How to tell if upper unit of outdrive is worth the buy

[Blueghost924]

Hi, I need a Mercruiser outdrive for my boat, and I did see an ad on Craigslist where a gentleman is selling both an upper and lower unit. He said that the lower unit is in great shape, but the upper unit is in not so great shape. How can I meet with him, look at the upper unit and tell if the upper unit is workable? To me, cosmetic appearance don't matter, it's the mechanical condition of the unit(s).

Thanks!

 

[Fleetwin]

Re: How to tell if upper unit of outdrive is worth the buy

If something happened to the upper, most likely it trashed the lower.

 

[Bondo]

Re: How to tell if upper unit of outdrive is worth the buy

Hi, I need a Mercruiser outdrive for my boat, and I did see an ad on Craigslist where a gentleman is selling both an upper and lower unit. He said that the lower unit is in great shape, but the upper unit is in not so great shape. How can I meet with him, look at the upper unit and tell if the upper unit is workable? To me, cosmetic appearance don't matter, it's the mechanical condition of the unit(s).

Thanks!

Ayuh,.... The only way to know whether the upper is Trashed is to inspect it, torn down,...

If the upper is trashed, All the ground up metal falls into the lower unit, trashin' it as well,...

Even if the guy Gave it to ya, the cost of havin' it rebuilt, is More than the price of a Brand New SEI, with it's 3 year, no question warranty,...

 

[Blueghost924]

Re: How to tell if upper unit of outdrive is worth the buy

Thanks for the reply...one thing I didn't mention is that the ad was for "boat parts", which means he has 1 upper unit, 2 lower units and an assortment of other parts. He did say he got them from a Navy buddy who moved to Indiana. Since these are being advertised as "parts", and not a complete unit that is disassembled, I'm kinda leary. Is there any way to look at an upper unit without a tear down and see if it appears to be in decent mechanical shape (i.e. shafting/gearing are good, etc...)?

 

[Grub54891]

Re: How to tell if upper unit of outdrive is worth the buy

Remove the top cap,4 bolts,take a look. All that seals the cap is an o-ring. Easy to look.