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Water in gear oil

R

rickroot

Contributing Member
"took my 1985 merc 3.0L (1

"took my 1985 merc 3.0L (140hp) w/Alpha One (original) stern drive out Friday evening for a test run finally after all the work done on it (discussed elsewhere... but basically replaced stern drive water pump, engine circ pump, AND thermostat).

When I filled it up with gear lube there was no apparent leak, nor after running it for 20 minutes or so on the earmuffs.

I spent about a half hour or so out on the lake Friday night tooling around. It ran great. Better than ever, actually. The next day I noticed an oil leak out the weephole in the lower unit.

I have not yet taken it apart but I did drain the oil today and noticed the telltale streaks in the oil which I understand is an indication of water in the oil.

When I take it apart, I guess i need to check these things again:

#1 - the oil passageway seal
#2 - the upper drive shaft o-ring

what else? the drive shaft goes up through an oil seal in the upper unit right? That's one thing I never really checked.

What about the shift shaft?

Dad and I had a really hard time getting the lower unit back on the last time we put it back together."
 
#1 - are you talking about the

#1 - are you talking about the quad ring seal on the cavitation plate? That would be a source if it did not seat properly.
 
"You really should pressure te

"You really should pressure test the drive with 10-15 psi air pressure. That will find any leaks.
The shift shaft seal is a prime suspect, as is the upper and lower drive shaft seals. The quad seal should also be checked.

Rod"
 
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