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  1. Lou C

    Volvo Penta 4.3Gl (1998 carbuerated) running hot (or is it?!?!)

    That looks like the joint venture engine used then so that’s probably not the issue you either have low raw water flow when in the water or a sticky thermostat or clogged exhaust elbows. There is a plastic fitting for the raw water intake hose in the transom mount that can crack & suck in air...
  2. Lou C

    OMC cobra outdrive drops out of gear

    With these not staying in gear can be a sticky/corroded transom shift cable and/or a crudded up bell crank in the pivot housing. Either way you’re pulling the drive & checking: Shift rod height Cable drag Cable adjustment
  3. Lou C

    MerCruiser 4.3L V6 milkshake oil from cracked intake manifold, how to remove milkshake oil?

    1) how did you winterize the boat? drain manually and poke all drain holes? or suck AF up the drive method? If #2 that could explain and might have more things cracked than just the intake 2) I have posted this before, that Volvo & OMC said that the drain in the front of the intake on the...
  4. Lou C

    Water in spark plugs

    I had to something similar with my leaky head gaskets, run till hot, drain all water change oil, repeat. My HGs would leak not when running but when the engine sat for a day. Just a little water. Also sprayed fogging oil like mad. Was able to save the long block & installed reman cyl heads. Old...
  5. Lou C

    23-24 foot vs 26-28 foot pros and cons?

    Bigger is usually better as far as safety but if these bigger boats are twin I/Os with poor access they are a nightmare to self maintain. I’d take a 26 with a single big block with a wide open engine bay. Twins; can you even get at the inner spark plugs or even worse the starter on the port side...
  6. Lou C

    Hard starts after sitting for a week or so

    Also as far as hard starting remember that the linkages must be clean and there is usually a vacuum operated or linkage operated choke pull off. This pulls the choke plate open just a fraction of an inch to give the carb enough air to keep running. The choke basically increases the effect of...
  7. Lou C

    OMC cobra outdrive drops out of gear

    That, elevated engine temp due to the impeller not spinning fast enough
  8. Lou C

    Water in spark plugs

    Agreed take off the exhaust manifolds first & test with acetone. Then go from there
  9. Lou C

    Water in spark plugs

    The one piece manifolds have pretty small outlet holes and they can clog fairly easily. Here's a set of mine after 5.5 seasons in salt water. I had 3 sets of these on my engine and replaced them every 5-7 years which is pretty typical here. I then converted this engine over to the later style...
  10. Lou C

    Water in spark plugs

    As Bondo said air pressure test the block/ heads first then remove exhaust manifolds and fill with acetone to check for leaks…. If you need new manifolds I did the 2 piece conversion with Barr aftermarket & V/P exhaust pipes & hoses. Fit perfect….
  11. Lou C

    OMC cobra outdrive drops out of gear

    Do a search on my user name I’ve posted how to set up the shift system on the Cobra a few times. When set up right they will not clunk into gear & will shift out of gear with 2 finger pressure….
  12. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    Yep I did that too. Got a couple spare 4.3 intakes in my garage in case the original rots out under the thermostat. Still solid when I checked last time I changed the stat. Salt water never forgets
  13. Lou C

    Proper Carburetor adjustment

    However on a Volvo the exhaust is still raw water cooled even with closed cooling How did the water passages in the manifolds & elbows look? If they are starting to clog time to replace.
  14. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    That one you linked at Summit is the right one. Not specifically marine like the pre Vortec is but I don’t think it matters like with head gaskets. I’d carefully check the torque first.
  15. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    Remember you must use the Vortec gaskets if you change them. They are totally different.
  16. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    just take your time & go real easy on those, the gaskets are fragile, I actually prefer the pre-vortecs like mine were you can use the thick Fel/Pro gaskets.
  17. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    oil can come up from the cam valley on these...theres a lot of oil in that cam valley
  18. Lou C

    Mercruiser MPI - How Intelligent is the ECM?

    It’s a chronic problem with raw water cooled engines…
  19. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    Use an inch pound torque wrench carefully just make sure they are at 11 ft lbs. but first see if you really see a water leak there. It looked that way to me in the pix. It’s possible that the gasket took a set & isn’t sealing. I have an inch pound low range torque wrench for jobs like that….
  20. Lou C

    New valve cover gaskets and still leaking V6 4.3

    Check the tightness of your intake manifold bolts carefully
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