www.iFourWinns.com

Went down to the boat tuesday just to check it out. I noticed there was rust where the bellow had cracked. Just wondering if its only surface rust that can just be cleaned off or is it more serious???
It has been booked in on the 24th for a service and repair at fleet marine. I spoke to James Pappas the guy you recommended Aussie_horizon and he quoted $1600 all up for service and repair. He said it will be ready that monday which is Australia Day but i think they would be closed.

Thanks
Kyp2

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/

Kyp2,

As the torn bellows will have let in salt water, the rust deposit is probably from rusty water dripping down from the drive shaft and U/Js. Mine had quite a bit of surface rust from only having a few mm of salt water in the bellows when my original one let in some water ( not a bellows failure in my case; there was no gasket cement used in the factory).

Graham

Kyp2, have Fleet Marine moved yet or are they still in Highett?

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

They are still in the process of moving i think they are almost done. I drove past their new location a couple of weeks ago. It is much bigger. They had a v458 there. Wow what a boat. I will be dropping the sundowner off at the Highett store.

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/

Went down to the boat today to take some pics of the damage and found out it was not only the bellow thatw as damaged. Not the best pics because they were taken with my phone. The battery for the camera was flat.







Any idea what has happened there???

Thanks
Kyp2

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/

Kyp2,

That is a sorry sight; there is a lot more rust there than I had. From the angle that the intermediate U/J carrier is lying in pic 3 ( I think the pic is actually upside down), the amount of rust and the damage to the transom shield, my guess would be that the U/J furthest away from the transom shield failed, allowing the intermediate U/J carrier to flail around and strike the transom shield ( where the bellows were clamped down). It has certainly been hit hard by something that was rotating. The intermesdiate U/J carrier is pretty close to the transom shield in normal circumstances. That U/J could have failed due to water ingress; most likely I guess is that one of the U/J's external circlips could have rusted away, allowing a bearing cap to come out, The spider would then come loose. Up to the point of failure the U/J could have been operating just fine, with no noise.

You're looking at needing a new drive shaft assembly plus an external transom shield. I'm afraid.

Graham

Oh dear... looks like more than just bellows... Grahams explaination sure fits in with the bang your son heard.

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

Ouch! Any idea of how much it will cost. Looks like the boat is out of action for a while

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/

Looks co$tly there Kyp hopefully you won't have to part with too much$$$
Ardy
South Oz

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Ardy
Adelaide South Australia
Red H180 3.0 Merc

Kyp2,

As to cost, it's very difficult to say. depends a lot on what sort of discount you get on the parts (in the UK marine repair companies get a significanty "trade" discount from VP agents, which they then put back on so the customer pays full price! This is especially the case if the work is covered by insurance. So they get the labour charge + get a profit from selling the parts!).

Also, it depends if Australia is the same as "rip off Britain" in terms of price mark up compared to the US. In the past I have imported parts from the US, paid the airfreight, import duty and tax and still been in pocket by a considerable amount. You might be able to come to some sort of deal with the repairer about sourcing the parts?

A quick look at the list price of the parts required in the US is I'm afraid upwards of $US 2,000 (excluding any taxes).The (MHP) housing is $1370, the input shaft $390, seal kit $107 plus you'll need to change the gimbal bearing (the sea water in the boat you mentioned means it's been exposed to sea water), upper steering bearing (unless it comes with the housing) and of course the bellows. The upper gear housing will need partial dismantling and some new seals in order to attach the new drive shaft. Small consolation, if your trim sender is a little dodgy, now would be the time to change it.

Graham

Graham,

We get 'gouged' for parts as well, and I know a lot of people (including myself) also import their own parts for a considerable saving. The nice advantage we have in Oz is being in the opposite season tot he Northern Hemisphere, which means lots of clearance sales in the US leading into our boating season!

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

Yes aussie you right they are pricey. Update on the issue. I rang James today and sent him the photos and he is going to see if i can go through the insurance so it would work out cheaper for me. Hopefully he can find a way.

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/

If you can get it covered through your insurance Kyp, the excess is not too bad. May not cover the actual failure itself, but should cover subsequent damage (the expensive bits!) I would have thought... might even have a look at my own policy to see where I stand.

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

hi guys just letting you know i took the boat into fleet marine today. just waiting on James to call me and let me know what the damage is. I'll keep you posted on the situation.

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/

hey guys check out this 248 vista. What a bargain at $72,500. That should get snapped up straight away
http://boatpoint.com.au/boats-for-sale/boatdetails.aspx?R=6739924

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Peter

2005 four winns sundowner
8.1L VP 375hp
http://s254.photobucket.com/albums/hh117/4winns/