Milky fluid

I am a new owner to I/O and wh

I am a new owner to I/O and when I went through the service manual I checked the lubes in the upper and lower gear housing on the stern drive. The lower was red and the person I bought it from said it would be because it was Merc. But the upper was milky white and very full. I later read that the milky color is due to water in the lube. Does this mean I have a bad seal somewhere? Any idea how much it should cost to repair that--so I know if I'm getting ripped off. Thanks

"Water is getting in. I have t

"Water is getting in. I have the same problem on my OMC. The way I look at it is the drive I have is old and will need a rebuild. Gear lube is cheap and I just change it every 20 hours. Been doing it for the past three years and haven't had any problems. But yes, if it is a drive with low hours, look into getting it fixed. I am not too familar with mercs so I can't really comment on the price to repair. Go to a place where the mechanics are certified marine mechanics and not the scumbags who call themselves marine mechanics and rip you off. At Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri we have a lot of scumbag hillybillies rippin people off who don't know any better."

"Thanks Bud, So the oil chang

"Thanks Bud, So the oil change method can work. My boys will be glad to hear that. The circulation bothers me so I'm going to try the tank method this weekend. But tell me, how can you tell if the water is coming out the prop if is is submerged?



BTY I live in KC any good mechanics up here?"

"The old stringer drives are &

"The old stringer drives are 'famous' for getting oil in the upper unit. Just have it checked no and then and change if needed. Next time You need to change the impeller, do the drive at the same time."

"With the boat in the water on

"With the boat in the water on a merc, not sure how you can tell if the water is exiting. Most of the time the water exits out the risers into the exaust and out the propeller. In the drive its easy, in the water, not sure how you can tell.

Morten is right, mine gets water in it via the impeller. I changed all my fluids in the driveway, fired it up on muffs and then checked the fluids and sure enough, there was water in the upper unit. For the life of me I could not figure out how it got there. I asked the question and someone told me the impeller was pumping it in. How it gets by there I'm not sure."

"The pressure from the water i

"The pressure from the water in the impeller housing, add to that the 'sideload' the shaft gets from the ovality if the housing, add to that 'worn' lower bearings in the upper housing = the seal is not 'flexible'enough to prevent leaks!"