www.iFourWinns.com

Looking for opinions....

Disclaimer- I currently service my outdrive annually- Gear oil change, pull drive, alignment check, grease everything, inspect, etc. I have replaced water impeller every 3 years (no failures). I replaced bellows and gimal bearing two years ago (preventative) and re-painted the drive last year... etc.

I'm thinking of upgrading to a larger cruiser (30 foot range). I'm currently looking at an older boat with twin 350cc Mercs (Alpha 1 drives). Just toying with it- no boat "showings" yet. This boat I'm looking at in particular looks well maintained. I have been e-mailing the seller, and asking a ton of questions. One issue that has me alarmed: He purchased this boat in 2014. Says he has NOT pulled the drives or changed gear lube on an annual basis.... Claims he is a car mechanic by trade....

Thoughts? My first instinct is to stay away from this particular boat...

Thanks for opinions.

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-Andrew

1984 Four Winns 225 Sundowner
5.0L Mercruiser, Alpha 1

Strongly consider a survey. A good survey should identify any issues with the boat and give you some leverage in negotiations. Don't use the surveyor that the seller has recommended because he may not be impartial.

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Surface Interval: A scuba diving term for that time between dives to relax and prepare for life's next great adventure.

Current boat: '02 FW 268 Vista
Previous boat: '95 FW 190 Horizon

I was planning on an impartial survey once I narrow down my options. Just wondering if I should cross this particular boat off the list now- without wasting any time on it...

_________________
-Andrew

1984 Four Winns 225 Sundowner
5.0L Mercruiser, Alpha 1

While that's obviously an important issue, first I'd make sure there is not structural rot that could cause big problems down the road. So see what a surveyor says about the structure but also hire a marine mechanic to check all the mechanicals. I have heard that surveyors check structure, fiberglass, wiring etc. but not necessarily engines and drives. If you are willing to pay the mechanic to remove the drives to inspect, will the seller allow that? You can just remove the lower drain plugs on each drive yourself to check for water in the gear oil, general condition of the oil and for the presence of wear particles on the drain plug.

You're in a freshwater region, right? I think it is not uncommon for some people to not pull the drive each year, maybe every other year. I do mine every year due to the harsh operating conditions here in salt water Long Island, but in fact the manuals for Merc, Volvo and OMC all do recommend this. On the OMCs and Volvos, it is the only way to lube the driveshaft splines. And we all know how much grief water in the bellows can cause if it's not caught early.

If you are willing to pay for a full mechanical inspection and the seller allows it I would not cross this boat off your list.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

Always appreciate your thoughts Lou.

Yes- freshwater here, not nearly as harsh as salt (but worse for rot if water soaks in I believe).

_________________
-Andrew

1984 Four Winns 225 Sundowner
5.0L Mercruiser, Alpha 1

If he purchased the boat in 2014, would he of used the boat in 14, 15, 16 and now most of 2017 without at least even checking drive oils? That's almost 4 seasons of boating. I'd be interested in knowing if the boat sat in the water on a seasonal basis for these 4 years and approximately how many hours he puts on a year. Any chance this boat didn't have almost 4 full seasons of in water use? If he is a mechanic I would be curious to hear his explanation of no drive service. Did he know if his drive oils were changed the season he purchased the boat by the previous owner, if not the drive oils could be older than 4 years.

Our marina strongly suggests that on our twin Volvo duoprops that we change drive oils every other year but check drive oils each year during our fall lift out and winterization. We typically put on about 50 hours a year.

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Current Boat
- 2001 Four Winns 328 Vista "Hour Decision"
- 2010 310 Mercury Inflatable

Previous Boats
- 30' Doral Prestancia
- 25' Doral Citation

This particular boat just sold to someone else today- so it is a non-issue for me.

From what I could tell, the boat was used by this owner for nearly 4 full seasons with no outdrive preventive maintenance. The seller told me that he "checked" the oil every year. The boat was kept slipped, and based on some other info, I think they put around 160 hours on it over those 4 years.

_________________
-Andrew

1984 Four Winns 225 Sundowner
5.0L Mercruiser, Alpha 1

There are so many "mechanics" I wouldn't allow to work on my wheelbarrow... He should know there's more to drive maintenance than just gear lube.

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Mike
2005 Four Winns 230/240
VP 5.7GXi/DP
1998 F-150 XLT
Boat Pic