4.3L I/O Bad Coupler Again..

[Dave87]

Hi everyone

So I have a 4.3L I/O on a 1991 Cadorette.

This summer my coupler went bad ( all the metal splines disappeared )

So I pulled the outdrive and the motor changed the part.

Had it meticulously realigned by a Mercruiser mechanic.

23 hours a boating later same thing happened.

Obviously I didn't fix the underlying issue the first time.

All motor mounts are good. Where do I go from here ?

 

[alldodge]

Had it meticulously realigned by a Mercruiser mechanic.
23 hours a boating later same thing happened.
All motor mounts are good. Where do I go from here ?

If it was aligned correctly, then my guess is the Mech may have had nothing to do with checking the mounts (both transom assembly and stringer) or transom.

If the transom or the stringer engine mounts are soft, then its not going to last.

Was the gimbal ring along with uppper and lower pins checked for play?

If everything was rock solid, then this would not have happened again

 

[Bt Doctur]

most failures are caused by bad rear mounts . If they raise up from engine torque the coupler will quickly fail

 

[Dave87]

Ok so I may have jumped the gun in saying that it was a bad coupler as it seemed to be the same symptoms as last time. free spinning and engine overheating..

I pulled the foot off today and the coupler is as good as new.

So im stuck on where to look next.

Could it be the lower unit on the stern drive ? If so what should i be looking for ?

Thanks in advance

 

[alldodge]

Ok so I may have jumped the gun in saying that it was a bad coupler as it seemed to be the same symptoms as last time. free spinning and engine overheating..

Suggest clarifying what the current problem is

If the prop does not turn then the drive or hib

If the motor turns but there is no water being pulled thru to cool the motor then this is the drive of the water pump

What do you mean by free spinning? What is actually free and spinning?

 

[Bt Doctur]

Did they replace the outdrive oil ? Check the drive oil and condition

 

[QBhoy]

Put it in gear and see if you can lock the prop by hand.
I was thinking that the lower selector isn’t lined up but it shouldn’t over heat at that.

 

[Rick Stephens]

If you break the shaft or strip the gears in the upper gear case, the water pump will not be spinning and your boat will not have any go.

 

[Dave87]

So I was driving along in my boat and then I suddenly lost propulsion. The engine kept running and started to over heat.

I put the boat in forwards and the prop would lock up when I spun it by hand but only in one direction and the same when I put it in reverse.

I will check the oil tomorrow.

Should I also remove the upper case cover and see what it looks like in there ?

 

[Rick Stephens]

With the issues you have, I'd start with the cap. That's easy. I'd then pull the drive and check it out. Few minutes to have it on a bench and you can check everything. No matter what, that should be done with your symptoms.

 

[Dave87]

With the issues you have, I'd start with the cap. That's easy. I'd then pull the drive and check it out. Few minutes to have it on a bench and you can check everything. No matter what, that should be done with your symptoms.

Alright perfect I'll do that... Looks like I need a special tool to remove those bolts though ? Where would I find this tool ?

 

[Bondo]

Alright perfect I'll do that... Looks like I need a special tool to remove those bolts though ? Where would I find this tool ?

Ayuh,..... It's just a 12-point socket, rather than a 6-point socket,.....

 

[cptbill]

Is it possible that the drive shaft splines are worn to the point of slipping? after all if the coupler was stripped something had to dom it

 

[Bt Doctur]

check the oil level first, remove the top plug and insert a blade of grass, see if you can detect oil level
No oil, then remove top cap and look. Damage will be obvious
If oil is to the plug and you dont see the damaged gears, shift into F and remove the drive. If you find thin long needles of aluminum in/on the inputshaft you spun the coupler

 

[Bt Doctur]

click to enlarge

 

[Dave87]

Ayuh,..... It's just a 12-point socket, rather than a 6-point socket,.....

Would this be SAE or Metric to make sure I order the right sockets?

 

[alldodge]

would this be sae or metric to make sure i order the right sockets?

sae

 

[Dave87]

Alright so this looks fun to fix.....
What would be the next step for me to do now ??
Do I need any special tools to remove the gears ?
Where should I order parts from ?

Engine Serial # 0D619613
Drive Serial # 0D627546
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-jV...ew?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-em...ew?usp=sharing

 

[Rick Stephens]

Alright so this looks fun to fix.....
What would be the next step for me to do now ??
Do I need any special tools to remove the gears ?
Where should I order parts from ?

First need to determine what is wrong... it is not always financially reasonable to rebuild an outdrive. Upper case, is financially and technically within DIY reach. But if it ground up the gears in the upper, then it also put metal in the lower through the shared oil pathways. When you get to the lower the cost of the special tools is more than the cost of a replacement drive.

Post pics of what you find wrong and collectively there is a huge enough pool of advice to assist in the proper course to take to get back on the water.

 

[Dave87]

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First need to determine what is wrong... it is not always financially reasonable to rebuild an outdrive. Upper case, is financially and technically within DIY reach. But if it ground up the gears in the upper, then it also put metal in the lower through the shared oil pathways. When you get to the lower the cost of the special tools is more than the cost of a replacement drive.

Post pics of what you find wrong and collectively there is a huge enough pool of advice to assist in the proper course to take to get back on the water.

Ok so I should remove the lower drive and see if theres any metal chunks in the oil ?

If there is no metal down below does that mean that I should go ahead and purchase the new gears ?

Also I believe that this failure was due to lack of oil

I guess I needed to learn the hard way that I should periodically check this.