Noisy 23kGF

[Kokomo]

Hi all,
Trying to figure out what’s going on with my Vetus 23 on my 1998 Albin 28. Aside from the fact that it’s under powered for the boat it has always worked. I tested it before the boat was launched and it sounded normal. I put it in the water and when I try to push off the dock it was twice as loud as it should be. I confirmed that the prop is turning but something is clearly not right. I can’t find much information on line but depending on who you ask you can check and add gear oil in the lower unit. I’m thinking maybe it’s dry but don’t know how or if I can take the motor off while in the water. Has anyone had this happen before? I don’t want to use it and make it worse. If I can check and/or add gear oil that would be my next step in troubleshooting. Thanks,

[Nancy]

I would call Vetus and talk to Dave Barrett.

The bow thruster on our 28TE worked fine when we hauled the boat in the fall of 2020. At 2021 launch, it made a horrible grinding noise. Turned out the gear was shot -- maybe it had frozen over the winter -- and we replaced the entire unit. The original was the same model you have, and the replacement was BOW4512D -- a very nice upgrade.