New dumb boat owner

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dumbdumb

Cadet
Joined
May 10, 2010
Messages
7
Here is my story,one you've probably heard several times....i am a new boat owner 2008 monterey 180fs with a 4.3l 190 h mercruiser.....the first year winterization was included with original purchase of my boat,,,,then last year my wife lost her job and i had no cash for winterization so i thought i'd do it myself...WRONG...I thought the weather was great this winter so nothing should have been wrong...i fired her up for the first time and she running fine...noticed a little excess smoke but thats it....upon further investagation i noticed both exhaust manifolds have huge cracks....talked to my local merc dealer and he told me it could be a lot worse...preformed another test ...he told me to run it for 10 minutes or so then check dipstick for "milky"oil....i ran it for 10 minutes and was relieved that no milky oil was noticed....fiqured i'd run it a little longer and by the 13th minute milky oil was rising up the dipstick....he wants 8500 to replace the motor...but talking to my neighbour...he is a mechanic...he thinks we can do it ourselves.....Please give me any advice, suggestions,links,or video on how or what my further damage may be?
also links to service and repair manuals
Thanks
Mike
 
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bigdaddypt

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Aug 10, 2009
Messages
233
Re: New dumb boat owner

Hey Dumbdumb,

Welcome...sorry it's under those conditions. There are links in the "Adults Only" section of this forum that have manuals for download.

Good luck with the repair. Hope you and your neigbor can do it yourself. Tell us how you winterized the boat yourself? You should be able to do it, it's not that difficult.
 
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dumbdumb

Cadet
Joined
May 10, 2010
Messages
7
Re: New dumb boat owner

thanks bigdaddypt for the info....if i would of search for this information before the winter i wouldn't be in this boat.....sorry for the pun....lol
 
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bigdaddypt

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Aug 10, 2009
Messages
233
Re: New dumb boat owner

we all make mistakes...2 springs ago I was replacing my exhaust manifolds becuase I didn't winterize it in time.
 
Silvertip

Silvertip

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Sep 22, 2003
Messages
28,762
Re: New dumb boat owner

Don't feel alone. There are new car owners, truck owners, snowmobile owners, chain saw owners and list goes on where simple tasks are ignored or done incorrectly only to cost the owner a bundle. The sad part is that the owner generally doesn't fess up to what caused the issue. The only response typically is that "this (insert product here) is a POS". When something isn't right, it rarely works in your favor to delay repairing the problem. It almost always ends up costing much more down the road. As mechanics often say, "pay me now or pay me a lot more later". You learned a hard lesson. Do not start this repair without the proper set of service manuals specific to your power plant. Do so without a proper manual will guarantee it will cost you even more money.
 
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dumbdumb

Cadet
Joined
May 10, 2010
Messages
7
Re: New dumb boat owner

Thanks for the reassurance silvertip....I'm willing to pay for the service/repairs manuals if you know where to get them?
 
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PS94

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Aug 1, 2009
Messages
293
Re: New dumb boat owner

ADULTS ONLY section have sweet downloads, I rebuilt my lower leg using this. I'd check everything, the leg might have cracked, block, heads, list goes on and on...Sell it to me.

But, if your neighbour is a Mechanic, and a decent one, getting the service manuals, and carefully pulling her down, you can find the damage, and repair/replace as needed...I'm not 100% certian, but the 4.3 looks identical to the one in my 2001 Sonoma ZR2 I had. There could be difference though, I'd look deeply into it, or consult a machine shop, for the differences between the marine/industrial blocks and automotive....
 
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bigdaddypt

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Aug 10, 2009
Messages
233
Re: New dumb boat owner

PS94 said:
ADULTS ONLY section have sweet downloads, I rebuilt my lower leg using this. I'd check everything, the leg might have cracked, block, heads, list goes on and on...Sell it to me.

But, if your neighbour is a Mechanic, and a decent one, getting the service manuals, and carefully pulling her down, you can find the damage, and repair/replace as needed...I'm not 100% certian, but the 4.3 looks identical to the one in my 2001 Sonoma ZR2 I had. There could be difference though, I'd look deeply into it, or consult a machine shop, for the differences between the marine/industrial blocks and automotive....
Click to expand...

