I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

[lkbum]

While out yesterday, the low oil alarm sounded for one of my drives (2001 Alpha w/5.0l EFI). I was about an hour from the dock and didn't have any outdrive oil, but did have some straight weight Castrol (30W). I added enough in the resevoir so the alarm wouldn't sound, about an inch in the resevoir. It's near the end of the season, maybe 5 or 10 hours of use before my normal Fall haul for service. I know I have to find the "leak" or loss of fluid at that time. My question is, would the oil "mixture" hurt the outdrive if I now top it off with gear lube and operate it for 5 to 10 hrs, or should I get it serviced immediately???

 

[Robj]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

I would check where the leak is. There is a possibility that there may be water in the drive. You know there is a problem, I would have it checked out, because it is much cheaper than replacing the drive. Good thinking to use the 30W, much better alternative than not adding anything.

Have a great day,

Rob.

 

[Uraijit]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

I would just drain it and put some new gear lube in it. Gear lube is cheap, just replace it.

 

[lkbum]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

Thanks for the replys. Yes gear lube is cheap, but hauling the boat is not. I was hoping to get by with the "normal" end of the season haul (about 4 weeks and a couple of short trips from now).

 

[WizeOne]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

Thanks for the replys. Yes gear lube is cheap, but hauling the boat is not. I was hoping to get by with the "normal" end of the season haul (about 4 weeks and a couple of short trips from now).

Well look at it this way, if it is still leaking, you will soon dilute out the 30 wt that you added.

Just be sure that you top off the resevoir with the right stuff.

 

[Robj]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

Thanks for the replys. Yes gear lube is cheap, but hauling the boat is not. I was hoping to get by with the "normal" end of the season haul (about 4 weeks and a couple of short trips from now).

You are taking a chance. My guess is you would be OK, but you never know. It will have to be done, why wait and risk ruining the drive? There is the possibility that there may also be water in the drive, which makes the repair more urgent.

Have a great day,

Rob.

 

[lkbum]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

Once again, thanks for the replys (this is really a good forum). Guess I will call the yard tomorrow and get the boat out of the water. Just curious, I read the posts debating if Mercursier Drive Oil will turn milky or not as it mixes with water (didn't really see a conclusion on those), if there is water in the oil, will it turn milky and therefore be noticable in the resevoir?? IE, does the resevoir oil cycle through the drive, or is it merely a higher head resevoir from which oil flows as oil is lost from the drive? Thanks again.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: I added 30W oil to an Alpha drive..Advice Needed

Once again, thanks for the replys (this is really a good forum). Guess I will call the yard tomorrow and get the boat out of the water. Just curious, I read the posts debating if Mercursier Drive Oil will turn milky or not as it mixes with water (didn't really see a conclusion on those), if there is water in the oil, will it turn milky and therefore be noticable in the resevoir?? IE, does the resevoir oil cycle through the drive, or is it merely a higher head resevoir from which oil flows as oil is lost from the drive? Thanks again.

Howdy,

The short answer is no. the oil does not "cycle" or circulate thru the drive from the tank. It is a "head" reservoir like you say.

Adding a few oz of regular oil to shut up the alarm probably won't hurt a thing.....but I wouldn't leave it that way long.

If you do in fact have a slight leak in the drive and it allows some water into the oil, it will get milky down below. Once the drive heats up from normal use, steam from that little bit of water will cause the oil to be "pressured" up into the "head" tank and you will see the "milk". There have been cases where there was enough water in the drive, and it got hot enough to blow the drive reservoir up like a balloon and/or blow the cap off with considerable force...

You should frequently check the tank to see if it keeps going down after stopping and drive cools down.....or if there's a LOT of pressure on the cap......If that happens, the oil is going somewhere and water is replacing it... It will get progressively expensive if that starts happening and you wait too long.


Regards,


Rick