drive oil consumption on 200 select - 5.0 alpha one

F

Fasterblaster

New Member
Jun 14, 2007
43
Vancouver, B.C. CANADA
I seem to be losing some drive oil.
Its down from full to add in about 15 hours of boating. No sign of oil on the drive, but it probably gets washed away.

Also, i noticed the Mercury brand of drive oil is twice the price. Is it worth it?
 
Not worth it if you blow through it at that rate!

I had a smaller leak last year. Proved to be a bad seal in the drive. I did have an occassional slick in the water around the drive just after it ran. . . otherwise no other symptoms.

When the drive was pulled off for winter PM's. . .there was drive oil everywhere. Seemed like a simple $200 repair as part of PM's. In your case. . you may need more immediate attention.
 
You need to have your drive pressure tested by your dealer or an independent Mercury Technician.

You probably have a bad seal that needs replacing and the pressure test will show where the oil is leaking.
 
I'd keep adding oil until the season is over and have it looked at then. Pressure test sounds reasonable. How many hours on the unit?
 
She's got 235 hours now. I've had it a month and put about 17 of those hours on it. It's been maintained at the local dealership and came out of the shop in May after a full service including zincs and install of the Corsa exhaust system. I hadn't noticed that the drive resevoir was low, but it would be surprising to me that the dealership would let it leave the shop without that being topped up.

I just pulled the vent and drain screws on the drive. Its clean and there's no sign of emulsified oil. I just re-checked the exterior of the drive for any signs of oil. None.

I think i'll take it for a ride tonight to see if it eats any oil. I don't think i'd have a hope in hell of getting this in and out of a shop at this time of year.
 
That's not too many hours on it. Ive got 335 on mine. Sometimes when the lube has been drained and refilled it won't completely fill the unit and it burps and needs to be topped off after a couple of hours. I've also heard that some of the the oil vaporizes and escapes through the "hub seals?" on the Bravo 3 units, not sure about the Alpha's.
Being that it's clean I'd just monitor and top off as required. I never take mine in during the season unless it's major because you lose so much boating time. Good luck.
 
This year, I had a burp after a few hours. Was down a few ounces. Shocked and dismayed I added up exactly to the fill line expecting a PITA to be coming my way. Now after about 6 more operating hours it hasn't budged.

Here's to hoping yours is easy as well!
 
I noticed a similar problem on my drive oil reservoir this weekend, added an amount to bring it back up to the full mark and its been ok. I presumed it had just 'burped' up an airlock from when it was serviced about 10 engine hours earlier.

I will keep a close eye on it though for the next few hours.
 
Fasterblaster...........let me add a few more things to my early comments.

I have experienced two problems invloving "oil consumption" with my outdrives. The first is a need to add additional fluid after a fluid change in the outdrive. I have also had a bad seal at the prop shaft whereby the outdrive would consume oil all the time and that meant topping it up frequently.

The first issue is fairly common and if that's what we are talking about here don't worry about it as long as you don't need to top it off more than once or twice after a fluid change.

If you have added oil more than twice, it's probably the second problem (a leak). As I mentioned earlier, you will need to get the outdrive pressure tested to locate the leak. It is probably OK to wait but you do run the slight risk of water leaking into the outdrive as well and contaminating the fluid. It doesn't sound like this is the case here since you checked the oil thru the drain plug and it looked OK. Just the same if it were me I would try and get it fixed as soon as I could because it won't get any better.
 
Well the boat has been sitting in the garage for 4 days straight... first time since i bought it and now i can see drive oil weeping out of the seam between the upper and lower housing. I've called M&P Mercury and the tech says its probably a bad "o"-ring and that it can wait until its winterized.

I was thinking thats its probably not a big deal to pull the lower housing off and replace all the "o"-rings and gasket. I just saw the gasket/seal kit at West Marine for about $12.

Four bolts, slide it off, clean it up, replace the seals and put it back on... is it that simple?

fb
 
Leg is off. Pressure test didn't reveal any leaks?????
Neither did the vacuum test. hmmmm.

Tech is going to drop the lower housing off and check the o-ring. with 235 hours, i think i'll put a new water pump in; since everything is all apart.

Anything else i should do while i'm in there?
 
200 Sun Deck

My was winterized by a service facillty and after the first trip oil was low. Seems after the burp i fill it full and it had been very good all summer
 
I am glad I saw this topic. I had mine serviced for winterization last winter and thought I better check the level yesterday. Its at the add level as well. But what type and where can you purchase the proper drive oil for a Bravo III?
 
brian2001ss said:
I am glad I saw this topic. I had mine serviced for winterization last winter and thought I better check the level yesterday. Its at the add level as well. But what type and where can you purchase the proper drive oil for a Bravo III?
Click to expand...

You need either the Quicksilver or Mercury Brand of Gear Lube. (Quicksilver is another way that Mercury brands their products so they are essentially the same thing) http://www.amazon.com/Mercury-Marine-Quicksilver-Performance-Quart/dp/B0000AXMCE

I buy mine from Hall Marine herein Charlotte but you can get it from any boat dealer that services Mercruiser. You can also get it at places like Boater's World or West Marine. You should keep a container on the boat because if your fluid drops too low in the reservoir, an alarm will sound and your engine RPM will be restriced by the onboard computer.

If you look in your Mercruiser manual it will explain exactly what you need to use for all your various lubricants. Unlike a car, I do not recommend using anything other than what Mercury specifies for their engines or outdrives. All the oils are different than automotive types and the various greases and lubricants are very specialized as well. If you are not familiar with everything that needs servicing periodically, I strongly recommend you read your Manuals. Boats are quite a bit different than cars and if certain things are neglected you run the risk of damaging very expensive components. I only mention this because I know you are new to boats and I also know you take top care of your car and would want to do the same thing with your boat. :wink:

Dave
 
Dave S said:
brian2001ss said:
I am glad I saw this topic. I had mine serviced for winterization last winter and thought I better check the level yesterday. Its at the add level as well. But what type and where can you purchase the proper drive oil for a Bravo III?
Click to expand...

You need either the Quicksilver or Mercury Brand of Gear Lube. (Quicksilver is another way that Mercury brands their products so they are essentially the same thing) http://www.amazon.com/Mercury-Marine-Quicksilver-Performance-Quart/dp/B0000AXMCE

I buy mine from Hall Marine herein Charlotte but you can get it from any boat dealer that services Mercruiser. You can also get it at places like Boater's World or West Marine. You should keep a container on the boat because if your fluid drops too low in the reservoir, an alarm will sound and your engine RPM will be restriced by the onboard computer.

If you look in your Mercruiser manual it will explain exactly what you need to use for all your various lubricants. Unlike a car, I do not recommend using anything other than what Mercury specifies for their engines or outdrives. All the oils are different than automotive types and the various greases and lubricants are very specialized as well. If you are not familiar with everything that needs servicing periodically, I strongly recommend you read your Manuals. Boats are quite a bit different than cars and if certain things are neglected you run the risk of damaging very expensive components. I only mention this because I know you are new to boats and I also know you take top care of your car and would want to do the same thing with your boat. :wink:

Dave
Click to expand...

Dave, you hit the nail on the head there. :thumbsup: I will start the reading and thanks alot for the link. I am learning quickly how different boats are from a performance auto. :smt101 Its alot to learn, but like you said, it will pay off in the end. :grin:
 
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