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  1. Lou C

    4.3L OMC Cobra 1988 engine knock/rattle

    P/S cooler seemed to be the problem, make sure to drain the hose leading to it (hold it down in the bilge to drain) then hold it up, and fill with marine AF to push out the water (with drive down) till AF comes out your outdrive water intakes.
  2. Lou C

    What to do with my two 470's?

    As they are, I wouldn’t use any of them. They will leak & cause stuck valves & rusty cyls. I’m in salt water & here we have to be very careful with exhaust systems. Not sure if you are in salt water but it’s good to be aware of the fact that bad inboard exhaust is the # 1 cause of inboard...
  3. Lou C

    how does one flush out rust from block?

    can these oxalic acid treatments damage head and intake gaskets?
  4. Lou C

    New Carb and Low RPMs

    Franken Carbs Caveat Emptor
  5. Lou C

    What to do with my two 470's?

    That exhaust elbow looks like it’s too thin to seal. Could be an engine killer. Like the style of boat. But it’s going to suck a ton of cash from your bank account to make it reliable. What is the structure in front of the engines? I think because you have one good engine it’s tempting to get...
  6. Lou C

    Couple issues

    No the 4.3 QJet is in my boat. Holley carb has the fuel bowl up above the intake manifold not likely to have fuel boiling even in hot temps. Years ago we had a 1970 Ford with a 302 & the Ford Autolite 2100 carb. This one did have fuel boiling & I insulated the fuel lines with heat tape.
  7. Lou C

    Couple issues

    Fuel boiling in the carb or fuel lines can happen but it is rare on boats. It is more common on older carbed vehicles due to higher cooling system set points of approx 40*F higher than a marine cooling system. I recall people putting a wood or phenolic spacer under the carb & insulating the fuel...
  8. Lou C

    Oil pan drain hose

    The key with the dipstick method is to fab up a garden hose adapter instead of shoving the small plastic hose down the dipstick. Much faster & easier. Just make sure your hoses fit tightly & you have a gasket in the female fitting of the garden hose adapter.
  9. Lou C

    1995 Searay 5.7 GM winterizing mods..

    When I pull my boat out of the water at the end of Sept, I am installing a remote oil filter mount and extending the block drains with hoses that can be easily capped off. The idea is that there will be one hose on each side of the block that can be easily rodded out, if it doesn't drain, unlike...
  10. Lou C

    Oil pressure

    I would try the mechanical gauge and see what it shows you. The lowest I have ever seen my oil pressure go on my old 1988 4.3 (original block/rotating assembly, reman heads in 2017) is about 20-25 psi at a 600 rpm idle speed, this is after coming off plane. Slow running at or slightly above...
  11. Lou C

    POINTS DISTRIBUTOR --- UNKNOWNS WITH MOTOR

    If the engine has been sitting a long time you might have to remove the points plate and free up and lube the centrifugal advance weights and springs. Oiling the wick that you will see in the distributor shaft after removing the rotor once a year will keep them working as they should. These...
  12. Lou C

    4.3 Mercruiser MPI Chugging/Surging and Beeping during turns/Waves

    That was me, this was commonly done by techs working on older Grand Cherokees & other MPI Chrysler products looking for faults that don't set a code (loose connectors, bad pins etc) but I didn't realize it could cause damage to a running engine. Thanks for pointing it out. Now doing that with a...
  13. Lou C

    Oil pan drain hose

    I like the all metal Topsider MVP. I have it about 20 years and have used it for everything: Boat inboard oil changes Jeeps: Suck oil out of diffs and auto trans This saved me from a huge mess this winter when the filter on my Chrysler 545RFE clogged & the trans wouldn’t go into gear. Sucked 4...
  14. Lou C

    3.0l Alpha 1 Gen 2 low speed overheat

    Looks like a beautiful boating area....pristine fresh water? That's great for maintenance, not like salt water!
  15. Lou C

    4.3 Mercruiser MPI Chugging/Surging and Beeping during turns/Waves

    All it takes with modern MPI engines is a bent/loose pin, or a bit of corrosion, & you can have those problems. Just disconnecting connections, inspecting, cleaning with contact cleaner and re-assembling (a bit of dielectric grease on the rubber seals helps keep out moisture) might solve it...
  16. Lou C

    POINTS DISTRIBUTOR --- UNKNOWNS WITH MOTOR

    Looks like that engine did still have points. I have a Prestolite on my 1988 4.3 and I usually put in a new set whenever they get pitted or burned. I get at least 5-6 seasons out of a set of points. The advance weights need a few drops of oil in the wick under the rotor.
  17. Lou C

    does anyone know?

    I have those exact same drains on my 1988 OMC/Chevy V6 and if you’re going to try to get this not to leak be careful with the threads. I would pick up a Mercruiser drain plug assembly & use that; it’s nearly the same thing but the part you remove to drain is a hex head instead of the T handle. I...
  18. Lou C

    4.3 Mercruiser MPI Chugging/Surging and Beeping during turns/Waves

    I wonder if you can wiggle parts of the wiring harness to see if that can re create the surge. I’m thinking an intermittent connection is cutting power to the fuel pump or other component. That, or some debris in the fuel tank blocking the fuel pick up under certain conditions. Agreed on getting...
  19. Lou C

    3.0l Alpha 1 Gen 2 low speed overheat

    Old tech is good. You just have to understand it isn't a perpetual motion machine. I'll take points & condenser & a 4bb carb, with its drawbacks, vs old throttle body and EFI systems. Merc and Volvo have nasty habit of making key parts for those, NLA. And then, you are SOL....
  20. Lou C

    3.0l Alpha 1 Gen 2 low speed overheat

    Engine accessibility is one of the reasons why I wouldn't buy most of the newer I/O designs. They appear to be designed by mechanical sadists who hate mechanics. A relative has a 2020 Chapparal with the new style Mercruiser 4.5 which is really a very nice running engine but to get at anything...
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