The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

[Nervous Ned]

Question:
How much life does a 37 year old Chevy/Mercruiser have remaining if properly maintained over the years?

I found a nicely maintained boat with a 1973 165 HP Chevy 250 straight 6 i/o Mercruiser drive. The woman who bought the boat new has every maintenance record since she's owned the boat - professionally winterized and serviced each year by her marina. Her most recent investment was $1,200 last spring for new bellows, gimble bearing, shift cable, and impeller.

Will I at least be able to enjoy one or two more seasons if the engine checks out well with a mechanic? What major service should I expect in upcoming years? I don't mind investing a little more money, especially since the straight 6 design seems like a good design for me as a newcomer to engines.

Thanks for any advice...

 

[skargo]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

FW or Raw cooling?

 

[stonyloam]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

Lets see.... you are buying a 36 year old boat and are worried about engine longevity? If your mechanic says it is OK, stop worrying and enjoy.

 

[skargo]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

I'm rocking the original 350 in my 32 year old boat. It was maintained very well by the previous owner. It had low hours, around 400, and I put 90 on it this year, the first we've had it. I intend to get 1000 or more, if I can.

 

[zbnutcase]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

Go for it. Great engines, you can't kill 'em. 'nutcase

 

[Knightgang]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

I know of several of these engines in light duty Chevy trucks from the Early 70's that have over 400,000 miles on them and still going strong. Relate that to the harsh condition of the boating world along with the comparable hours. If it has been maintained as you say, you have nothing to worry about...

 

[ziggy]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

How much life does a 37 year old Chevy/Mercruiser have remaining if properly maintained over the years?

i would think plenty more years. especially if it's not already be rebuilt. which would mean it is rebuildable with what you have. since you have all the records, you should be able to find out if it has or hasn't been.
even if it's rwc i'll bet it still has a lotta life in it. assuming it's not a salt water boat. but even if that. i can't think of one single read about someones block L6 or other for that matter that has rusted away to non serviceable from within. something else will catastrophically fail prior to that occurring..
have the compression checked and if she's good, your good. just take care of it. sounds like the po did which is a great. not much to do to maintain the engine part really. change the oil... repair any pereffials when they go south and i'll bet ya have a winner. i'm just did my 3rd year with mine. so far, so good. compression numbers havn't changed from the day i got it. i use it every weekend too all summer long. 6 months round abouts.

Her most recent investment was $1,200 last spring for new bellows, gimble bearing, shift cable, and impeller.

that's good. those are maint. items that need to be inspected yearly. especially the impeller. which imho, i'm convinced, should be replaced yearly.

What major service should I expect in upcoming years?

none.... but that assumes your doing your pm. go look at the winterization/summerization threads in the diy or adults only sticky at the top of the i/o forum. there's much to do every year and tuneup items that should be replaced yearly.

i've been on this forum for a while now. i'd venture to say it's one of the lesser discussed engines. i think it's because they are pretty easy to maintain + i'll go further than that. the chevy 250 L6 engine may have been one of the best engines, reliably wise, to have been marinized. they are just downright reliable and run forever if maintained.... I've never read any comments about anything that is a design flaw, or anything that inherently failure prone in the chevy 250.

 

[Fordiesel69]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

Except for the intake manifold. I have read plently on those.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: The Life of a 1973 Straight Six 250 Chevy 165hp

Just keep the revs under 4200 and she'll treat you fine.