myfirstboat1984
Cadet
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2009
- Messages
- 23
I have a 1984 Mercruiser, 3L 140 Inboard. Yesterday, I changed the lower unit gear oil for the first time and saw that it was an ugly grey. I don't know how long it had been since it was changed, since I just bought the boat this summer, but the oil was very overused and smelled bad, like it was burned. So, I changed the oil, and I put in the best oil the marina offered. I started it in my driveway to see how it ran.
Now the lower unit is making a light clicking/popping noise every 5 seconds or so, whether I be neutral or in gear. I can only hear it when in idle, but that may be just because of the engine noise. It sounds like the gear may be slipping a bit. I tried adjusting the shift cable to favor forward or reverse a bit, but still the popping occurs, even in neutral. Is it different, running it in the driveway hooked to a garden hose, as opposed to running it in water. I wondered if some clicking was normal when not in water. Could new oil make the gears easier to move and cause more slipping? A couple times this year, it has suddenly slipped out of gear, making that typical "Hit a log" sound and sudden stop, so I know there is some issues in the gears, maybe the clutch dog, but I wanted to wait till this winter to take it apart to see.
I am getting ready to take it out for the July 4th, but I wonder if I should. I don't want to cause more damage to it.
Now the lower unit is making a light clicking/popping noise every 5 seconds or so, whether I be neutral or in gear. I can only hear it when in idle, but that may be just because of the engine noise. It sounds like the gear may be slipping a bit. I tried adjusting the shift cable to favor forward or reverse a bit, but still the popping occurs, even in neutral. Is it different, running it in the driveway hooked to a garden hose, as opposed to running it in water. I wondered if some clicking was normal when not in water. Could new oil make the gears easier to move and cause more slipping? A couple times this year, it has suddenly slipped out of gear, making that typical "Hit a log" sound and sudden stop, so I know there is some issues in the gears, maybe the clutch dog, but I wanted to wait till this winter to take it apart to see.
I am getting ready to take it out for the July 4th, but I wonder if I should. I don't want to cause more damage to it.