DIY oil changes

Does anyone recomend a good set up for pumping out ATF and oil? I want to change all my fluids out and need to go buy a pump. Also what brands of oil do you recomend? I have a Merc 350 V-Drive. It has the hose already conected to the bottom of the pan just need to get the fittings and hoses with a pump.

Thanks,
Tyler

I have a oil pump that I only use for the ATF fluid. $20 at Acadamey for the pump that hooks up to the boat battery.

I also have a merc V drive and pefer to pump it out. I use a fakealake to start the engine and warm the oil and it pumps out great. The transmission and v drive fluid work best to pump out at the end of day on the lake when fluids are warm.

Invest in an oil extractor. You can buy them with a hand pump or one that hooks up to your air compressor. The tank holds a couple gallons of fluid. You put the tub down your dip stick (oil) or the fill hole (v-drive). Comes with a varity of different size hoses. The hand pump version will run about 60.00 bucks and the air compressor type will cost about 90.00 bucks. Works great for cars and motorcycles too. Just warm it up and empty the pan in minutes. 10 min oil change with filter. You can find them at online automotive or boating stores. I bought mine at grottens garage

I have a battery powered pump, that I have never used. It is from a long time ago. Anyway, I want to change the tranny fluid (DD). I know that I need to pump it out, but how do I know I have it all? Just keep pumping till I can't get anymore, and hope? How much do I put back in? I know that a car, you need to check the tranny fluid when it is warm. How do you check warm tranny fluid when you are pouring it in?

The "Tempo Oil Boy" is a great pump. It comes with 3 different hoses to fit different diameter fill holes. I use this pump for my motor oil, V-drive oil, and tranny fluid.

Trust me, it is worth every penny. I have wasted money on other cheaper pumps that don't always work. The Tempo Oil Boy gets every drop out with very little effort and zero mess.

I've also heard that the Topsider is a good pump, but I opted for the Oil Boy because it's clear, so I can see how much oil it's pumping out. I have reccommended this pump to others and they have all agreed with how great this pump is. Not to knock the battery or hand held pumps, but this one is just plain better. I've used them all and nothing compares to the Oil Boy.

They run between $49-$59 depending on where you buy them. Overton's and Boater's World sell them as well as Bass Pro.

i have the oil boy too, and it's awesome. you can make it even better by making an adapter to attach it to the bottom drain hose on the oil pan. this gets out more old oil than sucking it out thru the dipstick.

I picked up the Tempo Oil Boy on Richards recommendation and it's everything that he says. I had a cheaper electrical pump that sucked in comparison. I can do oil, vdrive, and tranny fluid in less than an hour with zero mess.

Ditto the Oil Boy - just wish it was large enough to suck nine quarts of Mobil1 in a sitting (6-engine, 2-tranny, 1-vdrive).

I use a Tempo. As Trace notes, all it takes is a couple of pipe fitting to connect a Tempo to the E-Z drain hose for the crankcase. Here's an earlier thread with pictures:

http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/100113.html?1077646658#POST316572

Thanks for all of the info. What size hose will work best for the V-Drive and Tranny? Also do you know how much a Velvet Drive holds (does 2 quarts sound right)?

-Tyler

Approx. 2qt ATF for trans and 1 qt 30 wt for V drive. The oil extractors described above come with 3 different sizes of tube.

here's mine:

and just use the biggest hose (really more like a straw) that will fit in the dipstick hole for the tranny / VD.

Does anyone know where to get a synthetic 30WT? Everywhere I've looked only has blends.

Thanks again for all the info...
Tyler

Volvo Penta makes a 30WT synthetic oil but it is really hard to find. Try any shop that carries Volvo Penta engines and they likely have it.

(Message edited by watsoc on April 05, 2006)

Are there any DIY guides for fluid changes on V-drives floating around, we get our boat in a couple weeks and I want to be well prepared.

Thanks.

The easiest way I have found to change fluids is this way (this is how a Nautique dealer told me to do it a few years back):

Warm your engine to normal operating temp. Extract the fluid and pour in a measuring container. Determine exactly how much fluid you removed. Then pour in that same amount of new fluid. Repeat the same process for V-drive oil and tranny fluid. Replace your oil filter with each oil change and your tranny filter as needed.

After changing fluids be sure to double check your fluid levels the next time you launch your boat. With the boat at rest on smooth water check your dipsticks and top off fluid as needed.

Provided that your fluids were never over filled to begin with, as long as you put in the same amount that you took out, you should be good to go. If anything you may have to top off to account for your motor burning small amounts of oil.

Tranny filter? I have a DD. I am about to change my tranny fluid, but I didn't know there was a filter. Where would this be? Under the tranny?

I am by no means an expert. I just know that my V-drive has a remote filter for the tranny. Check your owners manual or ask your dealer for info about your paticular model.

I've heard that most dealers don't bother with changing the tranny filter when you take your boat in for service unless you ask them to. Perhaps on an older boat they do? The owners manual says to change it everytime the tranny fluid is changed, but that may not really be neccessary.