1984 johnson 70 hp tale tell help!

[jasnlemons76]

I just bought a 1984 johnson 70 hp 3 cyclinder with low compression heads.

After hooking the water to the foot in the driveway I noticed that the pee hole had air coming out at first and then water. I thought "no problem" But after watching motor run I noticed that water never came out of the foot thru the holes above the prop.

I also noticed that the pee hole water was getting hotter and hotter. I have had a 1981 johnson v4 90 hp that after the thermostat came up to temp the hot water came thru the foot.

I noticed that the pee hole is actually been put in right above the thermostat right in the cover you remove to remove it. I also noticed that one of the bolts going thru the lower unit to the power head is broken off and water is coming out of it.

My question is that do I need to plug the hole to the pee hole on the thermostat housing and do the mod to the head as noted in another forum? Is the water leaking from the bottom bolt going to cause a problem?

I feel that with the pee hole being where it is it is not letting the pressure build to let the water flow thru the head correctly which is causing the heated water to come out of it.

The motor does not seem to over heat but I do want to be sure that I fix what I need to so I don't blow this engine.

This motor runs great and I want to keep it that way.

Any help on this subject will be greatly appericated.