1992 ski nautique transmission

Damper plate would only be a possible issue if it didn't turn in both forward and reverse.

I had slipping in reverse, followed by slipping in forward in my '96.  I pulled it and tore it part way apart.  There is a rotating bell housing with a ring gear that turned in the housing. Long story short, I learned that the gear was press fit and was not supposed to turn inside the housing so it was shot.  I didn't have all the tools to take it completely apart (presses, etc.), the parts (including new clutch plates since I had gone into it), was somewhere in the $600-700 (or more) range, and I had no idea whether I could get it back together again correctly (especially without presses).  It wasn't worth it to try, have no warranty, and possibly screw it up, so I opted for the 80A from SKIDIM.  A few things about the SKIDIM 80A.  It comes as a 'kit' with the tranny, a new damper plate, and a 12" tranny cooler and long hoses!!  The tranny housing in the back is higher than the 40A (looks like the housing is also used for V-trannies) and I was afraid it might not fit where I could get my floor board back down.  But it did fit fine (you have the same hull as my '96).  Even though the housing is aluminum, the sucker is heavy; you need two people to put it back in (my back is still feeling it years later).  I was so pleased with how it operated as well as that 12" cooler, when I got my '97 project boat, one of the first things I did (original tranny) was to put a new 12" cooler in (the 12" is around $200 if you buy it separately, so the kit is a little more reasonable since you get the cooler and the damper plate).  My damper plate had probably 1300hrs on it, but other than a little rust, was perfectly fine (although of course I replaced it with the included new plate).

Also on costs, it would have been 1200-1400 to have mine repaired/rebuilt by someone else, and a rebuilt with maybe a 30 day warranty just wasn't worth it.  I'm glad I did it.  Of course, I hope my tranny in the '97 holds up a long time (hence the 12" cooler and I now have an electric pump that empties the fluid in about a minute so I"m now changing the tranny fluid every 50 hours with the engine oil change--easier than the oil change).  If/when the current tranny goes, I'll most probably opt for a new 80A.