A HA!

Sean

Well-Known Member
Since 2014, I have noticed an issue with my stern drive being less than responsive and dropping down (over a day or two) while on the trailer. I replaced all the lines and had the trim pump serviced. Everything still worked, just not really well. I could not find any visible leaks.

My temporary solution was some "keepers" that slide over the shafts of the trim rams to stop movement and take pressure off the system. You just snap them over and lower the drive until it stops... no more issue.

However, last time out I was in a rush getting loaded back up (it was raining) and I forgot to lower the drive to take the pressure off. The next morning there was a small puddle of almost clear hydraulic fluid on the driveway. Since everything was clean... It was not too hard to trace the leak. I was coming from the seal on the port cylinder. These cylinders are SEI units and were new in late 2012 so, I had not considered them as a potential source of the problem.

The SEI warranty is only 1 year so, I had to bite the bullet and order a new one. At $120 the SEI replacements are so cheap compared to genuine Mercruiser part (over $700 each) I couldn't say no.

Installation next weekend. Now I'll check these regularly.
 
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