G23 Transmission Noise Under Load (Normal or Not?)

[BasaltRMK]

ffmedic74 - definitely not encouraging. Building off Jbertram1245 's comments - how did the dealer end up definitely diagnosing it and identifying it as a warranty issue? That's my main concern - the inability (so far) of my dealer, who is a 12-hour roundtrip drive away, to diagnose the problem and get it elevated to Nautique. I took a video yesterday that I'll post as soon as I figure out how - it clear shows (actually it's the audio that counts) the issue.

Thanks,

- bob

[Jbertram1245]

BasaltRMK I uploaded my video to google drive and changed the link so anyone can view it. I wasn't able to upload the file directly to the forum. I would be interested to hear what yours sounds like as well.
-Jack

[BasaltRMK]

Jbertram1245 - adding the link, let me know if this works. As noted in the video description:
- Boat is unballasted
- First 1/2 of the video is accelerating slowly. The 'wah-wah-wah' resonance sound is the low pitched noise, should be fairly evident.
- Second 1/2 is dropping the throttle, no resonance sound.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lEZhixZTseQ

- bob

[BasaltRMK]

ffmedic74 - does this sound like the issue you had, which resulted in a v-drive replacement?

NautiqueJeff - would love any additional input if you have it.

Thanks all!

- bob

[Scooter G]

Interesting, definitely that resonance that jpwhit was describing. It's kind of a once you hear it you can't unhear it type of thing. Not sure that is a going from annoying to worse situation, time will tell. But if there are 2 boats doing that, there are probably 200+ more. I wonder if anything is hitting across other threads with different boat brands? I have never had to mess with any boat alignment issues, but I do know with auto drivelines, balance, and rearends, 1 degree off can be a game changer at 7500 rpm's, noise, vibration, and things going south.

[ffmedic74]

Click link to video of what my v drive noise was doing that ended up being replaced under warranty.

https://youtube.com/shorts/mTC5NOLB6zM?feature=share3

[jpwhit]

If it is just a resonance vibration, as opposed to something wrong mechanically, it's not unexpected that the sound would only happen sometime and under certain conditions. Especially moderate vs hard accelerations. That's because putting different loads on the hull / structure change the natural frequency of the structure.

By all means get it checked out by your dealer. I certainly would as well if the boat is under warranty. But I suspect if they conclude it's a resonance vibration they may say it an expected and acceptable mode of operations (aka it's "normal").

[BasaltRMK]

ffmedic74 - thanks for sharing the video. Definitely different than my issue. Not sure if that's good news or bad news for me (and Jbertram1245 )

Scooter G - yup, that's the crux of my issue; I don't know if it's just annoying or a sign of something bad. The fact that it only does it based on whether I accelerate slowly versus quickly has got me stumped. Good suggestion though, I'll do some looking on other brand forums as well.

Thanks,

- bob

[BasaltRMK]

jpwhit - good information once again, especially regarding the intermittent nature of the sound. Makes me curious, though - why does this appear to be such a rare issue?

Am sending the video link to the dealer, curious if I'll get good input or a shoulder shrug.

[Jbertram1245]

ffmedic74 thank you for sharing. I agree with everyone else, the sound we are experiencing is very different. I’ve expressed concerns with the dealer again, and shared the video and advice from others. Will be interesting to see if their stance has changed since they last looked at the boat.

BasaltRMK I will take a similar video to yours this weekend for comparison. It seems as if ours is making that noise throughout the power band regardless of amount of throttle. But I will definitely try to replicate your video this weekend for comparison.

If this is indeed normal operation sound I might explore adhesive sound dampening options. I’ve used a product on cars that may help to eliminate that annoying sound. This issue is driving my slightly crazy, do not ever recall the transmission making that much noise when the boat was new. Would appreciate any input from other g owners regarding this issue.
thanks again everyone

[bturner]

Past what's being discussed..... how about alignment and condition of the strut bearing? Completely different boat but I've had similar noise/vibrations disappear after doing an alignment. The harmonic theory makes complete sense to me and I've personally witnessed similar noises before in just about everything mechanical that I've owned to one degree or another but it would be interesting to see what the alignment looks like and if dialing it in would make any difference. It doesn't take much to make a difference.

[jpwhit]

Click link to video of what my v drive noise was doing that ended up being replaced under warranty.

https://youtube.com/shorts/mTC5NOLB6zM?feature=share3

You're v-drive had both a bearing whine and it sound like there is too much backlash in some of the gears. This is unquestionably an internal mechanical issue with the v-drive.

[jpwhit]

Past what's being discussed..... how about alignment and condition of the strut bearing? Completely different boat but I've had similar noise/vibrations disappear after doing an alignment. The harmonic theory makes complete sense to me and I've personally witnessed similar noises before in just about everything mechanical that I've owned to one degree or another but it would be interesting to see what the alignment looks like and if dialing it in would make any difference. It doesn't take much to make a difference.

That's actually a good point that I hadn't considered. And it's something the dealer can easily check. If the alignment were off, that could certainly contribute to having a resonance vibration occur because the side stress of the shaft against the shaft gland could both be causing extra vibration and coupling the natural vibration of engine and drive to the hull.

[mpost]

Jbertram1245 - adding the link, let me know if this works. As noted in the video description:
- Boat is unballasted
- First 1/2 of the video is accelerating slowly. The 'wah-wah-wah' resonance sound is the low pitched noise, should be fairly evident.
- Second 1/2 is dropping the throttle, no resonance sound.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lEZhixZTseQ

- bob

The first 1/2 of your video sounds like you are lower RPMs than the second half. It sounds like a sweet spot you get to with the wa wa sound. Would be interesting to accelerate quickly to the same engine RPM the second time. Hammer down might be just getting past the harmonic spot quickly so it doesnt get going.

[Jbertram1245]

bturner That's a good point. I found an article from the manual regarding shaft alignment. Trying to decide if this is something I can check while the boat is on the lift. Does anyone have experience verifying shaft alignment? Or am I better off just taking it to the dealer?