Cover missing over flywheel, is this normal??

[TechBeer]

I have a 2006 SV211. In 2020 I was having transmission problems and ultimately had to replace it at the dealer ($$$). Everything has been OK for a couple of seasons, but about a week ago I was doing routine maintenance with the boat in the garage, and dropped a tool in the bottom of the bilge (we've all done that). While retrieving it I happened to shine a flashlight towards the front of the boat between the engine and transmission and notice that I could clearly see the flywheel and ring gear. It looked like there where holes to mount a cover but the cover was not fitted. My immediate conclusion was that the bozo that replaced the transmission forgot to put the cover back on.

But when I called the dealer they said that some mid-2000 year Nautiques did not have this cover fitted. Is that right?? Seems like if significant water got into the bilge it would slosh into the "bellhousing" or whatever the marine equivalent is. That can't be good. The flywheel and ring gear had significant surface rust.

Thoughts?

[ScooterMcgavin]

Pics would help if you can post a couple

[core-rider]

I don't know about their claim of some missing the cover from the factory, but it doesn't really matter. Even with the cover water could still make it in there as it isn't water tight. Mainly just there to keep objects from contacting the rotating assembly. That is the only possible issue you could have is something making contact with the flexplate/flywheel while the engine is running. Not likely to happen, but is a slight possibility. You've gone at least 2 years without even noticing it missing so you should be okay.

[TechBeer]

Thanks Jason, that gives me some comfort. Like I said I've had zero problems, but as a car guy it seemed kind of weird. Crap coming off the road would be a huge issue. But that area of the bilge is generally pretty clean....

[bturner]

I personally would not be OK with this, but that's me. Don't know if the statement that was made about boats shipping without them was true or not but the engineers that designed the powertrain system put a cover there for a reason and not for the sport of it. If it was not needed don't you think it would have been deleted on all powertrain systems going forward? If anything if this did happen they had a QC problem. How else could you explain shipping a product without all the parts assembled on the system?

Having worked in the automotive sector for a good portion of my career I can assure you that if the opportunity comes up to save even a nickel by reducing the number of parts or eliminating a part, believe me it's taken. The cheapest cover I could find on Summit is $9 with most going for over $25. Believe me if this part was not required it would be deleted from all powertrain packages. That it was left off for whatever reason doesn't matter, it should be there. If I saw that cover missing when the boat was new believe me the dealer would be installing one.

I'm more inclined to go with your first inclination that it was left off for whatever reason by the tech. To settle this you could always call/write PCM and get their thoughts. Pretty sure I know what they'll say and it won't be it's an optional or extra part that you don't need.

So all this said, I would tend to agree with Core that the chances of something flying in there causing a problem are greatly reduced compared to an automotive application. Then again it's function in a marine environment as a splash shield IMO is significant. While it may not be a critical component it is there for a reason.

[TechBeer]

Bturner, I tend to agree. Having that open like that just doesn't seem right. Plus there are mounting holes with paint scrapped off like there was a cover there at some point. Access in this area is horrible on my boat. Any idea if this cover can be fitted without lifting the engine/transmission? I would certainly do it myself if it wasn't too horrible. Part cost is nothing but labor could be a lot.

[jhoffy22]

Quote removed by Admin for not following the Guidelines for Quoting Previous Posts in a Thread.

I can confirm that some boats did not ship with these covers. I thought it was strange too. You can fab one up relatively easily.

[MN Ryan]

Now I'm curious if mine has one.

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[TechBeer]

Ryan, I would definitely be curious if your SV211 came with the cover. It's pretty hard to access but with the starboard partitions out you can just shine a flashlight towards the bow of the boat and clearly see the flywheel/ring gear at the bottom of the bellhousing. Just seems odd to me. I found the parts in the PCM 06 part guide, picture attached. In my case the starter is at the bottom so I "think" 20A would be the one that fits. Parts would be as follows:

• Transmission dust cover – R019008A (starter on bottom)
• Nut – RS1079
• Bolt – RS0256

If I had a template I could get one laser cut like what JHoffy suggests. But if I could find the PCM part it would not be very expensive. Still pondering......

[bturner]

That certainly looks like it would be a 2 person job with plenty of fiberglass cuts, scratches and sore muscles from all the contortions that will be involved trying to maneuver that plate in place then getting the fasteners installed. Might also require disconnecting the coupler, loosening the motor mounts and seeing you can somehow get something like a jack on the front of the motor to angle the motor up to get better access to the bell housing. Anyway you look at it I don't see any joy in this job.