1987 Alpha One (Gen 1) issues: Leak & shift

[Rixram]

Hey all,

I have an 87' Seville II MC 210 with the 4.3L and the Alpha One G1.

I have 3 seperate issues with is that I could use some input for.

1] Slow leak.
When in the water (obviously), I have a slow leak which cycles the bilge pump every 10 minutes or so. When I took it to the Merc dealership, they filled the bilge with water, and when the level got to about slightly over the bottom of the drive housing, a leak appeared. The mechanic wasn't sure if it was from the Y-Pipe or the housing, but stated that the engine would have to be removed to fix it. I plan to pull the engine whis winter/spring to investigate/repair.

Has anyone had this sort of leak before, and if so, what was the fix?

2] Shifting disagreementThe Alpha One G1 drive on my boat tends to not release forward gear when the shift/throttle is moved to the neutral position. I have to bump it back past the neutral position, but not all the way into astern gear.

Has anyone had this symptom before? Please note that this issue may be related to issue #3 as well.

3]
When shifting the boat into astern (reverse) for the Alpha One G1, the engine will sometimes cut out, requiring restart. Sometimes, this issue will persist for 4-5 attempts, then finally work. This is, of course, inconvenient.

Can anyone offer a suggestion that could address this? Please note that this issue may be related to issue #2 as well.

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can provide.

 

[SloBurn]

#1 Bellows! No need to pull motor! For a boat that is this old, they are leaking, cheap, easy fix...Have they ever been done? #2 and #3 Shift cable has stretched. Try this; when in gear, shift into neutral, if boat remains in gear-shut it off. Re-start, if boat starts and IS in neutral, it's the cable that stretched. Both of these are common ailments for a boat this age. Could also be an adjustment of dwell cut out switch....? as per problem #3.

 

[Bucit]

#1 - Steering pin? Engine normally is removed to fix but can be done with a patch kit (search this site for the thread)

#2 & 3 - strecthed shift cable or simply needs to be adjusted.

 

[Rixram]

Heya. Sorry for my tardiness in replying to your generous input.

1] I replaced the bellows in June. When I took it to the Local Merc dealership to diagnose the leaking issue, I'd thought it the bellows as well. They verified that the bellows were indeed dry, and not the source of the leak. With the boat out of the water, and on the trailer, they filled the bilge to the bottom level of the inboard transom section of the drive, where the water began to slowly leak out. The postulated that it was possibly the Y-pipe, but could not be sure unless they pulled the engine, and suggested that I hold off on that, if possible, as the job would be $1,500.

I wanted to ask here, in case anyone else had this issue before. This "pin" issue, can you tell me more about it? Is this pin located near the bottom of the inboard side of the drive transom mount?

2] How hard is the cable to replace or adjust?

3] Regarding the dwell cut-out switch, would that be a consistent issue, or would the "sometimes it works/doesn't work" situation describe it?

 

[Molson]

Was the lower shift cable replaced when you did the bellows? #3 sounds like the shift interrupt isn't working properly, or engaging at the wrong time. This leads to a shift cable adjustment (lower) There is a small bit of adjustment you can do, but its easier (and better) to get a new lower shift cable. They should be done when you do the bellows too.

 

[Uplate]

I had the same problem as #3 with my port drive. Put new shift cables in and problem fixed.

 

[Rixram]

Looks like I have a shift cable to install this off-season. Thanks for the advice, all.