2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

[DDameron]

Ok, so in my first post on iboats, I warned that I would ask some stupid questions... so here goes for my first few "I R Smart" questions...

I purchased this boat September 2012 (2001 Glastron 229 GS w/ a Volvo Penta 5.0 GL & an SX outdrive) & the seller had zero paperwork for past maintenance and no original documentation other than title and registration. I have no owners manual, operators manual, maintenance schedule etc. NOW, I believe I have found them by way of reading 100+ posts on here and seeing Don S' suggested links... but I cannot be sure as I do not have the serial number off the 305, 5.0 GL motor that's in it. I just downloaded what I thought sounded like my make/model/motor,... if I have the wrong documents, I'm not very knowledgeable about someone else's boat!

So here goes... and if these questions cannot be answered without knowing the serial number, I will attempt to ram my smartphone down there and get a photo of up under the rear right side tomorrow, where I believe the serial plate is...

I R Smart Question #1
I intend to change the oil in this boat tomorrow... It's just a GM motor, right?... I can use regular Castrol GTX SAE 10-W30, part synthetic oil... right? I chose part synthetic because I have no clue what the previous owner was thinking, but I bought the oil change canister and removed 12 quarts from this motor!! Yeah... calls for 5 at most... so I'm thinking they had no clue what they were doing and may have used regular motor oil, or may have used synthetic... (did Glastron have a super-dooper sized oil pan option in 2001? haha) to ease the transition and be safe, I chose partial synthetic this time, & next time I will go full synthetic... is this wise / safe? The Volvo dealer claims I must use Volvo specific SAE 30 full synthetic oil... I'm no genius, but if it's a GM motor... how is this a necessity?

I R Smart Question #2
Because the only thing I could find on iboats regarding a suggested oil filter, was a part number, which didn't match NAPA's identification, I chose to search a 2001 GMC truck with a 305... and went with that oil filter, which is a FRAM PH5... is this acceptable? I haven't taken the old one off yet due to wanting to know Q#1 is acceptable first.

I R Smart Question #3
I pulled all 8 spark plugs and and checked their gap... previous owner had them gapped at 0.030 to 0.045! ...yeah, welcome to my world! I'm a landscape architect and a shadetree mechanic at best, and even I know this variation is a wrong. I will give them this, they had the good plugs (from what I've read and seen others say)... they had the NGK BPR6EFS... so I purchased the exact same for replacement. I'm not sure if there is a way to check if a spark plug is still good or not, so I just bought all new. Question is, what should they be gapped at? Out of the box, I'm seeing 0.035. The manual I downloaded, if the right one, says 0.35 is correct.

I R Smart Question #4
I'll post a pic of this... "thing" I noticed dangling off a bracket attached to the motor... I believe it is an audible alarm, for temp, oil pressure etc... but again, due to not having the proper documentation for this boat, I cannot be sure... photo below... is that the alarm I am thinking of? Is there a way to test it to see if it's working? Can I silicone it back to that bracket due to the plastic cracked and broken? Also, why would Volvo put an audible alarm in the engine compartment and not at the helm? If there's a problem with MY boat, I want it to slap me in the face!

I R Smart Question #5
The float stuck open on me and flooded the motor... wouldn't start and probably vapor locked if I had to guess after trying to kick it over and getting barely one revolution, all the way down to just a loud tick... just bought a new battery today... I think I killed the other one! I took the plugs out and cleared the cylinders of all the fuel by kicking it over a few times, then left the plugs out (motor covered and wires coded with numbers) all week to dry out. Question is, should I rebuild this little 2 barrel Holley or just shoot some carb cleaner in the fuel entry line? Kit is $37 so if iboats feels I should rebuild it for the confidence, that's what'll get done.

I R Smart Question #6
I have one trim cylinder that is leaking... been that way since day one and had this boat on the water 4 times; salt water. I have just been topping it off once a day after initially researching the price of a new cylinder because apparently Mr. Volvo has more money than God and feels you should too... $480 for a new cylinder and no rebuild option. However, I read on iboats somewhere that there is a rebuild kit that applies to this specific Volvo Penta SX (I think it's a Cobra) outdrive (pic below).... I cannot for the life of me find that post again... can someone enlighten me on this kit? I remember it was like $30 or so.

I R Smart Question #7
I have 3 gauges not working: Oil Pressure, Trim & Fuel... corroded a little on a couple connection points on the backside of the instrument cluster. Cleaned them and cannot tell you if they work yet, cuz I'm waiting for answers to previous questions before I can attempt to run the motor ...if they're still bad, how much for an instrument panel? I'm looking on Ebay and none too excited about the prices... I'm frugal as all get-up :laugh: I realize these are fairly important gauges, but I'm also obsessive compulsive and a walking gauge myself... always listening for ticks, winding or anything unhealthy sounding... so knowing I will never have the RPM above 4000 and just make sure I am always top off the gas and listen carefully, I should be good till I find a decent deal on a new cluster... if that's even the issue. Is there a way to check if it's the gauge or not?

