What type oil for sterndrive units?

Question

Pre-400, stringer, electric shift, OMC outdrive. Drained it to replace some things. What type of oil should I use to fill the upper and lower unit? Manual just says OMC type "C" oil. Any one know what type I should use. Thanks.

Answer 1

No matter what anyone says, go to a local West Marine, Boaters World or local equivalent and get just that, Type C lower unit oil. It's designed to correctly work with the electrical shifting systems. Regular gear oil is 80w-90 or 75w-80, any of these oils with a motor oil type of classification are for non-electric shift engines and won't help the life of yours.

Answer 2

There is a specific oil for the lower part tell your marine store its for a electric shift omc stringer mount drive. The upper uses standard 90weight gear lube

Answer 3

if what your reffering to is the lower unit or gear case you want to use gear lube, the tilt and trim you can actually use

transmission fluid it is hydraulic fluid

Answer 4

Go to your local Evinrude/Johnson dealer and get the right stuff from them.  I used to sell this stuff and I know it makes a huge difference to those fussy electric shifters!  Don't bother with the cheap stuff unless you want to see how hard it is to find a replacement for your outdrive.  Change it anually at least, more often if it's letting water in and get the seals fixed!  

FYI, Bombardier now owns Evinrude/Johnson, and what used to be called OMC no longer exists.