looking at used boats notice oil under engines

We are looking to buy a bigger boat this year. Last year we bought a very cheap boat just to make sure we liked being on the lake. We loved it. This year we have been looking to buy a bigger boat. Several of the boats we have looked at are very nice and low hours but when we ask for pictures of the engine there is oil under them. Is this normal I asked one boat owner and he said yes from changing the oil. But there is one we are driving 3 hours to see on Saturday and not sure because of the oil. Any comments on how to check the engine for not having a oil leak? The owner said the o ring on the dipstick was replaced because it was leaking there. I have enclosed the photo of the one we are looking at. Any advice will be appreciated. Thank you!!!!!

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

two words
marine survey


a dirty bilge is an indication of a lazy owner, poor maintenance, engine problems, or all of the above.....

SOME people do change their oil by draining it into the bilge and out of the transom drain BUT there are far better ways. One would be a valve and hose on the pan that can reach out of the transom drain and better yet is pumping it out of the dipstick tube.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

You may get a few drips of oil, but not any appreciable amount, like what seems to be shown in the picture. You can check the dipstick level out of curiosity, but that is not conslusive. The troublesome part is that the oil is still there in the picture. so, you do not know if the leak is still present or the owner is lazy about cleaning up the remains.

What is the next boat on your list? Maybe that one would be better to spend your time on. The seller of the first boat, could let you know when he has the oil all cleaned up and is sure there is no longer an issue.

FWIW - I bought my first boat with a known oil leak showing. The owner already had it dianosed and scheduled in the shop for a new oil pan. I was OK with that, . . . and waited until the boat was repaired and ready for the sea trial and survey.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

I always manage to spill some when removing the oil filter, have to go in later and soak it all up. I suppose if I missed some it could collect somewhere in the middle under the engine.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

Maclin said:

I always manage to spill some when removing the oil filter, have to go in later and soak it all up. I suppose if I missed some it could collect somewhere in the middle under the engine.

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Such a deal I have for you.... next time you get an empty antifreeze jug slice it down the side and across the top so that you keep 2" of the top of the jug complete and then one full side with a 1/2" lip ... what you end up with is a great drain pan for changing your filter with enough room to hold the oil that drips in the top end when turned up... then unscrew the lid over your bucket or jug that the used oil goes in.... Works GREAT

In the image below, cut the red line..... continue across the bottom and up the other side same as the first side.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

smokeonthewater said:

Such a deal I have for you.... next time you get an empty antifreeze jug slice it down the side and across the top so that you keep 2" of the top of the jug complete and then one full side with a 1/2" lip ... what you end up with is a great drain pan for changing your filter with enough room to hold the oil that drips in the top end when turned up... then unscrew the lid over your bucket or jug that the used oil goes in.... Works GREAT

In the image below, cut the red line..... continue across the bottom and up the other side same as the first side.

View attachment 180530

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Excellent suggestion! Especially for the new style upside down oil filters.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

smokeonthewater said:

two words
marine survey


a dirty bilge is an indication of a lazy owner, poor maintenance, engine problems, or all of the above.....

Click to expand...

Christi, You definitely want to have any boat you're seriously interested in gone over by a certified Marine Surveyor. It's the best few hundred dollars you'll ever spend. The oil could be coming from an oil pan that is rusted out and needs to be replaced, a leaky power steering pump or hydraulic hose, a bad front oil seal from behind the timing chain cover, bad valve cover gasket(s) or the seller just spilled some oil in the bilge and never completely cleaned it up etc. There are many places it could be coming from, some more serious and expensive to fix than others. The only way to know for sure is to have an professional surveyor check it out for you. They will look at the structure of the boat to make sure it is sound and sea worthy, check the electrical and what ever other systems you might have onboard for safety, go over the engine and give you a full written report of the overall condition of the boat along with any recommendations on what (if anything) needs to be done to it. Then you can determine if you are willing to spend what is required to fix it, have the seller fix it or split it with him etc. Best of luck. Let us know how you make out and don't let a little oil scare you away. It may well be nothing more than a lazy owner who didn't clean up after himself as smokeonthewater pointed out.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

Thank you everyone who gave me great advice. We are on our to look at boat, we have appointment w a guy to meet us and look over it. There has been some repairs, front seal, timing cover and seal, oil pan gasket was done June 2012, then August 2012 o ring on oil dipstick tube , was replaced. I actually talked to the repair shop that did the repairs. They explained how the oil is there. Only concern now is it has not been winterized. It has been really cold in Arkansas this winter and he is in northern part and it gets colder and more snow there. Thanks again everyone was very helpful....

