Any help guys? I noticed oil at the base of my pod. Everything seems normal, boat runs fine, gauges look ok. I had both power steering actuator seals replaced recently and the shaft seals done at same time. The mechanic did notice some scoring on the shaft but said he thought I’d get a couple more years.
@Richey rich I would be meticulous about checking all fluid levels and clean up the sheen as best you can. See if it comes back. If levels are not changing, it was likely just a bit of a mess from all the work you had done. Good to keep that log of values year to year to compare for any changes.
@Shaps Levels near the pods would be… Gear lube Power steering and what else? Other than gear lube what would be dark oil like that in that area?
Some techs have the misguided notion that there should be oil in the crevice between the pod and the hull. The view is that it will prevent corrosion in this area. However, oil being lighter than water all it does is trap moisture.
So after checking my power steering fluid it seems to be low. I believe that the hydraulic line is leaking. They are supposed to replace all of them but I’ve been waiting for them to come In. When I had the work done in my steering actuator he mentioned their was a service bulletin to replace them but didn’t have them in stock. At that time they were not leaking but obviously now they are.
If your power steering fluid is low, be sure to check the other fluids 100%. If they are rising becoming more full, you have an indicator that a problem is starting to happen. Hopefully it is just your hydraulic line.
All other fluids are good. Hydraulic line that I suspect is wet and has obvious leak. Waiting on the dealer to get me in to replace all lines.When I first saw it around base of pod I was worried it was a seal but should just be a line and a quick fix. (Fingers crossed)
replaced all of my hydraulic lines... i think there were 7 or so per side. almost fixed it completely but still had one with a very slight "seep" pulling that onbe off in the spring and replacing the o-ring, that should fix it completely. appears to be a common failure on these lines to have cracked fitting and/or bad o-rings. My Zeus guy says that the little seeping i have now isn't a big deal and most people would leave it alone but i just don't see how any oil leak can be a good thing...
