The water that drips out around midsection is from a small hole next to oil drain ? if so, it's a drain hole, is it diam restricted ? One issue that occurs to me for the heat alarm triggering prematurely if sensor is not shot, could be that internal OB water paths are so darn salt restricted that heat temp sensors senses a higher water temp passing by and triggers itself.
How well was/is that 11 year oldie OB correctly flushed with fresh water right after use on salt water ? Never flushed, barrel, muffs flush ? Bought new, second hand ?
Happy Boating