mercruiser alpha one drive- water in bilge

[donn nelson]

This boat has been run in salt water for only the most recent 1-hour of its life. I took it down to Florida only a month ago- the remainder of its life has been at the Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri. The boat has only 360 hours on it and was owned by an 80-year old gentleman before I bought it 6-months ago. I'm wondering if something failed due to the 12oo-mile trailering. Once again, the hole I am speaking of is just portside of the casting to which the "radiator hose" is connected and at the same level on the transom housing as the 2 upper bolts that bolt-thru to hold the outdrive. I am mentioning this in lieu of the picture- which is a much better idea, however, we are back in Missouri and the boat is in Florida.Thanks for the info. So, what about the idea of putting a bolt in that hole as a temporary fix? By doing so, will it cause additional damage? I have a 1987 Celebrity 210 with a 260 Mercruiser and Alpha One Drive. On the housing which attaches to the inside of the transom, just to the port side of the casting where the approx. 1.5 inch radiator hose connects to this housing is a small hole the size of a pencil eraser which appears to be threaded, is now allowing water to enter the bilge area. When the engine is not turned on, the water trickles in; when the engine is running, it is coming in at a greater volume. This just started; I do not believe there was a bolt that fell-out of this hole. Any ideas? If I put a bolt in this hole to stop the water running in, will that cause another problem? More importantly, what is the source/ reason for failure causing this water to now come in through this hole? Thanks for the help.

 

[outboardguy]

Re: mercruiser alpha one drive- water in bilge

I believe the hole you refer to is the u-joint bellows breather hole.The reason it leaks slow when not running and faster when running is that the u-joint are pushing the water around when running.You should pull the boat from the water and check the condition of the bellows by turning the drive to one side and looking while spreading the folds, then check other side.The big(top) bellows is the u-joint while the small one on the stb side is the shift cable bellows.If you find that the u-joint bellows have a hole in them you should plan to replace them as well as small shift cable and bellows, poosible u-joints and possible yoke seal in the drive. Let us know what you find

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: mercruiser alpha one drive- water in bilge

I think Outboardguy is trying to let you down easy. If water is coming out of that hole, the very least of the possible problems is that driveshaft bellows hose. Could be a hole eaten through the bell housing or even the transom bracket. In any case, water in that area means you'll need new U-joints and a gimbal bearing. You'll also want to replace all three bellows and the water hose, and you might as well replace the trim limiter and sender as well. All together, this could approach a $ grand. Several $ hundred pretty much for sure. Do it all...do it once. Do less and you'll be paying two or three times the labor in the next few years.

 

[outboardguy]

Re: mercruiser alpha one drive- water in bilge

I knew I was forgetting something,the gimbal bearing, the water supply hose and trim limit/trim sender. Donn nelson, if you could get a picture of the hole that is leaking we may be able to tell for sure that it is the same hole I am talking about. Willy you may be right, there may be something bigger wrong with his boat.You'll have to excuse me I am only used to working on freshwater boats so I don't often see the damage that saltwater can do.