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I noticed an exhaust leak in my 2008 Yamaha F4 and pinpointed the source yesterday: part of the gasket flange is missing from the upper casing:
Not sure how that chunk got broken off--the motor was fine at the beginning of the season and it's not like it got dropped or manhandled at any point. Corrosion?
Anyway, you think it's worth trying to repair that with JB Weld? Or some other solution.
Looks like some pitting around the general area. Maybe a bad original casting that finally gave way?
Do you know if it was running hot? Does seawater mix with the exhaust in that area? Now that I’m at a dock...I freshwater rinse after every use, and use salt away every other use. I’ve done it for 3 years now and amazed at what a difference the lower unit looks like at end of season.
I wouldn’t JB weld, you could try but not sure if it would form well in that cavity (not knowing what original looks like). I’d spend the $$ on the new part and install it yourself.
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Rick
1984 CD22
Excuse auto-correct typos courtesy of iOS...or simply lazy typing
I do wonder if there was some sort of original defect in the manufacturing. Why would a chunk of cast aluminum just suddenly come off like that without any kind of impact?
I decided the give the JB Weld a shot--if that doesn't work I'll have to replace the whole upper casing. Applied it yesterday, this morning it looks good but we'll see how it holds up over time. I cleaned the area as best I could before applying, if it bonds to the aluminum there it should be good. JBW is pretty tough stuff.
I don't believe it was running hot--I rebuild the water pump every year and keep a close eye on it. Yes, it's cooled by seawater but there isn't any water in that particular area.
The first few seasons I tried to keep the lower unit out of the water when not in use and flush it as often as possible, but I'm on a mooring and it just got to be a huge PITA to try and do all that. I run fresh water through it a few times a season and pull it out once a month or so to clean off any marine growth, it seems to be doing fine. Starts easy with one or two pulls and runs great.
But I'm aiming to switch to electric, maybe even as soon as next season. Always hated the sound and stink of outboards, although these newer four-strokes (mine's a 2008) are tolerable.