Ok, so there ya have it... my stupid questions. Please let me know at your earliest convenience on ANY of this as I intend to change the oil and plugs tomorrow, 2/9/2013

All help is greatly appreciated!
DDameron



P.S. Pic A7; the serial number plate for the motor is somewhere around that oil filter, right? Hard to get to and cant see directly... gonna shove my phone down in there and take a bunch pics.. hopefully one catches the serial number....

 

[DDameron]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

P.P.S What is this "AQ 130" etc. I keep hearing people call their Volvo Penta's? How do I obtain this model specific information for mine?

 

[Bondo]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

P.P.S What is this "AQ 130" etc. I keep hearing people call their Volvo Penta's? How do I obtain this model specific information for mine?

Ayuh,... It's a much older motor, by Volvo... Irrelevant to you, yer's is Chevy powered...

 

[Bondo]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

Ok, so in my first post on iboats, I warned that I would ask some stupid questions... so here goes for my first few "I R Smart" questions...

I purchased this boat September 2012 (2001 Glastron 229 GS w/ a Volvo Penta 5.0 GL & an SX outdrive) & the seller had zero paperwork for past maintenance and no original documentation other than title and registration. I have no owners manual, operators manual, maintenance schedule etc. NOW, I believe I have found them by way of reading 100+ posts on here and seeing Don S' suggested links... but I cannot be sure as I do not have the serial number off the 305, 5.0 GL motor that's in it. I just downloaded what I thought sounded like my make/model/motor,... if I have the wrong documents, I'm not very knowledgeable about someone else's boat!

So here goes... and if these questions cannot be answered without knowing the serial number, I will attempt to ram my smartphone down there and get a photo of up under the rear right side tomorrow, where I believe the serial plate is...

I R Smart Question #1
I intend to change the oil in this boat tomorrow... It's just a GM motor, right?... I can use regular Castrol GTX SAE 10-W30, part synthetic oil... right? I chose part synthetic because I have no clue what the previous owner was thinking, but I bought the oil change canister and removed 12 quarts from this motor!! Yeah... calls for 5 at most... so I'm thinking they had no clue what they were doing and may have used regular motor oil, or may have used synthetic... (did Glastron have a super-dooper sized oil pan option in 2001? haha) to ease the transition and be safe, I chose partial synthetic this time, & next time I will go full synthetic... is this wise / safe? The Volvo dealer claims I must use Volvo specific SAE 30 full synthetic oil... I'm no genius, but if it's a GM motor... how is this a necessity?

I R Smart Question #2
Because the only thing I could find on iboats regarding a suggested oil filter, was a part number, which didn't match NAPA's identification, I chose to search a 2001 GMC truck with a 305... and went with that oil filter, which is a FRAM PH5... is this acceptable? I haven't taken the old one off yet due to wanting to know Q#1 is acceptable first.

I R Smart Question #3
I pulled all 8 spark plugs and and checked their gap... previous owner had them gapped at 0.030 to 0.045! ...yeah, welcome to my world! I'm a landscape architect and a shadetree mechanic at best, and even I know this variation is a wrong. I will give them this, they had the good plugs (from what I've read and seen others say)... they had the NGK BPR6EFS... so I purchased the exact same for replacement. I'm not sure if there is a way to check if a spark plug is still good or not, so I just bought all new. Question is, what should they be gapped at? Out of the box, I'm seeing 0.035. The manual I downloaded, if the right one, says 0.35 is correct.

I R Smart Question #4
I'll post a pic of this... "thing" I noticed dangling off a bracket attached to the motor... I believe it is an audible alarm, for temp, oil pressure etc... but again, due to not having the proper documentation for this boat, I cannot be sure... photo below... is that the alarm I am thinking of? Is there a way to test it to see if it's working? Can I silicone it back to that bracket due to the plastic cracked and broken? Also, why would Volvo put an audible alarm in the engine compartment and not at the helm? If there's a problem with MY boat, I want it to slap me in the face!

I R Smart Question #5
The float stuck open on me and flooded the motor... wouldn't start and probably vapor locked if I had to guess after trying to kick it over and getting barely one revolution, all the way down to just a loud tick... just bought a new battery today... I think I killed the other one! I took the plugs out and cleared the cylinders of all the fuel by kicking it over a few times, then left the plugs out (motor covered and wires coded with numbers) all week to dry out. Question is, should I rebuild this little 2 barrel Holley or just shoot some carb cleaner in the fuel entry line? Kit is $37 so if iboats feels I should rebuild it for the confidence, that's what'll get done.

