First Nautique!!!!! Help!!!!

Well it finally happened. After dreaming about these damn boats my entire life I just went to pick up my 1996 ski Nautique 176. I got it off a Craigslist add from Cedar Rapids from a couple that were getting ready to move out west.

It came with some items that need to be addressed. The engine has not been run in 2 years, that battery is toast, and the steering cable is broken. (Only mentioning boat items, trailer will come later).

I will post a bunch of pictures from the journey from Cedar Rapids to milwaukee as soon as I get home to my pc. I will also make a diary entry.

Now here come the questions.

I plan to drain the transmission this weekend. I built a drill pump with 1/4" tubing to suck it out. I read the FAQ thread on this process but I want to make sure that Dexron/Mercon is the correct fluid for this tranny? ATF is a requirement, no synthetic, no high mileage, and no additives.

Second, I will be changing the oil obviously. I plan to go with Valoline VR1 with ZDDP. Do I have this correct?

Third, the battery that I pulled was a Dura-Start 58R-2. Would you guys suggest I go with the same battery or is there something else I should be looking at?

Last for now, I will order a steering cable ASAP. Is there a good thread with any pictures of a replacement. My searches didn't yield anything. Mainly, does a new cable come with the pusher arm? If not, how do I separate mine from the teleflex cable? I don't see any discontinuity between the two pieces.

I really really really have to thank Chris (snobsessed) for going out of his way to help a perfect stranger (me). If it weren't for his help and advice, I would not have been able to pull this off.

Cheers Chris!

Is this the same thing?

http://m.flickr.com/lightbox?id=8490136937

I know nothing about flicker, but I clicked the "view all sizes" on the upper right corner and it came up.

Sorry for the bad link. I'm on my phone right now and that was sort of a test. Sorry Pete.

Yes, that is the tube. It has a nut that attaches it to the cable housing.

I had trouble loading the picture since it came off the site. Funny, it shows up in my browser.

176's are cool.

I would look at the recent posts on lost tubing in the transmission before sticking plastic tubing in for drainage. The state of the art seems to be evolving to include copper tubing on the working end.

Here she is.

Nice! Very cool boat.

Funny, I was able to open the photo in Google Chrome (which has flash baked in), but not on my Firefox (which won't install the flash plugin at work for some reason)

So, flickr must have an element of Flash, or something else that causes problems.

I wish that was my garage. That is a heated airplane hanger. I work part time at a skydive company so the owner lets me use the hanger in the off season.

WHat does the suck up look like?

turningpoint84 wrote: WHat does the suck up look like?

Don't know, never seen a picture of you??

Thanks for all the info gents!

I think ill find a bit of copper and just add it to the hose as insurance for now until I can get a better pump.

Ill check for the battery at Walmart and ill also look into the rudder this season. For now I also have to do a lot of work on the trailer to get it ready for more frequent use. The next month and a half is going to be a great learning experience and I'm really looking forward to it.

More pics soon.

audiodude wrote: Hey Tim why not a deep cycle? Just wondering. Costco has good prices on batteries as well. Nice looking boat, best of luck!

Deep cycles are for a slow drain over a long period of time. Some might run the deep cycle as seperate for there stereo. On bigger boats, they are used for the "cabin" electrical. Also good for trolling motors.

For the short term, heavy draw of cold engine cranking, you want the starting battery.

This is one case, where you just want a plain old automotive version of the part. A Starting battery. The reason a particular size is specified, is because of the typical dimensions of the battery boxes in these boats.

A Blue top optima could serve well as a deep cycle alternative only if you really need it, which could be what art is referring too. Unless you are running a bunch of electronics like amps or led lighting, probably not required.

Frankenotter wrote: Side question.........I can't be sure what fluid the PO had in the tranny and I know it's been sitting for at least 2 years. How much of the 20w can mix with Dexron/Mercon before it causes a problem?

It won't. ATF is pretty much a 10 to 20 weight oil with lots of detergents.

Suck as much as you can. Run the trans for an hour or so and change the fluid again.