Reply To: zf 220A Over dipstick level when filled with recommended amount

[Bill Desmarais]

This past weekend I changed the fluids in my 6BTA 370 and ZF63A gear.
15w-40w T4 Rotella in both the engine and the gear.

I use a Jabsco Water Puppy for a pump.

To drain the gear, a short piece of 3/8’s fuel line straight down the tube @ the base of the filter housing will go to the bottom of the gear. IMO most ALL the fluid is pumped out of the gear this way.

I replaced the gear oil with 3.90 qts….yup I kept track of the exact amount back in the gear.

Fired the engine up…shifted in and out of gear a few times @ the dock with the boat tied up and shut it down. Checked the level with the plastic screw in dipstick..plenty of oil.

A week later I rechecked the level. Obviously all the oil had a chance to drain back from the gear oil cooler and lines.

With the dipstick “resting on the threads” the level is a “whisker” below the FULL mark.

To finish the project I will suck out some oil from the dipstick opening with a syringe and tube and get the level smack in the middle of the L/H marks on the dipstick. I’ll keep track of how much oil is sucked out.

My guess on fluid needed after draining the way I do with the pump….maybe 3.25 qts. next fluid change.

Just my 2 cents.

btw, I owned a pr. of ZF 220A gears. I recall a 36 mm socket for the filter screen plug and a 22mm socket for the bottom drain plugs…Yes ? No ?? Been a few years.