Water leak in transom plate

[yachtbarnestormer]

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Hello everyone,
Firstly my apologies as I had posted in another section but thought I may have better luck with a reply from this more widely read section.
When we returned yesterday from the reef, I heard a trickling noise in the engine bay.
There is a machined hole in the ?'"transom plate"? that is letting in a steady stream of water from behind the starboard engine. About 1 gallon every 10 minutes at a guess.
Same hole behind port side engine is dry. See the photo below.
It was easily plugged as I need to be away for a week now, but can anyone identify the cause, is it a broken gasket that requires the engine to be removed? I assume this is the problem...
I had also noticed that this engine was running hotter than normal with lower oil pressure than normal?
Different problem?
Anyone with similar experience?
Because of the logisitcs involved in hauling, (need to book a long time ahead, 30 miles to windward etc) I was also hoping if anyone thought this would require an engine removal?
Thanks a lot, Barnestormer.

 

[Quint4]

That is a significant leak. I would guess you have a tear in your bellows on your outdrive. I would have the boat hauled immediately and inspected. If I am right your engine does not need removed to repair but the boat must be hauled and the outdrive removed.

 

[MC1600]

I had a leak in just about that same spot this summer. There is an insulated pin in part of steering system that is actually a little further up in that opening there. Over time, the pin will rust, wear away the housing it is in, and create a leak. Once you get to a mechanic and they pull the outdrive, they will be able to see if that is, in fact, the case.

If you're thinking the leak is coming from the transom plate, hope that it is something else, because the latter can get pricey. A couple other things to check (that were all contributing factors for me) include the trim puck, shift cable bellow, and like was already recommended, the exhaust bellows.