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  1. Lou C

    Mercruiser 8.2 w/Cats & Closed Cooling Question

    I agree Ted, the cat converter issue has really pushed the market to outboards and I could see that when we were at the Marina picking up my brothers boat. Yes there are stern drives still being bought but experienced boaters here in the salt know better after having one or 2. To add a $5000...
  2. Lou C

    Anti Seize or Not?

    I’ve been using this for years, it’s rated for up to 400*F so for marine exhaust it’s fine.
  3. Lou C

    7.4 Mercruiser Engine Life Expectancy

    Need more info, is it closed cooled or raw water cooled, salt use or fresh, has the exhaust been maintained, etc. If closed cooled and the exhaust has been maintained you've got a lot more life in that engine assuming compression is good and no head gasket leaks. Even if raw water cooled in...
  4. Lou C

    Mercruiser 8.2 w/Cats & Closed Cooling Question

    That’s what it is. Plain crazy. Had a friend with a Merc 4.3 and cats and replacement was $4500 parts. They sold the boat! Ted I think I’d keep the boat you have! This is why I will never own an I/O with cats. Just another maintenance headache. Only outboards from now on.
  5. Lou C

    Smoke from valve cover / breather hose SBC 305

    Mine does this as well at idle after warming up but it doesn’t get worse when running at higher rpm. The engine does consume some oil but it doesn’t foul plugs at all so I just live with it for the time being.The short block on mine is original 33 years old, reman heads installed 4 years ago. If...
  6. Lou C

    Smoke from valve cover / breather hose SBC 305

    There will always be some blow by as seen by the need for crankcase ventilation and on motor vehicles the adoption of positive crankcase ventilation valves. The question is how much is too much. I think if you get some smoke there but the engine doesn’t consume excessive oil I would not...
  7. Lou C

    Mercruiser 8.2 w/Cats & Closed Cooling Question

    PS if you post up an engine pic from the ad it’s easy to tell. These things look totally different than the standard exhaust.
  8. Lou C

    Mercruiser 8.2 w/Cats & Closed Cooling Question

    My brother just bought a 2020 Chapparal with the Merc 4.5 200 hp. Engine is raw water cooled with cat converters. I tried to convince him to buy the outboard version but he likes to water ski and prefers I/Os for that. The thing I don’t know is if these cat exhaust systems last any longer in...
  9. Lou C

    Shift Interrupter

    Also, even though its a pain, adjusting a Cobra should always start with the drive off and measuring shift rod height. If that's off, then the rest of the adjustments can't be right. The goal is always equal travel on both sides of neutral.
  10. Lou C

    Overheating and hydro locked

    Glad to hear that. I would measure the static waterline when you put the boat in the water just to be on the safe side
  11. Lou C

    Battery Switch question

    That’s how mine is; I never separated the wiring so I just alternate batteries and use dual purpose group 27 batteries. I have the auto bilge wired directly to one of the batteries so I can shut the batteries off but still have the auto bilge switch & pump powered.
  12. Lou C

    Marada boats and 5.8L vp fl

    I would agree if its an efi Ford. However if its a Holley 4bbl Ford, then the main thing is manifolds/elbows which are still available. Ford power was also used a lot in Shamrock boats so the manifolds/elbows are still out there. This is a carb motor, so I'd not be so concerned about the Ford...
  13. Lou C

    Battery Switch question

    yep when the batt switch is off, the only thing that should be powered is the auto bilge switch. everything else should be off.
  14. Lou C

    2bl vs 4bl

    If you have a Vortec with the 8 bolts the cast iron ones are easy to find. Not so much with the older pre Vortec ones (pre 1996)….
  15. Lou C

    2bl vs 4bl

    Try ebay I found a couple spares for my old pre-vortec 4.3 that way. Here in salt water they sometimes rot out under the stat housing so its good to have a good spare one. I took the air horn off my QJet again before putting the boat in this year and installed a higher output accelerator pump...
  16. Lou C

    How often do you change your bellows and shift seal?

    I went for 11 seasons on an OMC Cobra bellows (OE parts) before I saw small cracks and replaced it. What happens is that the rubber loses flexibility over time and starts to crack when you steer or trim up. So as soon as you see small cracks in the folds I think its time. I still have the...
  17. Lou C

    Tuning Holley 80551 (4160)

    I am confused as well to an extent, my 4.3 was equipped with a 600 CFM Holley after the Quadrajet went out of production but larger engines like a 5.0 Ford V8 came with a 450 CFM. My original Quadrajet is also a 600 CFM. I have heard that the Qjet has this flexibility built into its design being...
  18. Lou C

    2009 4.3 mpi running hot

    Here in salt I’ve done mine every 7 years at least and I have not had an overheat due to the inevitable corrosion or water leaking back into the engine. Even with the old Batwings that had restrictive cooling passages and clogged pretty easily. Look at how much larger the passages are on the 2...
  19. Lou C

    2009 4.3 mpi running hot

    I would Definitely check the manifolds and elbows if never done and you are in salt water Also test the stat in a pot of hot water with a metal thermometer and see what temp it starts to open at. And yes a 140 will be better for salt If your last impeller came apart you will need to find the...
  20. Lou C

    Fuel Filter?

    I think one of the best things you can do with an older boat is clean out the gas tank when it needs it done. There are places that will do this for you, if you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself. It helps avoid chronic fuel system problems.
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