I R Smart Question #6
I have one trim cylinder that is leaking... been that way since day one and had this boat on the water 4 times; salt water. I have just been topping it off once a day after initially researching the price of a new cylinder because apparently Mr. Volvo has more money than God and feels you should too... $480 for a new cylinder and no rebuild option. However, I read on iboats somewhere that there is a rebuild kit that applies to this specific Volvo Penta SX (I think it's a Cobra) outdrive (pic below).... I cannot for the life of me find that post again... can someone enlighten me on this kit? I remember it was like $30 or so.

I R Smart Question #7
I have 3 gauges not working: Oil Pressure, Trim & Fuel... corroded a little on a couple connection points on the backside of the instrument cluster. Cleaned them and cannot tell you if they work yet, cuz I'm waiting for answers to previous questions before I can attempt to run the motor ...if they're still bad, how much for an instrument panel? I'm looking on Ebay and none too excited about the prices... I'm frugal as all get-up :laugh: I realize these are fairly important gauges, but I'm also obsessive compulsive and a walking gauge myself... always listening for ticks, winding or anything unhealthy sounding... so knowing I will never have the RPM above 4000 and just make sure I am always top off the gas and listen carefully, I should be good till I find a decent deal on a new cluster... if that's even the issue. Is there a way to check if it's the gauge or not?

Ok, so there ya have it... my stupid questions. Please let me know at your earliest convenience on ANY of this as I intend to change the oil and plugs tomorrow, 2/9/2013

All help is greatly appreciated!
DDameron

View attachment 181304View attachment 181305View attachment 181306

P.S. Pic A7; the serial number plate for the motor is somewhere around that oil filter, right? Hard to get to and cant see directly... gonna shove my phone down in there and take a bunch pics.. hopefully one catches the serial number....

Ayuh,... IRSQ #1,... Run whatever oil trips yer trigger,... None of 'em are gonna Hurt it...

IRSQ #2,... It's a standard Chevy oil filter.... I prefer Napa Gold filters, but if ya like Fram, go for it...

IRSQ #3,... I believe those plugs cross to the AC Delco, MR43LTS which is the Right plugs...

IRSQ #4,... Donno...

IRSQ #5,... Carbs don't Fix themselves, Yes, try rebuildin' it...

IRSQ #6,... If it's leakin' oil out, it's most likely leakin' saltwater In,... Fix it anyway ya can...

IRSQ #7,... Get a Test Light, or Multimeter, 'n Test 'em out, before just replacin' stuff...

 

[Don S]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

Yes going to need the serial number of full model number, because it looks more like a 2000 motor than a 2001. You have a gray engine that makes it 1994 to 2000, but they didn't have red intakes.

1. If you don't want to use the oil recommended by Volvo, the use what ever you want, if you want to discuss which type is best, then do that in another thread over in the IO non repair forum. There are already about a hundred different threads there on which oil.

2. The oil filter is the same as it would be on a Chevy truck of that year.

3. The NGK BPR6EFS plugs are fine, or the AC MR43LTS, gap is 35.

4. It's the alarm horn, they had them on the engine in 2000 (not 2001 another clue) it's broken.

5. It's hydrolocked (not vapor locked) pull the spark plugs and crank the engine over to get the gas out of the cylinders. Remove the purple wire from the coil before you crank the engine over. You don't need the plug wires sparking while you are squirting gas out of the plug holes.

6. I have no idea.

7. Probably not the gauges, you need to start a new thread here in the Volvo forum so the answers don't get all confused with the other half dozen or so questions jammed in this question. The gas gauge isn't volvo, look in the sticky in the Electric forum on troubleshooting the gas gauge. Common question in that forum.

Also spend some time up in the sticky at the top of this forum. All sorts of info you need, you just don't know it yet.

AQ130 is a very old type of model number designation, this should help explain it further

View attachment P-00-0-3 How to ID VP engines NEW.pdf

 

[DDameron]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

Thanks for all the replies and advice regarding my random questions. I successfully removed the 12 quarts of oil from the block... may have been overfilled due to sitting for a couple months of my attempting to start it here and there and filling the cylinders with fuel, without actually starting it... in the process of removing the old oil, towards the end of the 12 quarts, there was a lot of fuel...

So, engine oil removed, and old plugs removed, cylinders cleared out, (good call on the purple coil wire! I would have absolutely overlooked that and possibly not be posting a reply today ) ...cleaned the old plugs, regapped at 35, reinstalled, and time to remove the old oil filter... apparently it was too difficult for the previous owner or mechanic, cuz it looked like the original filter...it was tightened on there so tight, I literally had to manufacture my own breaker-bar oil filter wrench to get the leverage to remove it... attempted to puncture and use a screwdriver, but that was just shredding it... in the end, oil filter off, new one 3/4 turn tightened on...

