Brembofreak

Hello Guys
Maybe you can give me some notes for a Bravo X drive!
I have drive here,used 50 Hrs! First oilchange from dealer after 20 hours!
Now i let oil out after more 30 hours. First green merc oil but then comes it more grey/metallic out,later again black green oil!
Sorry ,but can not upload pics here,but i can send with email.
After 20 hours the dealer made magnetic srew in top hole from upper and the one without magnet in the lower!
I buy this drive now(newer sweptback Bravo X) and not shure if this is normal.
some guy tell me that it can be ok as drive is not used since some month and in first hours they say its much metal in oil.

i found no sign of bigger parts,only this coloured oil! I put powerfull magnet in the oil now and the is nothing on!
after mix the complett oil i see not real the metalic effect in the oil also!
I have also now check the pan where i let oil in! it was clean and i wish out with toilet paper. no sign from metal on paper! the oil look good after mixing only a very light sign from metalic in!

what did you mean??
Thanks for your tipps!
Michael

Brandonb_05

I could be wrong but the performance gear oil that I use in my bravo has a little bit of a shimmering to it that could be mistaken as a metal flake. I use the quick silver high performance gear oil. Was there any metal on the plug magnet? A little bit on the magnet I would consider normal for a new drive for break in purposes. Im no drive expert.

JaayTeee

Several times where I've seen the oil come out dark, with no chunks, it was due to the pinion bearings loosing preload and the washer on the input shaft spinning and
"machining" itself against the input shaft/yoke.

.....probably needs to come apart

Brandonb_05

In that case wouldn't that metal be magnetic from the shaft/pinion bearing? He said he ran a magnet through the drained oil and didn't pick up anything on the magnet? Or would the metal produced from this be aluminum from the housing? Just asking not saying your wrong.

GAZ

I think that Mercury drive lube is junk. But as far as metal fines and color in a bravo drive at oil change pretty sure that's "normal".

Brandonb_05

When you say Mercury drive oil does that include the quicksilver drive oil to? What type do you use?

GAZ

Yes, when I was using the Qicksilver "high performance" lube it would come out black after only 15 hours. It also seemed to coagulate in the drive reservoir bottle.

I'm not running a bravo drive anymore. In my IMCO drive I run Torco RTF. Even on the first oil change no metallic speckle and the oil looked the same color as when it went in. Not sure about running this in a bravo drive I'm sure people will chime in with lots of other lube brands. Also if you are running Mercury engine oil I would ditch that as well.

Brandonb_05

No I don't use merc engine oil, I don't even want to kick that bee hive on here haha. I change my drive oil at the beginning of every summer, I doubt I even get to 20 hrs on the drive oil in a season. I wish I could put a 100 hours on the boat every summer.

Brandonb_05

So would you recommend torco rtf for a bravo?

JaayTeee

Basically, it's dust.....very fine, gets suspended in the oil.....you'll get some build up on the magnet...feels like more like sludge tho( along with the material off of the bump rings)...the magnet is only so big, and can only collect so much, while the rest of it is contained in the oil is throughout the drive.