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Mercruiser 888

L

larrys toy

New member
Hello, I am new here and trying to get a little information on this Mercruiser 888. It is in a 1976 Steury 18 foot runabout. I see many posts that seem to break down the sterndrives not so much by year, but as Pre Alpha, Alpha 1, Alpha 1, Gen 2, etc.

I am reaquiring this boat after selling it 7 years ago. It has not been used since I last placed it on the trailer, but the drive is out. It was pulled to replace the 3/4" water hose that goes through the transom. I would like to replace the lower impeller once the drive is reinstalled, but need to be sure to get the correct parts. I have the mercruiser repair manual, but is does not seemingly explain the drive differences.

I am sure this information exists here somewhere, but don't have a month to go through all the older posts. Thank you for your assistance.
 
One last question about drive alignment.
The alignmenet tool goes in well until the last 3/4", then is a little snug. I can push it in by hand with some minor force and get it out. Is it possible that grease is filling the coupler, or, is the alighment still off?
 
Yes you should try to adjust the two side motor mounts EQUALLY up or down and see if you can get it to go in and out with a simple push pull.

Also I would say you have a I drive. the predecessor to the R drive. From ~ 1969/70 until 1983 was first the I then the R drive.
The bigger change came with the MR which is 95% the same as the next one released the Alpha 1 Gen 1

The I drive and R drives if still original have a preload pin on the top of the vertical drive shaft (lower housing) where the impeller is driven from.
MR and ALPHA do not have the preload pin as the vertical shaft is held in place differently.

Yours is in red....888 1971-1977

Looks like the impellor and housing is the same as the R drive.

They go like this (memory so I could be a bit off) and this is in order of design year...

· I 1963
· IA/IB/IC 1964
· IA/IB/IC (EZ-SHIFT) 1965-1966
· 0 (Sterndrive) 1965-1966
· 80 (Sterndrive) 1966-1969
· 90 (Sterndrive) 1970-1972
· 120/140 1967-1969
· 120/140 1970-1977
· 120/140 1978-1982
· 160 1967-1969
· 165 1970-1977
· 165 1978-1981
· 215H 1970
· 215E 1970-1972
· 225-S 1974
· 228 1978-1892
· 233 1975-1977
· 250 1977
· 255-TRS 1973-1974
· 260 1978-1982
· 470 1976-1977
· 470 1978-1982
· 485 1980-1982
· 888 1971-1977
· 898/228 1977
· 898 1978-1982
· II 1962-1963
· II 1964-1967
· II (1.78:1) 1968-1969
· III 1968-1972
· II-TR 1973-1976
· TR/TRS 1977-1993
· R/MR/ALPHA ONE (Sterndrive) 1983-1990
· R/MR/ALPHA ONE (Transom Assembly) 1983-1990
· ALPHA ONE SS 1986-1989
· SSM II/III/IV/V 1982-1995
· BLACKHAWK 1994-1995
· VAZER DRIVE
· VAZER TRANSOM
· ALPHA ONE (GEN.II) 1991-1995
· ALPHA ONE (GEN.II) 1996-1997
· ALPHA ONE (GEN.II) 1998 AND UP
· BRAVO ONE
· BRAVO TWO
· BRAVO THREE
· BRAVO X ONE
· BRAVO X TWO
· BRAVO X THREE
· BRAVO XR ONE
· BRAVO XR THREE
· BRAVO XR SPORTMASTER
· BRAVO XZ ONE
 
Last edited:
Wow. I can't remember what I had for breakfast yesterday! Thank you.
So, the question becomes: Are parts, such as the impeller, impeller housing, seals, etc still available? The drive has been out now for 10 years and these parts should be replaced.
 
The preload pin is a good indicator of the 'early' drive styles...and the routine service parts (seals and water pump) will swap like kghost suggests...the best method of getting the correct parts is to use the serial number of the drive
 
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