www.iFourWinns.com

Hello all, I have had a pretty good leak somewhere in the boat all summer. It is not leaking from the motor (ran on muffs, no leaks), but the bilge area fills up while the boat is just sitting in the water and while underway. Any suggestions where to look first? I noticed water leaking from the area where the stern connects with the fiberglass, but cant pinpoint where its coming from. I have to run the bilge every 30 minutes for about a minute. There is what looks to be an old seal around the plate on the outside that has cracked. Not sure if it was factory or not..

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP

That's definitly not factory, someone put that sealer there to try to stop a leak. The seal for the transom mount is inside and it is a big rubber ring. To replace it you'd have to pull the drive and then the engine. There are many other places a sterndrive boat can leak from, try to get way back in the engine compartment with a telescoping mirror and flashlight and see where it's coming from. Could be the transom seal, bellows for the driveshaft, exhaust Y pipe, or even the bellows in the shift cable.

_________________
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

with that age the transom could be soft and the transo assy is leaking, its pretty common.

_________________
Brian Borchik
The Winds of Cold Springs Harbor Marina
Baldwinsville, NY

Well.. took the boat out this afternoon, took the rear bench out and tried to find the leak. There was a steady stream of water coming in from what looks like to be some sort of plate for the exhaust on the inside of boat. Got back home and The bolts were loose and I tightened them up. I have to put it in the water to see the leak.. Ill guess we will try again tomorrow. Anyone dealt with this before or know if there is a seal inside this plate? Its just above the drain hole.

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP

I would expect there to be either a seal, or sealant. You might consider taking that apart to check for bad sealing and/or hidden water damage.

_________________


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

Its very hard to access.. I can barely fit my hand in to tighten the nuts.. I found this schematic http://www.boats.net/parts/search/OMC/S ... parts.html . The plate is number 5 on this list.. the BEARING PLATE. I didnt notice a seal or anything for it, I think the only way to really get to it is to pull the engine out which wont be fun.

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP

Hmm, I don't have much OMC knowledge, and I can't tell from that diagram what the plate mates with or seals against. But if the water is coming in from between that and the transom itself, I'd be asking how long it's been doing that (and I'm reminded of the caulk job the previous owner did), and if any water damage could have started in the transom. I wonder if there's enough access to tell, if you have the drive and gimbal housing removed at the end of the season. That has to be better than pulling the engine.

Not that it's related (I hope!), but this summer I was out at the shop where I have all my work done (including fiberglass work). They had a very large, very old, FW cruiser sitting there with the drive off. They had just done a total transom replacement on it. I was amazed, it looked perfect inside and out. Hope there's nothing like that in your future though!

_________________


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

I sure hope not either, it has only been good news so far with this boat, every time something seems wrong, its a simple fix. Im hoping it is this way on this as well. Im heading to the lake first thing tomorrow to check it out again.

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP

Found this link.. Im not sure if it will help anyone or not, but Im giving it a shot until this winter when I can pay someone to take a good look at the transom..

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=287018

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP

Interesting. At least now I see the purpose of the plate. It seems it would be a common thing to have loosen up since it's (potentially) supporting a lot of weight and vibration. But it still seems to me that in order for that to leak, the exterior transom seal would have to be damaged.

_________________


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

Exactly, I believe the outer seal needs to be replaced (I think I meant transom seal, not transom in my last post). Im just doing this temporarily until this winter.. I dont really want the boat to be in the shop the last little bit of summer. With that said, if this fixes the problem it is more than likely that seal.

Anyways, thanks for listening to my most recent issues..

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP

Well.. bought the 3m 5200 and spread all the way around the transom plate on the outside of the boat.. No leaks. After 7 hours of boating, less than a half gallon water. (We were wake boarding the entire time.) Anyways, problem solved for now. Ill be replacing the seal this fall, just wanted to get through this season.

_________________
1990 Horizon 200
5.7L OMC Cobra 260HP