www.iFourWinns.com

Looking at a 2002 Horizon 210. Looks to be well maintained but the owner said towards the end of last season he had some issues with the trim pump not trimming out under full power. The powertrain is a 5.7L 270HP ??? with a Volvo Penta SX-M outdrive. From pictures I have seen it also has trim tabs on the outside of the transom. I did not see those as standard on a 210 Horizon so I assume add on.

I don't have a lot of experience with I.O's and I am wondering what he is talking about and the potential cost of repairs.

Any other things I should look for. I am seeing it Sat. and water testing

Thanks

If you haven't had a lot of experience with I/Os it would be a good idea to get a mechanic to look at it. The boat is 12 years old and depending on use/maintenance there can be a lot of things going wrong. Some things are the same as an OB in terms of operation but with I/Os the things that can be troublesome are:

The driveshaft bellows can leak water and that will corrode the gimble bearing and ujoints. That will cause either a) a fairly expensive repair or b) a catastrophic failure if the noise the rusted parts are making does not get your attention.
The drive can leak water into the gear oil (this also happens on OB lower units) this is why you pull the lower drain plug briefly and see if water comes out before the oil. If so it needs a reseal. Not a big deal really.

The exhaust manifolds/risers can corrode or the gasket between them can fail, letting water leak into a cylinder. This can rust exhaust valves and cause engine failure eventually.

Because they are much more work to winterize than an OB, sometimes people get lazy and take ill advised short cuts when winterizing. The engine/manifolds can crack over the winter and require complete replacement. As in 3500 and up for a long block and about a grand for new manifolds/risers


the trim pump issue could be simple (corroded wiring/intermittent operation of trim switch on remote control) or more complex (bad pump, leaks, bad trim cylinders). Can't say on price because we don't know what's wrong.

there you have it...now does having a real mechanic look at it seem like a good idea??

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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

The trim pump can be a concern but I have a similar vintage Horizon 200 and frankly the switch on the throttle is not very responsive/worn. It takes some pressure to manipulate the drive especially when underway because you don't have a good grip on it. Regardless that's not a difficult fix if it becomes an issue. If the trim pump is truly bad just leverage the price down. Most of the previous maintenance concerns are easily identified:
-is the drive shaft bellow torn? Or does it look brand new? If the ladder: did the old one leak or was it simply a maintenance replacement? This is overkill but if you're replacing the DS bellow it's not that much more work to replace the gimbal bearing. The bearing driver can be made at home depot for $20.
-Might as well just replace the water pump impeller after you buy it unless its obviously new. Its pretty cheap, easy to replace and peace of mind.
-As far as poor winterization you can run it on muffs and probably figure out if water is getting into a cylinder or at best do a compression check.

Buying a used boat from the early 2000's is a lot like buying a used car from that same vintage. You're vulnerable to a bad purchase but there are steps to be taken to minimize the risk. You can have a mechanic inspect the boat so long as he/she is skilled and honest. There really isn't that much to go catastrophically wrong with these things. A compression test and a cooling system/raw water cooling system pressure test will indicate the most costly failures. You can youtube how to pressure test the outdrive for leaks and additionally listen for bad news when going in and out of gear on the muffs.

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1999 FW H200 - 305Gi - SX

Thanks for the replies. I owned an inboard competition ski boat in a previous life so I know about motors and winterization. But the "bellows and gimbal bearings and trim stuff" is all new to me. Appreciate the suggestions.

Since you have owned a boat before, if you have a mechanic you trust take them with you on your sea trial. Have them give it a good look at they should be able to tell you anything that is wrong and what its going to cost to fix it. You can also use that as some leverage in haggling over price.

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1990 Four Winns Horizon 200
2005 GMC Sierra

Good luck with it . I just bought 2002 210 H 5.0 And all I did was have a mechanic check it out and it was good. Then I replace impeller which was also good but peace of mind. And I'm new to i/o.
Good luck hope it's as good as I got.
Lucky

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Hal

As far as comparison to the ski boat, the engine is about the same, but the complexity of the drive train on the I/O is much greater. If yours was a straight inboard that's as simple as it gets. The I/O adds vectored thrust, and the ability to trim up, but you pay for the better manuverability with the complexity. The bellows you change about every 5 seasons or so. The gimble bearing (really just a big roller bearing that gimbles) and the u-joints should be greased once a season if they are the kind that can be greased. You need to check the bellows for water intrusion and also grease the splines on the driveshaft. Its also a good idea to check engine alignment (this is true on inboards too). If these things are neglected the coupler can fail which will result in an engine pull.
The trim system usually is not troublesome but can be prone to leaks just like power steering on a car. The thing with I/Os is that the drive unit should be removed at the end of each season to do the maintenance checks. If you don't for a long time they can corrode in place (also happens with outboard lower units) and they can wind up costing you a pile 'o cash. If you read the maintenance manuals they all have said (Merc Volvo and OMC) that this needs to be done once a season. Not a big deal to do if you have some mechanical skills.

_________________
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 pay to have a mechanical inspection done, they cost around $350. I'm a fairly decent shadetree mechanic but it always helps to have a second pair of eyes. They do a compression test, pull the outdrive apart, check all the wiring, lights, trailer, everything and give you a list of what needs attention and an estimate to fix it. If the owner doesn't agree to let you pay for an inspection before you buy the boat, walk away. It's busted. Find another.

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1981 Columbia 8.7
2015 Yamaha FZR - 87mph - sold
2006 Yamaha GP1300R - sold
2003 Chaparral 215 SSI - sold
2009 Stingray 195CS - sold
2000 Four Winns H180 - sold
1976 O'day Daysailer II - sold
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