Gray oil in transmission

"I have a 1994 volvo/penta str

"I have a 1994 volvo/penta straight inboard with the ms b4 tranny. Backing into the slip I heard a whining noise I believe that came from the trans. I pulled the dipstick and found battleship gray oil that was a 1" above full. There doesn't seem to be water or metal present.

My guess would be a bad cooler of some sort, the problem would be where is it located?
"

"For what I can see in your se

"For what I can see in your second picture, the cooler in in the back if the transmission, where the pipe and the hose that we see in the picture are connected. Not sure which engine/transmission package you have, but check these links, they will give you and idea:

http://www.volvopentastore.com/CONNECTING_COMPONENTS_REVERSE_GEAR_MS5A_MS5B/dm/c art_id.497973580--category_id.332998--list_time.1215534270--session_id.442636768 --store_id.366--view_id.325702

http://www.volvopentastore.com/CONNECTING_COMPONENTS_REVERSE_GEAR_MS4A_MS4B/dm/c art_id.497973580--category_id.332088--list_time.1215534395--session_id.442636768 --store_id.366--view_id.314129

http://www.volvopentastore.com/REVERSE_GEAR_MS4B_854900/dm/cart_id.497973580--ca tegory_id.332104--list_time.1215534469--session_id.442636768--store_id.366--view _id.314094

The grey colour of the oil seems to indicate that it is emulsified with water."

"Thanks El P., that cleared th

"Thanks El P., that cleared things alot. Next quesion would be if this could be fixed while overboard by a novice? Will I need a new pump or could this one be rebuilt?"

"I have not taken this things

"I have not taken this things apart before, but I suspect the water just circulates through the bearing housing (part 56 in the link) and the oil gets cooled by being in contact with the cool housing. The only two possible sources of water ingress I see is if the housing was perforated, or if your boat bilges were full of water and water found its way into the transmission via the dipstick 7 or the shift mechanism.

What I would do is to just drain the oil and add a new batch, then run the boat for 1-2 hours, then drain the oil gain, add a new batch, and monitor its condition regularly. If it turns gray again, then you have to locate and eliminate the source of water ingress."

"Thanks alot for the info El P

"Thanks alot for the info El P. I drained the oil out and refilled it, put in and out of gear several times in the slip. I could not get it to make a noise. I've searched the net trying to find a picture of a trans cooler for my boat and came up empty handed. Like you I now believe it cools thru the housing. There are two bronze dohickeys on the housing with hoses from the cooling system. I do remember having a bildge pump failure last season that the water possibly made it to the shift mechanism. I know now to check it regularly, as I have no idea when the oil went bad. Thanks again for all your help."