gimbal? I can't seem to remove it because there is simply not enough foo to pull it out. It's between the gimbal and the hull. Any tips on removing the cable?


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Thank you

I am 3 hours away from my vessel, does anyone have dimensions of the stern storage hatch. Distance between the latches would also be helpful.

Hatch is 32 1/8" wide, 15 1/4" high and 16 3/4" between latches (inside edges). I have a 2004 280, I did not confirm they were the same.
 

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