Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

During the last season I noticed that the drive oil level in the reservoir of my Bravo 1 went from the max mark to the min mark in just 25 hours of boating but didnt pay much attention to it although this had never ocurred in the years before....guess i was too busy boating....
Boat (Baja 272) sits on the trailer now with the drive trimmed all the way up. Whilst cleaning and detailling the drive I noticed a droplet of gearlube coming out of the speedo pick up ports at the tip of the lower unit.........apparently theres an internal leak in the lower unit between the pickup ports and the upper gearcase...
What has to be done to fix this? Is it the gasket between upper and lower gearcase?
Anybody had any similar experience?
Thanks for your ideas, this board is so great!

Re: Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

You say speedo pick up port"s"

Being your saying ports, I'm assuming you
mean more than 1 ?

Low water, and dual water pick up lowers have
multiple cooling water inlet ports.

The speedo pick up is mid-way up the leading
edge of the lower gear case.

If it is a low water, or dual water p/u,
leaking out of the cooling water inlets, there are a couple
of sealing rings between the upper and lower that could
be leaking.

See picture: http://www.mercruiserparts.com/Show_...+%28BRAVO+I%29

Re: Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

You Need To Pull Lower Off And Reseal With New O-ring Around Water Jacket And New Quad Ring In Oil Hole. Clean Well And Ues Soft Seal & New 7/16-20 Stainless Nylon Lock Nuts. Can Be Done Without Pulling Whole Drive Off, Just The Lower. Then See If That Works. Ron Bender

Re: Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

I agree with wildthing. It sounds like the o ring seals between the lower and upper unit.

Re: Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

It sounds like its leaking out the water intakes in a dual pick up drive. The speedo pickup is one hole about the size of a toothpick in about the center of the leading edge of the lower half of the drive.

Either way, you need to split the upper and lower if there is a leak. There is a gasket kit for this. Its pretty simple to do. Just 7 bolts and the rams. Also, shouldn't leave the drive trimmed up for longterm storage.

Re: Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

Hey Griff,
I was wondering, whats the issue with leaving the drive up during storage?

Re: Oil leaking problem on Bravo 1
 

It leaves constant pressure on the seals in the pump and rams. I have done it in the past over winter storage, and one of the times in the spring, the drive was down. Had to replace the trim pump. Lesson learned.