SX-A gear oil change question

[clearbluewater]

I would like to do a gear oil change on my SX-A but I'm confused where the drain, fill and dipstick holes are. Can someone point those out? Do I have to take the prop out?

Thanks in advance.

 

[ThomW]

What year is the drive? On the older drives, the drain plug is on the bottom of the drive (same as most outboards), there is a vent plug under the cover on lower unit (remove the cover with 5? small bolts), and a dipstick on the top of lower unit. On the newer drives, I believe that the drain plug is actually behind the prop--though I am not certain.
Once you find those three holes, remove the bottom plug, air vent plug, and dip stick. Let it all drain. Check magnet tips on plug for metal and clean them off. Then, with a pump, fill from bottom hole until it comes out air vent. Replace dip stick and air cap, then bottom plug. Check dip stick to see if oil is reading. If so, run it for a few minutes on hose and check dip stick again. DO NOT pump oil until it comes out dip stick hole...that is too much. I believe its about 3 quarts that you will need. Good luck .

 

[kdiddle]

And to add what Thom wrote - do not cheap out on gear oil. Volvo oil is EXPENSIVE, but I won't run anything else. I initally was running a Mobil1 synthetic that I thought was a good substitute, but I started having delays with going into gear (which I learned was a symptom of wrong gear oil). I quickly switched to VP oil and have had no issues since.

If you run something else, you have to be very careful to get gear oil without friction modifiers (which is more difficult than you might think). There are those that have had good luck running non-Volvo oil, but its not worth the risk to me.

 

[Senior B]

On your out drive, the drain plug is behind the prop so it (prop) needs to be removed. You'll see it at the 6 o'clock position just below the prop shaft. As mentioned earlier, you also have the vent plug on the right side and the top dip stick. It takes about 2.5 quarts to fill it till it comes out the vent hole. When you check the dip stick, it should be 1/2 to 3/4 up on the indented area of the dip stick. Don't over fill as you need the expansion room for the gear oil as things heat up. Another important word of caution is DON'T over tighten the 3 plugs as the threads are aluminum on the gear casing and will easily strip out. Good luck.

 

[clearbluewater]

Thanks guys, that's very helpful and great tips!

Kdiddle, I'm going to use Amsoil Marine which from what I read is as close to Volvo as it gets. It's not cheap either.