I would not. Pull the drive (takes like 15 min) and check. Because if you do have water in there, your gimble bearing will get corroded and start making noise. To R&R the drive, you need to have a strong back, helper or a stand like I built out of 2x6s and later replaced with a real drive jack. I use it every year because, you are really supposed to R+R the drive every year, to lube the driveshaft splines, check and lube the gimble and u joints. Yes you can lube the gimble without removing the drive but you really should be checking for water, check the alignment and lube everything. Also if you get a leak in the input bearing seal, it will be obvious (gear oil on driveshaft). You also need to pick up a new drive to pivot housing gasket (Sierra makes a good gasket set) and OMC/BRP gasket sealer (which is actually Permatex Aviation Sealer. For the driveshaft splines, use OMC/Evinrude triple guard grease. You can get it from any Evinrude dealer or on line.
http://www.crowleymarine.com/support/te ... moval.htmlhttp://www.crowleymarine.com/support/te ... ation.htmlI just replaced both of my bellows this spring, its not a hard job, but you have to be careful to make sure that the end by the gimble housing is properly seated and the clamp is in the right spot. I had my mechanic do the last one back in '05, that one lasted till now, it was still OK really just getting a few tiny cracks between the folds, so it was time to replace it.