Drive Unit Shifting "Firmly"

willbaker13

willbaker13

Active member
The mechanic who worked on repairing our broken drain plug said that in his opinion the drive unit is shifting "firmly" and almost banging into gear (fwd and reverse). There has always been a slight "clunk" but now he has me wondering if something big is wrong. A side from a gear oil change the drive has never had any service performed (since we have owned the boat the last 5 years). Before we have the unit removed and inspected (i'm sure it won't be inexpensive) is there something that we can check ourselves? The drive unit and engine are 2013's. Appreciate your thoughts.
 
SST

SST

Active member
While I can't help you out, my Alpha One is a real clunker! Forward or reverse it clunks into gear. What mine doesn't like is rapid shifting into and out of gear during a tight move into my slip. I've had my drive get stuck in gear and I've had to shut off the engine before driving into the dock.

Anyways, I would have them take a look at it just for preventive maintenance. Maybe they'll catch something before it goes wrong.
 
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willbaker13

willbaker13

Active member
So a new issue arose today. My wife talked me into taking the neighbors out while we are waiting to take the boat into the mechanic this upcoming week for them to inspect the outdrive.

We went out this morning and rode around for about 20 min and then anchored in a cove for a few hours. Upon leaving the cove (2-3 min) the engine alarm sounded with the yellow check engine light on but there were no alarm codes. I shut the engine off and looked inside. Nothing leaking and water and oil temps/pressure were normal. Started and 2 min later it happened again. It seemed that anytime we went over ~1500 rpm the alarm and light would sound so we limped back home doing about 1000 rpm. Any insight into what would be causing this would be appreciated as I am not sure where to even start. As it's going to the mechanic if possible I would like to point him in a direction vs. them starting from scratch and racking up the hours...Would an issue with the outdrive cause the alarm to sound?
 
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Doc

Doc

Liquid Addiction
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Wish I had a guess for you.
But sometimes I have guessed and sent the mechanic in the wrong direction. Sometimes it's good to give the symptoms and let the pro do his thing. Good luck.
 
willbaker13

willbaker13

Active member
Dropped her off at the mechanic this morning. They stated they are seeing a lot of issues recently with the Volvo engines...here's hoping for two simple inexpensive fixes :pray:
 
willbaker13

willbaker13

Active member
Quick update - boat is still at mechanic. They removed the outdrive and took apart the upper drive unit, inspected all and looks good with the exception of the gimball bearing which they replaced. Additionally, all of the shift cables, etc were adjusted and within specs. However, when they did a water test, the "firm" shifting still exists. The Service Manager told me this morning that they have contacted Volvo 2x to discuss and that Volvo told them they didn't have an idea if everything checked out as they (mechanic stated). Volvo told him to advise us to purchase a new unit - $6200 (not including labor to install). Service Manager said that he feels we should leave it alone at this point and then re-address if actual shifting issues start to occur...

For the engine alarm, when they put it on the computer the code of CATDamaging missfire showed. They replaced the cap and rotor as they stated those were in poor condition.

I'm out of town on business but will be picking the boat up Friday. Hopefully all goes well...
 
SST

SST

Active member
That's a hell of a way to repair something. Buy a whole new engine. Check your insurance for any coverage.
 
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