I could be mistaken but the only difference I believe is the marine blocks have brass freeze plugs, which you can easily swap out.
 
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PS94

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Aug 1, 2009
Messages
293
Re: New dumb boat owner

bigdaddypt said:
I could be mistaken but the only difference I believe is the marine blocks have brass freeze plugs, which you can easily swap out.
Click to expand...

If that's the case, the OP could find a low mile motor in a scrap yard, and be on the water (if nothing else got frozen) in a few days of work, and quite a bit of savings...
 
abarron

abarron

Petty Officer 3rd Class
Joined
May 9, 2010
Messages
80
Re: New dumb boat owner

I allway's heard that a marine engine is differnt from a auto engine.
 
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89mercruiser

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
May 30, 2010
Messages
43
Re: New dumb boat owner

abarron said:
I allway's heard that a marine engine is differnt from a auto engine.
Click to expand...

You are correct a marine engine is different. here's a quote straight from the FAQ section from Mercury Marine.

Can I use an automotive longblock or shortblock to replace my MerCruiser engine?

No, an automotive block cannot be used for several important reasons. The MerCruiser ECMs (electronic control modules) are specifically calibrated to each of our engine models. It would not be possible to determine the effect on the performance or compatibility with an automotive engine. In addition, automotive engines are not equipped to endure the high rpm duty cycles and harsh environment that marine engines see. Further, some of our engine components are unique to marine engines, such as the welch plugs, camshafts, cylinder heads, head gaskets and pistons.
Click to expand...
 
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PS94

Petty Officer 1st Class
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Messages
293
Re: New dumb boat owner

Hmm, leads me to believe they have forged Cranks in them, and obviously a marine cam. I really can't see GM re-tooling their casting equipment just to make a marine block....I'd assume the 4.3 was chosen as it was ALREADY in production...

And - As for Merc saying No! No! Don't use automotive, they're probably, at least a little bit, protecting their bottom line....As if you buy their parts, rather than GM's, they get the % mark-up...
My "quicksilver" spark plugs are just stainless steel AC delco...
 
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rodbolt

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Sep 1, 2003
Messages
20,066
Re: New dumb boat owner

4.3 marine long blocks(new) are cheap.
have your original intake manifold magnafluxed to check for cracks.
scrap your manifolds and risers.
 
cr2k

cr2k

Captain
Joined
Mar 19, 2009
Messages
3,730
Re: New dumb boat owner

You are right. The cam is different, the circulation pump (water pump on car) had bi-directional SS impeller. Brass core plugs, SS head gaskets, higher compression. It has been said on here that an engine out of an S-10 or 1/2 ton PU will make a suitable replacement, having a beefer cam.


Basically it is not smogged so has a little higher cam profile.
Designed to be run at higher RPMs for longer periods of time.
 
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security6

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jul 21, 2008
Messages
191
Re: New dumb boat owner

Lots of people here recommend using rapido marine out of Florida for a rebuilt long block. You might check them out. Buying a rebuilt engine and installing it yourself will definitely be cheaper than your mechanic's price.
 
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dumbdumb

Cadet
Joined
May 10, 2010
Messages
7
Re: New dumb boat owner

Thanks to all that have replied to my stupidness....lol....My next question is where can i buy parts for my 4.3 mercruiser(manifolds,block,gaskets,etc,etc.)I'm located in Maple Ridge,B.C.,Canada(about 45 mins. from Vancouver)I found lots on the internet but shipping costs go threw the roof!!!!

Thanks for your help!!!!

Mike
 
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sethjon

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jun 8, 2010
Messages
692
Re: New dumb boat owner

If your neighbor is a professional mechanic then its ok. Make sure that he uses a manual because many parts that can be replaced with auto parts need to be done with only marine parts. The manual will also give him any insight on some things such as tolerances or torque necessary in certin areas. $8500 is outrageous. The dealer should cut you abreak since you bought it there.
 
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