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BMC 1.5 No Drive!

Rob1234

By Rob1234
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Rob1234 Explorer

Rob1234

Posted
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Hi

 

Looking for advice on gearbox issue, please. The other day my boat lost drive, the gearbox oil was low and pretty grimey. After a top up it went again and after a few miles it stopped again, could it have a blockage? I pump SAE30 in as that all I had.

 

Rob


I mean "put" SAE30 in..... got gearbox and pumps on the brain!!

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Arthur Brown Influencer

Arthur Brown

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Depends on what the gearbox manual says that it needs and the reason for you needing to top up the fluid in a hurry.

 

Do you have any oil in the bilge or engine tray. Is there an obvious place for the leak -crack, blown gasket or seal....

 

What make and model is the gearbox?

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RLWP Veteran II

RLWP

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The level doesnt seem to have gone down since I refilled....will check again when I get home!

yes no forward or reverse!

 

Low oil

 

Well, it could be something more drastic, but if it gets better when you put oil in, I'd say that was pretty conclusive

 

Those PRM dipsticks are very difficult to read. They pick up droplets off the insides of the box when you take them out to inspect them giving false readings

 

Richard

I have checked the control arm? moves fully to the stop when throttle operated. The oil is sort of coffee colour....is that normal?

 

No, sounds like it has water in it. Has your box got an oil cooler? PRM oil is often entirely clear

 

Richard

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Tony Dunkley Influencer

Tony Dunkley

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Almost certainly , it's the gearbox oil cooler that's developed an internal leak. Cooling water leaking into the gearbox oil when not running, and vice versa when you are running the engine. If the engine and gearbox is keel (skin tank) cooled, there'll be oil in the engine cooling system.

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Arthur Brown Influencer

Arthur Brown

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Coffee colour as in white coffee? Then the oil is emulsified with water (likely from the cooler but not definitively) find the leak first!

Coffee colour as in Black coffee? That's how used oil often looks -shiny surface with dark (suspended carbon) depths.

 

In reality gearbox oil should be long term stable at the colour it was when you first filled the box -there should be little or no colour change and little level change, for years. If there is a leak the leaked oil must be somewhere, choices include bilges, engine coolant header tank, cut. engines burn oil gearboxes don't.

 

Where does the cooling coil get it's cold from? Air, outside water, engine cooling water?? Look at the engine cooling water, is there oil in there?

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RLWP Veteran II

RLWP

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Can the gearbox oil cooler be rebuilt...or is it a case of replacing?

And yet it is keel cooled.

 

Replacing.

 

Now, to get you home. Take one pipe off at the gearbox end, and the other pipe off at the oil cooler end. Then connect the pipe still attached to the gearbox back to the other port, and do the same on the oil cooler. You should now have a loop coming out of and going back into the gearbox, and another going out and into the oil cooler

 

If you can, change the oil in the gearbox

 

That will get you home, it will probably last longer than that - as a hire boat or PRM didn't have an oil cooler at all

 

As Tony says, you may find oil in the cooling water for the engine

 

MORE: This isn't a major disaster - the gearbox shouldn't suffer too much from this water, oil in the cooling water is messy but not really a problem, and oil coolers are readily available and easy to change

 

Richard

Coffee colour as in white coffee? Then the oil is emulsified with water (likely from the cooler but not definitively) find the leak first!

Coffee colour as in Black coffee? That's how used oil often looks -shiny surface with dark (suspended carbon) depths.

 

In reality gearbox oil should be long term stable at the colour it was when you first filled the box -there should be little or no colour change and little level change, for years. If there is a leak the leaked oil must be somewhere, choices include bilges, engine coolant header tank, cut. engines burn oil gearboxes don't.

 

Where does the cooling coil get it's cold from? Air, outside water, engine cooling water?? Look at the engine cooling water, is there oil in there?

 

A PRM emulsifies any water in the oil very nicely and does a good imitation of a Latte. The recommended installation is a water cooled oil cooler in the engine circuit

 

Richard

Edited by RLWP
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Rob1234 Explorer

Rob1234

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Definetly Latte! Managed to get to our destination...we towed it with my Sons boat! So it seems I probably have a faulty oil cooler and probably low oil level. This gives me something to go on....hopefully! I will let you know how I get on....cheers for the help so far! I will be back for more no doubt!

 

Rob

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bizzard Veteran II

bizzard

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Definetly Latte! Managed to get to our destination...we towed it with my Sons boat! So it seems I probably have a faulty oil cooler and probably low oil level. This gives me something to go on....hopefully! I will let you know how I get on....cheers for the help so far! I will be back for more no doubt!

 

Rob

I'd drain out that box as soon as possible. If the bearing races get rusty the box can make a horrible harsh droning noise like a low flying Lancaster bomber. If you've had a wheel bearing on your car wear out you'll know what I mean. ''Know what I mean Arry''.

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RLWP Veteran II

RLWP

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If you do as I suggest and loop the outlet pipe on the gearbox back to the inlet, you can run the engine with no oil pipes on the oil cooler. Bet you water comes out of the ports when the engine gets hot

 

Richard

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Rob1234 Explorer

Rob1234

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I checked the oil level this morning and it hasn't gone down, so it would seem not to have a major leak. Took the pipes off the oil cooler and they also contain Latte! I cannot loop them back into the box as the ends don't match. I ran the boat in gear with the pipes off and no oil/water seemed to be flowing? The gear box is a Newage. I have taken some pics, but cant seem to upload them!

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RLWP Veteran II

RLWP

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Posted (edited)

20150319_075521_resized.jpg

20150319_075527_resized.jpg

 

20150319_075644_resized.jpg

 

20150319_075856_resized.jpg

 

20150319_080408_resized.jpg

 

OK, that's an early PRM Newage gearbox - a 100 or 160. The double ended lever and oil filter on top are characteristic

 

You definitely have oil in the water. It either comes from the oil cooler, or it comes from the gearbox standing in water

 

You can wash the gearbox and oil cooler out with diesel - run it for a while to clear it out

 

Richard

Edited by RLWP
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Rob1234 Explorer

Rob1234

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Thanks Richard for help uploading pics. The gearbox isn't sitting in water, so I guess it must be the cooler. Maybe start with a good clean with diesel, should oil be pumped out of the pipes when not connected?

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