First post here. The lower unit on my 08 36hp pro drive is making some noise when the clutch is engaged.Several posts here say the lower units on these can be noisy and I was wondering if you all could tell me if this is normal. Theres no excessive vibration, no play at the prop, no excessive heat buildup and no metal in the oil, although it was milky when I changed it. The prop shaft, bearing and bushing are new, they were changed out before I bought it.

Only the first 50 seconds are of the engine running, the rest is the inside of my pocket, lol.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... JG0K0887gk

Sounds like the gear mesh to me. Should go away with a few more rpms. Mines been doing that for as long as I've had the motor. 50 hours or more.

Mine makes weird noises too with the clutch engaged. Thing is though if you had it fixed all they would do is replace the whole lower unit, there is no repairing anything, so it might as well be broken good. As long as it still goes run the hell out of it. I started freaking out when I first noticed all the strange noises my pd makes. Just run it till something actually breaks, then replace it.

Also if the oil is just slightly milky it's from the gears aerating it as they turn. If its chocolate milk then a seal is bad.