New oil in.. old plugs back in until I know it's running good... attempt to start it... starts right up! Runs for 10-15sec and dies... flooded. Fuel is dumping in the carb! time to take apart the bowl float in the Holley... was lucky to salvage the gasket so wasn't necessary to rebuild the carb just yet... float was off the pin and jammed at an angle, not allowing it to move... (not sure how this could have happened! Last time on the water, and just before it died, I was going 47mph, 4,000RPM, and I threw it in neutral. A rush of water came over the back of the boat and I saw a little steam... hasn't ran since.. assumed it was wet electrical and called SeaTow. Not sure how this sudden stop could have jolted the float enough to throw it off the pivet point) reinstalled it correctly... reassembled the carb,... bam, started right up and running like a top again.

In regards to the leaking trim cylinder, still leaking, none at salvage yard and haven't found the section of iboats where the kit was mentioned, yet.... still looking.. will eventually find it.

I am going to start reading in the electrical section of this forum to troubleshoot the 3 gauges that are not operating... wish me luck!

Thanks for all the help here! Tell your bosses you all need raises!
DDameron

 

[Don S]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

I am going to start reading in the electrical section of this forum to troubleshoot the 3 gauges that are not operating... wish me luck!

Just the gas gauge in the electrical section, the others are engine specific. Just start a thread on the oil and temp gauges here in the Volvo forum for help.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

You also don't need an entire cluster if one, two or even three gauges are dead. They can be replaced individually. If you insist on exact replacements then check Great Lakes Skipper for new old stock gauges.

 

[superpop]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

If you really pulled 12 Quarts of oil out of the motor, and what looked like gas was in there is well, are you sure you did not mistake the gas for water. I am concerned that your block was full of water and oil, not gas and oil. Even if the previous owner had 7 quarts of oil in the pan, 5 more on top of that is a lot of gas, are you sure it was not water. Have you ran the motor up to temp for several minutes, just to make sure you do not have a bigger issue.

 

[DDameron]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

If you really pulled 12 Quarts of oil out of the motor, and what looked like gas was in there is well, are you sure you did not mistake the gas for water. I am concerned that your block was full of water and oil, not gas and oil. Even if the previous owner had 7 quarts of oil in the pan, 5 more on top of that is a lot of gas, are you sure it was not water. Have you ran the motor up to temp for several minutes, just to make sure you do not have a bigger issue.

I had the same concern.. I assure you, it was gas and not water.. I thoroughly checked this out. The oil was mixed where gas would break the components of oil down, whereas the water would not... I also drained this into a clear container and let it sit overnight. The water would have separated; it ended up being fuel.

I believe the previous owner was just a few fries short of a happy meal and kept adding oil and hadn't the foggiest idea how to remove it.

I ran this boat to temp (approximately 170 reading) and continued to run it, on the muffs, for 30min at idle for the majority of time and revving the motor on occasion, this passed Saturday, and the motor maintained the correct temp. It ran like a champ... I was tickled pink!

After running the engine for a long period of time, I checked for oil, water, fluid leaks, by shoving my smartphone down every open area, while the Skype application was video camming with a friends smartphone... this allowed me to look all around, up, down, sideways... live... and check for leaks, potential issues, discrepancies etc.

I thought this was kind of en-genius to use two smartphones and today's technology to my advantage... try it sometime, in areas you are unable to see without pulling the motor ...made the project much easier and gave me the confidence I needed to set this boat afloat next weekend for a 'cleaning out the cobwebs' run out on the gulf!

DDameron

 

[DDameron]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

In regards to the leaking trim cylinder, still leaking, none at salvage yard and haven't found the section of iboats where the kit was mentioned, yet.... still looking.. will eventually find it.

The OMC trim cylinder reseal kit part number is 985060 (cost is $27.25 plus tax) compared to a new Volvo SX trim cylinder which is ($472.50 plus tax each)...

 

[Senior B]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

If you're going to rebuild the cylinder, get yourself a 1.5 inch open face pin style spanner wrench to take the end caps off. They're quite easy to re-build. If you do a search on them here, there are many threads from others who have done them.

 

[DDameron]

Re: 2001 Glastron 229 GS, Volvo Penta 5.0 GL - Few Random ??'s

If you're going to rebuild the cylinder, get yourself a 1.5 inch open face pin style spanner wrench to take the end caps off. They're quite easy to re-build. If you do a search on them here, there are many threads from others who have done them.

Yes, I researched and found a few for approximately $35-$60... so I just built my own with a 1/4" pin and 3" width... a couple drilled holes & a few spot welds, and wallah, Spanner wrench... works like a charm.