Volvo penta sx and sx-a difference

RaveOn · **Posted:** Tue May 27, 2014 1:52 pm

Hi. What are the differences between an sx and a sx-a drive? Also is one not produced any more?

Thanks

ric · **Posted:** Tue May 27, 2014 5:50 pm

I've owned both:

SX-M is the mid 90's til late 2000's single prop drive.
SX-A is the modern redesign sold on boats today.

Difference?
SX-M is bulletproof. Great design. Zero flaws. Easy to maintain.
SX-A? Horrible design. Oil drain is behind the prop. The trim pump is OUTSIDE IN THE WATER! YES. Do they leak and fail? All the damn time. How much does it cost to replace? $1300! Sell the shit the day the warranty expires! It's designed to fail!

If you want a new(er) boat and it has an SX-A drive? Pass on it. Go with the Mercruiser Alpha One gen 2. You'll never see one broken, and it doesn't require a $1300 trim pump every couple years.

jntwlsn · **Joined:** Fri Aug 29, 2008 11:25 am **Posts:** 127

ric wrote:

I've owned both:

SX-M i the mid 90's til late 2000's single prop drive.
SX-A is the modern redesign sold on boats today.

Difference?
SX-M is bulletproof. Great design. Zero flaws. Easy to maintain.
SX-A? Horrible design. Oil drain is behind the prop. The trim pump is OUTSIDE IN THE WATER! YES. Do they leak and fail? All the damn time. How much does it cost to replace? $1300! Sell the shit the day the warranty expires! It's designed to fail!

If you want a new(er) boat and it has an SX-A drive? Pass on it. Go with the Mercruiser Alpha One gen 2. You'll never see one broken, and it doesn't require a $1300 trim pump every couple years.

Dude, you kill me. But seriously........

skidaddytn · **Joined:** Mon May 03, 2010 11:12 am **Posts:** 281

Being a victim of the sx-a trim pump design myself, I can tell you that there is also a volvo repair kit with a newly designed cover which can be found for way less than that (maybe around 400 bucks).
Luckily mine failed in year #6 and I had the 7 year ext warranty. The new design cover is on season #3 with no trouble yet (knock on wood). Has anyone had the newer design cover still fail?

I had no idea that on other drives the gear oil plug comes out with the propeller being taken off... I am jealous as this is a pain...

MichiWinner · **Posted:** Tue Jun 17, 2014 2:27 pm

Does anyone happen to know if / when they incorporated the Volvo "fix kit" into production SX-A's?
I would hope they switched to the updated design after realizing what was going on....

ric · **Posted:** Tue Jun 17, 2014 6:18 pm

I had to have it fixed under warranty and Volvo shipped the fix it kit to my dealer per my request. Was a nightmare. New pump and redesigned lines. Its why I'm now a merc owner. I'm not all about owning something that's designed to fail.

Ironically Volvo just mailed me the paperwork to extend my 7 year warranty another 2 years. The boat is somewhere in Slovakia so I doubt they could use it.

www.iFourWinns.com

Volvo penta sx and sx-a difference

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