They do have a great warrantee, compared to anyone else but I have read extensive reviews on them and they are mixed. Mostly with respect to the very common Merc Alpha clone they make, the SEI 116 or whatever they call it. They have a rep for being noisy, and having paint quality issues. Some run fine for a long time, others have had early failures.
http://www.crowleymarine.com/p/773592/J ... -1979-2010Might want to call these people and get some more information on these....
http://www.crowleymarine.com/johnson-ev ... /51872.cfmThis is the OE unit....
The other option, is to get a quote on rebuilding yours, you might not need all new parts, may be bearings, and the FWD/REV gears and clutch dog...Your housing, and shafts may be just fine.
Oil coming out, means a seal failure, but you're in freshwater right so not the end of the world. Did you try shifting the gear case into FWD and REV while turning the upper driveshaft? The failures that these have are usually not a complete loss of drive, but rather jumping out of gear, if the clutch dog engagement faces get rounded off because the shift linkage was out of adjustment or the operator shifted too slowly causing it to grind going into gear all the time.
Drain the gear case oil and look for wear particles on the magnetic drain plug. Was it shifting and running well before this? Ever hit anything in the water?