89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

sattaker

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
42
I have a 89 dt55 that sets off the waterflow alarm but the telltale is strong. I replaced the impeller and plate and same thing. The top cylinder seemed very warm, I couldn't hold my hand on it but the bottom 2 seemed cooler. The telltale temp seemed warm enough to wash your hands with.Is this normal?
I gutted the tstat and the alarm went away but of course now i am afraid that it will be to cold. I did test the tstat and it did open at 140 deg. it just seems like the water will not flow until the tstat is open. The other reason I think this is I removed the waterflow sensor when it was running and then replaced it and the alarm went away. Almost like it has an airlock. where should I look or am I just thinking I have a problem?
 

James R

Commander
Joined
Feb 1, 2007
Messages
2,660
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

The tell tale only indicates that the pump is working.
Sounds like you have a blocked water way or the thermostat is no good.
Try removing the lower unit and the thermostat and using a garden hose very intermittently shoot some water into the thermostat cavity to try to clear any blockage. It is common with outboards that a failed impeller can cause a blockage. Bits of the impeller get caught up in the system. There is no guaranty that this will clear the blockage but it is your best shot short of a tear down.
Replace the impeller anyway. They are not expensive.
 

sattaker

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
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Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

I did replace the impeller and the telltale is still very warm. The engine doesn't overheat as I had it out for about an hour the other day. I was just surprised that the the telltale is so warm. Maybe someone who has one of these can tell me theirs is the same.
 

Silvertip

Supreme Mariner
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Sep 22, 2003
Messages
28,758
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

That alarm is not a "water flow" alarm. It is an "overheating" alarm. These are not the same conditions. The telltale merely indicates the water pump is working. An engine can still overheat even though the telltale shows a good stream. The fact that you can't hold your finger on the top cylinder is telling you the engine is indeed overheating. You need to put a new thermostat in, clean or replace the bypass valve, and then try it. The bypass valve opens at higher rpm so if it is defective, the engine would overheat at anything above about 2000 rpm or so. If the thermostat is stuck shut the engine would overheat at idle. If were stuck open it would likely not idle well but should not overheat. if the stat and bypass valve are ok, there are other issues.
 

sattaker

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
42
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

thanks for the response Silvertip. I had actually gutted the thermostat. I was not aware of a bypass valve. Where is it located?
 

sattaker

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
42
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

does anyone know if I could access this by removing the head?
 

sattaker

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
42
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

Well I removed the lower unit again and flushed water from the tsat opening down through the tube and then back and then back down etc. I did not notice whether I had dislodged anything but I seemed to have good flow. I reinstalled the unit and noticed that one of the rubber grommets that fits on the water tube had a bit of a kink in it so it may not have been sealing well, I'm not sure. I put the thermostat together again and ran it on muffs. The telltale seemed to have the same pressure but I could definitely feel the water temp changing as the tsat opened and closed. The top cylinder was running still warmer than the botton two but I could hold my hand on it for a longer time. My guess is that I either dislodged something or I got a better seal on the water tube. I will know after this weekend how she runs.
 

sattaker

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
42
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

well that didn't fix it. My brother took the boat out and the motor still did not run right. I am willing to pull the waterjacket? and head if I can clean the water passage.

Does anyone know if this is the right approach?
 

gsyfishy

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 25, 2008
Messages
173
Re: 89 suzuki dt55 removed tstat

Thats a good start, and the gasket replacement does'nt hurt either. You may also try and de-carb the cylinders using seafoam, i believe there is a post somewhere telling the best way to do it.
 
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