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Author Topic:   SEI lower units
dscew posted 09-28-2010 08:16 AM ET (US)   Profile for dscew  
I saw mention of SEI's gearcases in another thread; does anyone here have experience with the SEI lower units and gearcases? I have a 32 year old Mercruiser in my non-Whaler cruiser and am doing a little forward thinking about replacing the entire outdrive. SEI's price is about $1,300 for the entire unit, a good deal if its a good drive. They use some imported parts, but I'll bet Mercury does, too.
AZdave posted 09-29-2010 01:20 AM ET (US)     Profile for AZdave  Send Email to AZdave     
I've had an SEI lower unit on a Mercury 135 for about six months. No issues so far and, I could not find anything negative on line. The manufacturer specifies that you do a break in period at reduced speed, and change the lube before regular operation. That seems like good advice for long term reliability, but we got a bit impatient putting around the lake. Got a nice largemouth though. Dave
Tohsgib posted 09-29-2010 09:58 AM ET (US)     Profile for Tohsgib  Send Email to Tohsgib     
I know a bunch who own these and they have had NO problems with them. They are also made locally. I believe they carry a 3 year warranty which you would not get even from Merc, much less 1/3 the price. Do they make a replacement for pre-gen1 mercs?
dscew posted 09-29-2010 10:17 AM ET (US)     Profile for dscew    
The drive on my Cruisers Inc is a "pre-Alpha," 1978 model year. SEI tells me the SE106 will bolt right up. I'm tempted, even though I'm not having any issues yet. 32 summers under water with lots of electricity around, it would be cheap insurance. I'm going to talk to my mechanic when I yank her outta the lake in a few weeks.
10000 Lakes posted 10-03-2010 02:19 AM ET (US)     Profile for 10000 Lakes    
According to a very good friend of mine who owns a local shop in the business of drives as a forte, they have had many returns on these drives from SEI. According to him,the pinions are not being set up properly and it is a big hassle for the owner to keep bringing in to send back for warranty work over and over again.

The warranty keep in mind does not cover the mechanics labor to remove the drive and re-install it, let alone the shipping hassles and time lost.

Personally I would stay away since James is in the business and his word is worth more than the isolated single user.

brisboats posted 10-03-2010 11:40 AM ET (US)     Profile for brisboats  Send Email to brisboats     
We just pulled one from a customer's boat. The drive was still functional but most of the finish was gone and drive was corroding severely. Customer elected to go back to OEM this time. Boat is mostly trailer kept so I do not think this is a stray current issue. I think the jury is still out on these drives.

Be careful as pre alpha drives had a preload pin on the driveshaft as did the crossover drives, 1984 MR's that used the later alpha case. Last time I looked SEI sold a one size fits all lower. The earlier uppers from mercruiser also has a shorter input shaft than the later alpha one generation ones. Not a big deal to change out the input shaft but if you do not the upper gear set can be improperly loaded.

As for hearsay comments, some folks will preach to children about the dangers of smoking while puffing on a marlboro.

Brian

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