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

Kristi72 said:

Thank you everyone who gave me great advice. We are on our way to look at the boat. We have appointment with a guy to meet us and look it over.

There has been some repairs, front seal, timing cover and seal, oil pan gasket was done June 2012, then August 2012 o ring on oil dipstick tube , was replaced. I actually talked to the repair shop that did the repairs. They explained how the oil is there.

Only concern now is it has not been winterized. It has been really cold in Arkansas this winter and he is in northern part and it gets colder and more snow there. Thanks again everyone was very helpful....

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What is the next boat on your list?

It sort of sounds like the shop is chasing a problem and 'may' or 'may not' have found it . . .

The lack of winterization would be a concern, because over the past couple of weeks, we had that big cold air mass from the north pole drape itself over the country. So, it probably got cold enough to cause damage, unless the boat was/is stored inside.

I would say look, but don't 'touch' at this point. Not until you have looked at enough boats to get a good comparison.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

I'd say that unless this boat is REALLY cheap don't even bother looking...

usually the only thing that causes that many oil leaks is an extreme overheat and or lots of blow by...... The engine had to come out to replace the oil pan gasket and should have had ALL of the seals replaced at that time along with the oil being cleaned up... Couple that with it not being winterized and the ONLY way I would touch it is if it was so cheap that I could put an engine AND an outdrive in it and still be happy.

At this point I'd consider the owners AND the mechanics to be dumb #$$#$.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

tazrig said:

Excellent suggestion! Especially for the new style upside down oil filters.

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Taz, not sure you do this but on the upside down oil filters after you heat up the oil and shut down your motor first thing I do is puncture the top of the oil filter allowing it to drain completely and use gravity and the vacuum created by the rest of the motor oil draining to the bottom of the motor to drain the oil filter, let the motor sit for five minutes and pump the oil out.

Not sure if you did this already but figured I would pass it on, works great


this type of setup, oil filter on top of motor right front as you face the motor
Sorry for the Hi-Jack

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

LippCJ7 said:

Taz, not sure you do this but on the upside down oil filters after you heat up the oil and shut down your motor first thing I do is puncture the top of the oil filter allowing it to drain completely and use gravity and the vacuum created by the rest of the motor oil draining to the bottom of the motor to drain the oil filter, let the motor sit for five minutes and pump the oil out.

Not sure if you did this already but figured I would pass it on, works great

this type of setup, oil filter on top of motor right front as you face the motor
Sorry for the Hi-Jack

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Thanks for the tip! I've seen that suggestion but have never tried it as my new motors with the new style filters will be going in soon. I'll plan to try it out on my first change. I'm also having the yard install drain tubes coming straight from the bottom of the oil pan. I'll run the tubes out the drain holes in the transom so I can drain out every last drop of oil.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

smokeonthewater said:

I'd say that unless this boat is REALLY cheap don't even bother looking...

usually the only thing that causes that many oil leaks is an extreme overheat and or lots of blow by...... The engine had to come out to replace the oil pan gasket and should have had ALL of the seals replaced at that time along with the oil being cleaned up... Couple that with it not being winterized and the ONLY way I would touch it is if it was so cheap that I could put an engine AND an outdrive in it and still be happy.

At this point I'd consider the owners AND the mechanics to be dumb #$$#$.

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Kristi, I would strongly second the above suggestions based on what we now know. The owner may have not replaced all the seals when the motor was pulled due to economics. (although they all should have been replaced as stated) The single biggest red flag I now see, and it's a big one, is that the motor wasn't winterized. All it takes is one day of freezing temps to crack the block and due severe damage. I would put this boat at the bottom of your list and m-a-y-b-e come back to it if nothing else turns up and even then only with a full and complete survey. It just sounds like (lack of winterization aside) there is something not quite right with that motor.

Re: looking at used boats notice oil under engines

Only an idiot would not winterize their boat in the weather conditions we have in northern Arkansas. If the owner is this negligent then you do not want this boat at any price.