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Tilt Trim Problem VolvoPenta 50

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dave_schneider

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"Well I put the boat in for th

"Well I put the boat in for the first time, started right up, went to put down the lower unit and nothing. I could hear the motor,but it would not go down.
After a couple times trying, a slight clunk and it was down,we were off. After an hour in the water went to the dock and lower unit wouldn't come back up. Opened up the engine compartment and the hydraulic reservoir was empty. To make matters worse there was a oily sheen on the water around the lower unit. Small bubbles of fluid kept coming up from around the lower unit for awhile. (Cleaned it up the best I could with paper towels).
Since I now can't get the boat out for a couple days (I don't know how with the unit fully extended down but will try), what kind of mess do you think I am in? Is this going to be sticker shock? No fluid in the engine compartment.It stopped leaking in the water. I can still hear the motor working. I know its hard to diagnose without looking at, but any ideas how bad this is going to be? Is it safe to drive with this issue?
Thanks
Dave"
 
"You may want to pull the boat

"You may want to pull the boat immediately out of the water, even if to avoid a hefty fine for oil pollution (unless, of course, it is legal in Minnesota to pump oil into the water) or to prevent water entering the hydraulic system. Then, in a safe place like your driveway, you can fill the trim system with hydraulic oil and check where the leak is coming from (hoses, leaky seals, etc) and correct it accordingly. Yes, it is hard to diagnose (especially when you not mention, the type of drive, year, etc), but the leak can only come from the cylinders (seals), the fittings, or the hydraulic hoses."
 
"Well I got the diagnosis on m

"Well I got the diagnosis on my tilt/trim leak. Cracked trim cylinder. Must have gotten water in it before winter. Parts $700.00, labor..are you ready? $1800.00. Lower unit and/or engine need to come out for access to the mounts. I can't sink this kind of money in a twelve year old boat.

So I need a band aid approach to fixing. I use the tilt twice a year, coming out in fall, going back in the water in Spring. So the lack of tilt/trim is not an issue. The issue is keeping the lower unit stable,primarily keeping it in the water when in reverse.
So my question is. Could I live on one cylinder? The stainless steel hydraulic tubing runs from the good cylinder to the bad one in a loop, could I close off the output from the good one and not send fluid to the bad one. It would be tough working on the tubing since it is stainless steel on aluminum, who knows if it would even come out with the threads intact. Would there be too much pressure on the one cylinder even with just going in forward? But I need to try something or the season is over before it started.

Any opinions, thoughts, any other ideas?
Thanks"
 
"Why do you think you have to

"Why do you think you have to pull the engine to replace a cylinder that is located outside the transom shield? You may have to remove the drive, but that is not rocket science, and neither is replacing the cylinder. If I was in your shoes, I would spend $40 in the Seloc repair manual and have a look at what the job involves, because chances are that you can do it yourself, especially if you are mechanically inclined or have a mechanically inclined buddy willing to help. And if you find the job too difficult (I seriously doubt it) and you prefer a shop to do it, you won't notice the $40 you paid for the manual when you get their bill anyway.
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One thing I would not do is running the boat with only one cylinder, as all the thrust will go on the remaining cylinder and damage can happen to the drive."
 
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