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1993 OMC Cobra - low oil

lampkamm

New member
What's the first component to fail in this Cobra outdrive when the lower unit oil is low or absent? Having changed this oil in the Fall, I never checked the level in the drive this spring. I made it 100 yds from the dock at low RPM before something let loose, under idle speed. I immediately took it out of gear, and continued to hear grinding (in neutral) so I shut the motor down.
 
Grinding in neutral will be something connected to the input drive shaft. It could be gears, or a u joint. Hope it's a u joint...way cheaper.
 
Well, if the drive is trashed u can go 2 ways. Buy a used Cobra & take a chance on what you're getting {unless is warranteed} or go with an SEI replacement drive. But the SEI wiil run u around 2 grand plus props, & u may have to replace the helm shifter. The plus side is that you'll be rid of the Cobra who are out of business & some parts are getting hard to find. The bad side is it ain't cheap to do the changeover, but SEI has a 3 yr. transferrable warranty. Good luck.
 
Ho Hum more Cobra bashing. Actually, to counter kpg's remarks, you can easily get any part that you need for your drive. The likely scenario is that you lost a U joint. These tend to be easily neglected service areas because you have to take the drive off to lubricate them. They're nothing more than regular automotive type u joints, and if left alone will eventually fail. Mercruisers and Volvos have 'em too.
You can quickly check to see if it is the upper gears by removing the top cap which is held in place with (4) 3/8 ths head bolts. If you see broken teeth and bits of metal you know it's the gear set.
 
Ho Hum more Cobra bashing. Actually, to counter kpg's remarks, you can easily get any part that you need for your drive. The likely scenario is that you lost a U joint. These tend to be easily neglected service areas because you have to take the drive off to lubricate them. They're nothing more than regular automotive type u joints, and if left alone will eventually fail. Mercruisers and Volvos have 'em too.
You can quickly check to see if it is the upper gears by removing the top cap which is held in place with (4) 3/8 ths head bolts. If you see broken teeth and bits of metal you know it's the gear set.
I'm not bashing anything. I was merely giving him some options. And there are plenty of parts for the Cobra that are NLA. Look it up.
 
Here is the real story he can get for around 2 grand a new leg upper and lower with the conversion kit. 3 year warranty no questions asked. sei is the way to go.

If he hits a underwater house or rock it covered.

No matter what happens he's covered.

No need for throttle change.

If he had low oil in the drive the upper goes first period.

But it affects the whole drive.

See the whole drive upper and lower has to disassembled and washed out and be spotless.

Then every seal in the upper and lower has to be new.

There is no getting around that. I don't care what anyone says.

The truth is every drive merc and omc the bearing have to be replaced also everyone.

The above is from what i have done in the past. I tried and tried couldn't save the bearings and the seals have metal shards in them. Can't save them.

I wish i could give the op better advice but there is no getting around it.

New upper gear set, around 500 bucks, if the lower gear set good then 2 rebuild kits for seals, new bearings every one.

It just doesn't pay say your doing it yourself and you have all the tools as i do. It comes out to like 100 bucks cheaper to rebuild.

SEI sterndrives check it out.
 
I own a 3.0 Cobra & I'm sick of chasing down parts that have to be ordered & waiting for shipping cuz no dealers want to bother stocking parts for a dinosaur. Shift cable adj. is an outright pain in the ba**s. Only reason I ain't gone the SEI route is I can't afford it right now, sniff, sniff. Can't wait for the day that I use my Cobra for an anchor.
 
I tell ya the best time to own a stringer like mine is right now.

They are giving them away and the parts also cheap.

Cobra is nice but if not exactly adjusted correctly will kill the dog fast. You can shift it with 2 fingers.
 
Kpg, our hosts can get just about anything for the cobra, except maybe the cases. I have ordered from them numerous times and haven't been disappointed yet. Pretty much all the wear items and consumables are still available. Yes, there are lots of bits that are NLA but that's true of all obsolete stern drives, not just Cobra. Doesn't make it bad per se. Sorry that you have to wait for parts, but that's true even for new drives. Nobody can afford to keep a parts inventory for every drive out there.
Also, lots of VP SX parts will work on a Cobra. Even some Mercruiser. So, if you can't find it in one spot you have to look elsewhere.
I refer you to this parts list and this one, and this one too.
As for the shift adjustment, I can do it in about half an hour. That said tho, it doesn't go out of adjustment once you get it. Unless you change a cable or do major work like removing the engine (even then,...) you don't need to mess with it. For me it's a zen thing, it's actually enjoyable.
 
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Thanx for the links batsea. Ya wouldn't happen to know where I can get the hose that goes from the transom to the t-stat housing would you? It's for a 3.0 Cobra. Also you must have that shift cable adj. down pat in able to do it in a half hour. How 'bout putting up a sticky on how u do it? I need to replace mine & will be ordering the cable soon.
 
Ya wouldn't happen to know where I can get the hose that goes from the transom to the t-stat housing would you? It's for a 3.0 Cobra.
I just use standard issue Shields 1" hose. It's far better than the shaped hoses. However if you must have a hose with a bend molded in, go to NAPA and ask to look thru the generic Gates hose catalog where you'll find several molded hoses that will work. They often have many of them hanging on the wall, but if you need to order one they usually have it within 48 hours.
Use only AWAB hose clamps from Jamestown Distributors.

Also you must have that shift cable adj. down pat in able to do it in a half hour. How 'bout putting up a sticky on how u do it? I need to replace mine & will be ordering the cable soon.
I could write it up but it's already been done here. Far better account than I can give. Follow those directions and you cannot fail.
 
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