Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

[aculberg]

Ok, here's the story. We bought a 1980 Bayliner Santiago 22' cuddy that had a Volvo Penta 260 engine that was cracked because the prior owners didnt winterize it -and still has the Volvo outdrive. So, hubby decides to pull the engine and replace it with a Chevy 350 shortblock from a truck. Everything seems to match up. Except the starter. The bolts dont match up.
So now he wants to pull the truck engine out and can get an OMC engine pretty cheap, but he doesnt know if that will match up with the Volvo outdrive. So, my questions are: can we get the truck engine to work somehow or are we wasting our time? And if we go with the OMC engine, will it match up to the Volvo outdrive? I've tried to read most of the posts that pertain to this and I see youre not much for the OMC engine, were just not sure what to do and dont want to spend alot of money trying to get this boat running! Any advice would be great! Be nice! LOL

 

[f_inscreenname]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

Find the right starter. I bet you have one now for a 168 tooth flywheel and you need one for 152 tooth flywheel.

 

[Coors]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

yep

 

[Coors]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

chevy(omc, chevrolet) starters with a v8; only 2, and 2 flywheels, like f said,

 

[Bondo]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

Ayuh,......

If the Block is drilled for the Straight Across bolt pattern Starter,....
You need the 153 tooth, 12" flywheel......

If it's drilled for the Staggered bolt pattern Starter,.....
You need the 168 tooth, 14" flywheel........

Some Blocks are Drilled for Both................

And,..... From 1987 on,......
There's the Same 2 Flywheels,....
With a Smaller Crankshaft Bolt Pattern....................

aculberg,........... Welcome Aboard,.......
We'll need Alot More Info to help you sort out the Issues the Hubby is facing,........

 

[aculberg]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

Thanks guys, youre great!
As far as more info, here's what I know. The truck engine is out of a 71 Chevy .
The truck block has the staggered bolt pattern, the marine starter is straight across.
So, in order to use the truck engine we need to get a different starter or a different flywheel?

 

[tommays]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

Hi

i hope you realize you need to use the COMPLEAT fuel and electric system from THE OLD motor all the parts are MARINE RATED in there abilty to NOT spill fuel or make sparks that would make any bilge fumes go BOOM


Tommays

 

[f_inscreenname]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

I would say flywheel. In most applications with Volvo the 14" flywheel are not used. You can pick up a 12.5" on eBay for 50 bucks for a 350 and like tommays says you can also pick up a marine starter for not much more.
You could change bellhousings that will fit the 14" flywheel like the one I just bought (i had to use a 14" flywheel with the 454 I am installing) but be ready to shell out $560.00 for it.

 

[aculberg]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

I'm looking for a marine starter for a Chevy 350, 153 tooth 12.5" flywheel with an offset mount. I cant find one! All the ones that I do find fit a 14" flywheel! Do you guys know of anywhere to look to find the right starter?
THanks!

 

[Reel Poor]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

There is no starter with staggered bolts that will fit the 12.5 inch flywheel.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

yes Rp is right.I did some searching for him and had no luck either. Plus found out there is 2 different staggard chevy based starters. 1-uses one long and one short bolt. 2-uses two long bolts....

 

[Don S]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

You also can't change a flywheel from one size to the other on a particular engine. If it's designed for a 14" flywheel, forget putting on a 12.5". and Vise Versa.

 

[aculberg]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

I was afraid of that. A 14" flywheel wont fit, something with the bell housing...so thats the only option?

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

I think i would go with a new marine 350 longblock.save some headaches and you know there is a new engine in the boat that will last years if cared for..
Just my opinion..8)8)

 

[f_inscreenname]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

You could always do this. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/VOLV...dZViewItemQQcategoryZ50442QQitemZ250089034316

Why cant he use 12.5 on a 350?

 

[AlanR]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

I smell a hassle... Car engines and Boat engines are COMPLETELY diffrent. Truck/Car engines arnt supose to rev at like 4 - 5 grand all day. First thing id change is the Cam. And isnt there a diffrent flame aresster from truck to boats? Hmmm Sounds like a hassle to me.

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

If that's a complete truck motor, carb, distributor, starter, alternator and all, I have just one question. Where can I send the sympathy card to the surviving next of kin?

If it's a true truck motor and not just a light-duty truck motor, he has a good base to start with. Marine versions have:
different cams to prevent nearby exhaust water from sucking into the exhaust valves,
different water pumps that won't rust-up due to lack of antifreeze,
different carbs and fuel pumps to minimize gasoline spillage into the bilge,
different electrical and ignition components designed to not spark explosive fumes,
brass welch plugs, due again to lack of antifreeze to prevent rust,
and beefy flywheels to maintain momentum in the drivetrain.

That starter may be marinizable. The main differences are a clevis pin in place of the roll pin pivot for the throwout mechanism and a marine solenoid. Cheap parts! It won't be certified and I can't guarantee that's all, just all that I am aware of. Depending on the coupler for the drive, the flywheel may be a deal-breaker anyhow. ( I assume that he is dealing with a manual transmission flywheel and not an automatic transmission flywheel. )

 

[Bondo]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

Why cant he use 12.5 on a 350?

IF the Block was drilled for Both starter bolt patterns,...... You Can.....

 

[SuperNova]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

You may want to check into aftermarket High Torque mini starters - some of them are drilled with custom patterns to fit any block with any flywheel. Try summitracing.com or jegs.com. On a small side note, I once took a marine starter apart on the bench alongside a regular car starter and the only difference I found was the marine starter had a dab of silicone in the hole at the base of the nosecone to seal it up and the marine type solenoid. The backplate wasn't sealed and the brushes and commutator were identical, even the pivot pins were the same on the ones I had. Oh, and the marine one was painted black. Oh yeah, the flywheel IS completely interchangeable you can put a 12.5 or a 14" on there all day long, but as Bond-o said the block has to be drilled for the correct starter to fit the flywheel. The bell dictates flywheel size, but the bell has to bolt up to the back of the engine ----all chevy bells are the same size they don't have a different bell for the different flywheels, the flywheel size was actually dictated by the weight of the vehicle it was in, it need to store enough energy to get the vehicle moving without stalling the engine. I can even tell you that small bock chevy and big block chevy bells are completely interchangeable. I have done these types of swaps for 21 years now. But I only know the chevys(mercruiser). Depending on how well the truck motor was built will dictate its life span- as stated before automotive engines weren't designed to run at 4000-5000 rpm for any length of time, the main issues are valvetrain related. Or to be run on plain(raw) water.

 

[Boomyal]

Re: Swapped marine engine w/truck engine

Call these folks. They have mini high torque starters at good prices and should know what fits what.

DB electrical-800-753-2242

They sell on ebay. I'm using one of their marine mini HT starters on my Gulfstream SBF.