Bt Doctur

any bilge pump should be hooked to its own hose and thru hull fitting well above the water line

You should keep the axels level so what is the height of level to your receiver

dirty/corroded ground cable battery main or system main grounds

Some do, and by the time you need brakes you need all the internals too

Forget the SS props, they will cause a lot more damage than just a alum blade, call it cheap insurance

Its been five years since the drive had been pulled and inspected.. Your a bit overdue for service, could be rusted U joints

"Marine Engineer with no outside experiance making life MISERABLE Again ,how much more could it cost the company to install hatches and release pins instead of trying to save a few cents for the corporation "in a hurry" like with a fire, use a fire ax or screw 2 handles to the hatch Once you do get it open ,install a hatch plate and release pins

My guess is either a defect in manufacturing (heat treating) or trying to horse the boat onto the bunks

stupid CHEAP , Penny Pinching manufacturer,

There is no place for plastic below the water line, a sign of a cheap boat

seal is rubber, bushing it brass and steering pin is steel . The drives with the grease fitting took a lot of years before they leaked provided you kept the area greased yearly. Since the fitting has been eliminated to save a few cents this is the result. The fitting can be added to Alpha1, Alpha1 GEN II, and Bravo drives with no dis-assembly. I had a video on it but photobucket lost that and I`m looking for the flashdrive tpo repost is. If you can use a drill, tap, and small tools you can install it.

And add the missing grease fitting while you there

Heck, I`ll come there to work for half that much money . Talk about ripping people off.

It factory installed to drain the oil either by gravity or to install a pump on it .dipdstick goes to the bottom of the pan and you can pump out from the dipstick by threading on the pump or connecting a hose and clamp it to the tube.