Tranny noise 10w40 motor oil?

I just received an email from Indmar and they said that using 10w40 motor oil in the transmission will make it quieter when engaging the gear because the oil is thicker.

EVER HEARD OF THIS AND DO YOU DO IT?

hello anyone hear have a boat?

I would think they are talking about the v-drive and not the trans. Ive heard you can put 90w gear oil in the v-drive!! I would like to know for sure though! I wouldnt put motor oil where your suppose to have trans fluid!

yah, sounds a little risky to me, but if the manufacture says it's alright, then it must be. you might want to double check that you are both talking about the same thing before doing anyting drastic. on another subject, have you heard of using 0W40 in the motor? Mercedes, Porsche and BMW are using it now....

Where do you put oil for the vdrive, I thought there are only 2 places to do oil changes. the motor and the transmission. The dealer said put 10w40 penzoil in the tranny.
Md

Indmar doesn't even make the transmission.....I'd stick only with the ATF.....how much does a new transmission cost?

Do you have a V-drive or an in-line transmission? If it is a V-drive, rattling of the transmission at idle is normal. The v-drive is made with straight-cut gears and the lash between the teeth of the gears when the transmission is not under load is what you are hearing. It probably sounds like someone threw a handful of marbles in the transmission ... that's how they sound. About a year ago, we changed the type of oil that we put in the transmission from ATF to 15W40 motor oil ... just like we recommend for the engine. The thicker oil helps to "dampen" or quiet the sound of the gears clashing against each other. You might want to try that with yours. If you have an in-line transmission making that noise, it most likely could be a drive plate issue. The transmissions themselves do not make that kind of noise ... and still continue to operate. They have different kind of gears than the v-drive.

> Larry Engelbert
> Indmar Service


This was an email from indmar them selves

X-stars don't have a separate V-drive unit like a SAN or Wakesetter does (someone correct me if I'm wrong but I'm 99% certain). Find out what the dealer is using for service and what the factory is shipping in the new boats. I think the trans is still the same unit. If the dealer and factory are putting motor oil in the trans, then give it a try. I'd be careful since the e-mail is really not clear. It mentions a V-drive making noise and then talks about the transmission. If he knew that your boat was an X-star, he should have known that the v-drive and trans are the same unit.

Most importantly, the v-drive doesn't move when the transmission is not in gear so it shouldn't make any noise at idle in neutral. And it should NEVER sound like a bunch of marbles.

My 99 X-star always had this noise with the engine in gear either forward or reverse. It goes away when you accelerate. It did sound like marbles or rocks in the tranny. I never did like the sound of it but I guess it could be normal.

Hey John,
Was your xstar noise really loud or could you barely hear it. The noise does go away once you give a bit of gas. Well the dealer has my tranny off and they said the driveplate needs to be changed. Hopefully that will solve the problem. Also John did you get your boat new and did it make noise from the beginning.

That sounds like more than an oil change! Gids x-star is a direct drive. 97 i think. why do you think that Natiques are smooth going into gear. Most of them anyway.

Dont get me wrong it goes into gear super smooth its only if i keep the shifter in between idle and netruel that it makes rattle sounds once i give a bit of gas its completely quiet. Its also completely quiet in netrual. I can also avoid any rattle buy shifting it into gear faster which is what i usually do... Anyway the dealer has the tranny off and is replacing the drive plate and having the tranny opened to see if all is ok. Then i will add a thicker oil and im sure it will all go away.

I am too lazy to read all the post,so this may have been covered. but wouldn't you wanna ask borgwarner or whoever is making that trans before asking indmar???

Does anyone know if the 99 Mastercraft maristar 330ltr is the same motor and tranny as the 99 xstar 330ltr. Because my friend has the maristar and his motor looks just like mine and his doesnt make any rattle noises.
Thanks guys.
Marco

Dude indmar motors is a huge company i think they know what there talking about....no? Also my Honda civic tranny takes motor oil.

Marco, that noise that you get between forward and neutral is the gears grinding together, DONT DO THAT, YOU'LL FRY YOUR TRANNY! make it one smooth, quick motion without stopping in the middle! EEK!

I'm no transmission expert, but my understanding is that just like an automotive transmission, a boat transmission works on hydraulic pressure, not gear meshing (like an I/O) so there should be no grinding going in our out of gear. Going from forward to reverse and vice versa should also be relatively silent. Comments from someone who knows this in more detail??

Does anyone know if the 99 Mastercraft maristar 330ltr is the same motor and tranny as the 99 xstar 330ltr. Because my friend has the maristar and his motor looks just like mine and his doesnt make any rattle noises.
Thanks guys.