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Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine bracket
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Author:  PackLeader [ Sat Jun 01, 2013 7:52 am ]
Post subject:  Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine bracket
Hi all. This is my first post for my first Four Winns/OMC Cobra. How can this be? I have the 4.3liter Cobra shop manual and cannot determine why. Oil level (cold) is slightly below the full indicator on the dipstick. No other leaks. Shifting is fine. Engine is fine.
Author:  jvthundercat [ Sat Jun 01, 2013 9:18 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
What year and which Cobra? That will help some of us look up the internals.
Author:  PackLeader [ Sat Jun 01, 2013 12:40 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Oops and Thanks! It's a 1990 with the dog clutch (which ain't barking :) ).
Author:  LouC [ Sun Jun 02, 2013 9:19 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Can you be more specific?
Gear oil is leaking at the engine bracket (the one the bellcrank is mounted on, with the 2 cables one goes to the drive and the other goes to the remote control?)
Or do you mean where the cable goes into the transom mount?
Really the only places you will see a gear oil leak on a Cobra is either from the propshaft seals, sometimes out of the water intakes (bearing cover in the lower unit) or the gaskets for the drain/fill plugs.
How about posting a pic?
Author:  PackLeader [ Sun Jun 02, 2013 12:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
I would post a picture(s) if I could figure out how to do so. From what I can see, I either have to post a link to a remote webserver or get permission from the site administrator. I do not have a website with which I can associate pictures.

The leak is occurring at the transom shift cable casing guide attached to the engine shift bracket (adjacent the carbuerator where the bracket assembly part #78, pg 15 final edition 4.3 Parts Catalog). Enough fluid has leaked (after one day on the water) to drop the gear case fluid level below full.

I don't dare remove the cable attachment to look more closely for fear of screwing up the proper adjustment for shifting (even though I have the alignment tool).
Author:  LouC [ Mon Jun 03, 2013 5:50 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
There is no way gear oil can leak there, you have another leak, maybe the ignition coil (some have oil in them to dissipate heat) is leaking, or something else. But that can't be from the outdrive.
Author:  PackLeader [ Mon Jun 03, 2013 6:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Ignition coil? I don't think so but I'll check. The fluid color matches the gear case oil (blue-green). Isn't that Quicksilver gear lube? The cable/guide are saturated and is the highest point from which the oil appears to emanate. It certainly is difficult to see things behind the engine in this boat. The shift cable leading to the transom bracket enters a larger diameter tube (1"?) approximately 12" from the bracket assembly at the engine. At this point where the cable enters the larger tube, there is a boot secured in place with a cable tie. I presume this is simply a dust boot and the larger diameter tube facilitates/protects the cable from any kinking. Not fully understanding the connection at the vertical drive, I presume that the shift cable is secured to a linkage at the vertical drive which is fully sealed where it seats.

Having said all this, I discovered that my out-drive will not raise (mysteriously) today. The hydraulic reservoir is full. But I'm beginning to wonder...
Author:  LouC [ Tue Jun 04, 2013 5:04 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
That cable goes into the transom mount, where it moves a bellcrank that lifts the shift rod up and down. At no point does it enter a part of the drive that has gear oil in it. Its gotta be something else.
Author:  PackLeader [ Tue Jun 04, 2013 10:54 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Thanks for your assertion/confirmation that this could not be so. I will search further and post back.
Author:  PackLeader [ Wed Jun 26, 2013 8:15 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Follow-up: I dunno. There does not appear to be the leaking there once was after some further use. I'm wondering if it was cable lube. Still not satisfied and searching for answer. I know that if my grease gun sits on a shelf in my unheated garage, a separation occurs and a puddle of oily lubricant will result. Something similar happens around hub caps on trailer. I'm wondering if it is the same sort of thing.
Author:  LouC [ Thu Jun 27, 2013 7:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Those cables are not normally lubed. The parts of the shift linkage that should be greased are the pivots for the bellcrank on the engine bracket and the ferrule that fits into the load sensing lever. If you're seeing oil there, then maybe someone spilled it changing oil, or it is possible that some oil came up the crankcase breathers and wound up on the cable. Post a pic of what you are seeing.
Author:  PackLeader [ Tue Jul 02, 2013 10:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
I don't believe it is from the crank case breather tubes. It's a different color oil for starters. Lube at the bracket is my best guess. See the photos that I've added to: http://netwinn205.shutterfly.com/

Thanks for your interest in helping LouC and others.
Author:  LouC [ Wed Jul 03, 2013 6:46 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
Well that stuff looks exactly like the Mercruiser/Quicksilver High Performance gear lube. I know this because I use it in my Cobra drive, my mechanic recommended it over the OMC hi-vis stuff originally used in Cobras. How long have you owned this boat and was it recently serviced? It looks like someone had a qt of that stuff in the engine bay and spilled some.
BTW, very clean boat for its age. I see it still has the OE starter and the wires all zip tied up on the solenoid like OMC used to do. Mine's on my third starter, they don't last that long if any salt water gets on em...Not to hard to change though, the engine compartments on the older FW like yours and mine, are MUCH MUCH better for any maintenance, the newer ones make starters and manifolds hard to get at.

You really had a BMW 2002 Tii...man those were the coolest cars and I remember when they were new back in the 70s, we were all muscle car heads and along comes this little great performing car from Germany....
Author:  PackLeader [ Thu Jul 04, 2013 8:29 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Gear oil leaking via transom shift cable at engine brack
I bought the boat this spring. The previous owner was vague about the maintenance history. He just paid the boat yard to do all the service work that they recommended be done. I guess the good thing is that it was regularly maintained. But as a boat owner several times over, I want to KNOW what was done and when and why and how much, etc. It did not look this way when I got it. I applied personal elbow grease (as I've done for several boats, cars). I WISH I could say I hot-rodded around in my 2002tii! I bought it as a restore project several years ago and sold it because it didn't fit my time. As a kid I remember my next door neighbor screaming down the hill as they came home every night from work in their little tii. I was the only kid that thought that was the coolest car while all my friends thought the muscle cars were the baddest thing.
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