Leaky V-Drive

Walters 26 D I think, 02 SANTE.

Last time out I dinged the prop, got it stuck in some stiff mud. Had to lift the boat up to free it. Was only at idle speed. Vibrated pretty good, idled it in and tweaked the tips of the prop back. Noticed the V-drive light flickering so I put in about 12 ozs of SAE30. Had some vibration later around 3600 RPM on the hole shot, ran it for a few sets the next day. Put a new prop on.

I have seen a touch of oil here and there in the bilge, figured it was me slopping it around during maintenance. Today I looked at the V-drive and there was about 1-2 ozs below the drive on the hull and a bit on the bottom of the drive itself. Level was fine cold, will check it after engine warmup and keep an eye on the light. I doubt it's too serious, but better safe and a bit paranoid.

My fear is that I may have tweaked the prop shaft seal when I dinged the prop, but it could also be a gasket. All the oil was below the shaft seal and bottom gasket. Could also just be the breather blowing some out during operation or up and down the hills while trailering.

I am sure it is not cheap to have the seal and gasket replaced and I am not sure I could do anything more than the bottom gasket anyway. I would be sketched about removing the shaft and the coupling to get at the seal, not sure if I could re-align it properly if I could get the seal out and a new one in. I hav e the parts schematic that came with it, seems simple in theory, but difficult in practice as the V-drive is tough to get at on the shaft side.

Anyone messed with one of these or have it redone at a dealer?? Any thoughts are greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance.

I had an '03 SAN that leaked oil from the v-drive the whole time I owned it. I had it rebuilt and eventually replaced but it still leaked..
I know of at least two other people with the same problem.
It is a design problem with the v-drive itself.
The oil pan is small so when it's just sitting the oil level is above the pan and will eventually leak through the gasket..
Correct craft has changed their v-drives as of '06 and I would guess this is one of the reasons.
If you want more info. pm me
Tom

I sent you the PM, thanks in advance. As a side note, I have never owned a car or truck that did not leak something, so I am used to the fluid checking routine.

I would think that the oil level would have to be very low before the light would come on. Did you check the oil level before you added any? How low was it?

I doubt that SAE 30 is the proper oil for your transmission. If you put that in because it was all you had and needed something to get you home then you should drain it out and refill ASAP. I would suggest that you change the oil again after you have run it once to get all the traces of the wrong oil out.

Note that it is normal for the transmission light to flicker at idle. There should be a note next to the light, or at least in the owners manual about that. The light on above 1000 RPM is a problem.

If you managed to overfill the transmission then it might have simply puked some out the vents. They don't take well to being overfull, but it generally doesn't hurt anything other than making a mess. It is also possible that the wrong oil could cause foaming and manage to puke out the vent.

I have dinged a bunch of props and destroyed a couple of shafts and have never had the transmission start leaking as a result.

If you are talking about the unit that is accessed under the rear seat, then that is not the transmission he is talking about, it is the V-drive unit itself. They do use 30w. Everything else Rod said is dead on.

Keep the bottom wiped clean and check the level often. Sounds like it got over filled and may need to have some removed.

Rod, the tranny is fine, its' the V-drive. I think you might be confused, but I know that you know your stuff and have helped me out before, but I think you have the tranny and V-Drive confused.

The V-drive is a bit leaky. The 02 SANTE has a V-drive low pressure warning light on the dash that stays on at idle speeds, once you give it some throttle it goes out. It has a warning that if the light stays on above 1200 RPM, shut it down. Mine started flickering at about 1000 RPM or so and prompted me to check the V-Drive Oil. It was low and I added 12 ozs to full. I think the capacity is 1.5 Qts. It acted fine after that, but I noticed the small leak when it got home and the bilge completely dried out.

All the manuals state SAE30 for the V-Drive, Dextron III for the tranny. The V-drive is just an oil bath for the gears We have no troubles with the tranny level and the oil is still nice and red and clean and no leaks on that unit nor the engine oil either. The V-Drive oil is clean too, as it should be, but a touch is leaking out.

I also have the Walter's RV26D manual, it states that if the light stays on, check the fluid level and fill if low. If the level is fine then check the sender, then the pump. I am not sure if mine has a pump or just builds its' own pressure at RPM.

I am trying to figure out if anyone has had similar trouble and it seems they have. I think I could probably change the lower pan gasket without too much trouble, but the seal on the shaft is a whole other issue. I am thinking that these things just get leaky on their own with no "help" from my bad driving in shallow areas.

Thanks Pete, I cleaned it up real nice last night and felt all around underneath it with my hand to find oil and maybe the leak spot. There is a breather right on the front, could have spit some out during operation or on the trailer ride home.

We will probably put 10-15 hours on it this weekend so I will keep a sharp eye on it. I am just paranoid and the summer is just getting started. I'd hate to have to put it in the shop for a few weeks if the thing is leaking bad. I will cross my fingers, a small leak I can live with, I have had plenty of cars and trucks that leaked here and there but ran for 10's of thousands of miles.

I had the same problem myself in my 2001 SSV.
I pulled the V-Drive unit out, ordered a new seal kit directly from Walter Machine, and rebuilt it and reinstalled . It took about 6 hours do everything. The thing never leaked again. the alighnment was easy as well. I dont know how the clearance is in your boat but in the SSV i had a few inches to play with. But in my new XLV I wouldnt be able to do it because there is no clearance.

It is a costly repair at the shop. Or you can put a bilge mat directly under the v-drive unit and it will absorb all the oil and you can just replace oil and the mat every so often. I did this for about 2 months until I had the time to pull mine out and replace the seals. Walter Machine also will send you a installation guide.

Good luck

Flux you might not be able to pull the Pan off. The gears are very close to the bottm of the pan. Unless you have a good 1 1/2" clearance under the pan you will not be able to get it off . Unless of course you remove the whole v-drive unit from the boat. Trust me I tried !!! And to remove the v-drive unit, you will need at least 4 inches of clearance twords the gas tank in order to give the v-drive enough room to slide off the shaft from the tranny.

If any of you need an Walter Geardrive manual please e-mail me and I can send it to you for free. They charged me 15 bucks for it when I ordered my seal kit.

I think I am lucky in that the V-drive is probably the most accessible part of the drive train. There is about 3-4 inches underneath, maybe more, and with the rear seat out you can prety much get around the whole unit. There are a few inches clearance near the tanks as well. I am hoping it does not come down to removing it. Thanks for the insight.

How was dealing with the seals??

Walters has good customer service. A '99 SAN I used to have was getting water in the v-drive oil and they helped me identify that it just needed a new gasket on the top lid. Check your manual for their phone number and give them a call.

Thanks Schooly. Good idea, i should call and get a gasket, maybe they can help me troubleshoot.

The only way to access the seals are if you take the whole unit out. The gaskets are accessable without taking it out, but like I said before the pan gasket is held on by 4 nuts and you must have some clearance below to get it off.
Good luck