89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

[rowlex]

Hey guys I am really new to boats, i have a 1989 1950 bayliner capri with a ford 302 v8 in it.

Took it out yesterday and have the following problems looking for help on them

1. There is an "oil cooler" on the back right side of the engine, this connects to a pump on the front right.... I had to remove this cooler because it had/has a pinhole leek in it. I tried to patch it but it didnt hold, however I lost some fluid out of it and re-filled it with stern drive oil--now I know im probably stupid for thinking that as I now think it is power steering oil. Any comments on this? How do I flush it? What should I put back in it?

2. When shifting from neutral to gear the engine will usually die unless I do it quickly.. this makes it tough to do anything near a dock. How do I fix that? Once warmed up the boat will idle real well, but until warm I have to keep it 1500+ rpms or else it will die.

Thanks everyone!

EDIT: from what i have read it seems this is a combo of shift cables and the ESA switch. The shift cable I believe is the "updated" newer one.

 

[rowlex]

Re: 89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

alright just in case anyone else has this problem i have found a solution to the power steering stupidity I did...

to "flush" the PS system, there is a send and return line for the oil the ps pump pumps. the send line has some pressure fittings on it the return is a hose-clamp style. Simply pull the return line off--extend it if needed and put it in a bucket to keep from spilling. Get a few quarts of power steering fluid and have it all ready to dump into the resivoir, start up the boat turn it lock to lock while keeping the PS resivour full, lock to lock 3 times should fully flush the PS fluid. Also...this stuff drains FAST...you will need to pour the new fluid in FAST...

Still working on the other problem...

 

[Coors]

Re: 89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

Your esa is not functioning, for the shifting. Search threads in here.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: 89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

Is your carb's choke operating? Probably not an ESA problem since it is fine when you are warm.

 

[Don S]

Re: 89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

Your esa is not functioning, for the shifting. Search threads in here.

Your little short, easy to type, little or no information, type posts are not the best way to up your post count. Why don't you just copy and paste "I agree" to every post.

Rowlex
Your problem with the shifting could be a worn, corroded, shift cable, sticky shift interrupt switch, faulty connections or any number of things.
Does it ever do this coming out of gear, or only going into gear. If only into gear, is it both forward and reverse?

 

[Coors]

Re: 89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

Don. I thought the search function was working.

 

[rowlex]

Re: 89 302 cobra q's regarding oil cooler and idle/shifting dying

Your little short, easy to type, little or no information, type posts are not the best way to up your post count. Why don't you just copy and paste "I agree" to every post.

Rowlex
Your problem with the shifting could be a worn, corroded, shift cable, sticky shift interrupt switch, faulty connections or any number of things.
Does it ever do this coming out of gear, or only going into gear. If only into gear, is it both forward and reverse?

thanks for the help guys!
Don, it very very rarely stalls coming out of gear, as of late i have noticed i have to pull it a little harder to get it out of gear. It will stall going into forward and reverse. If i shift "quickly" into forward or reverse it usually does not die(but will sometimes), but occasionally it will make a "thud" when i get on the throttle. Its also been hesitating once its in gear while i am trying to throttle up.

I've used the search, read about the ESA switch however i believe the esa may be working properly since it does kill some rpms when getting into gear. I am trying to narrow the problem with more experienced ideas with my specific issue.

It may also have some sort of choke issue....when warming the boat up it will usually not idle to warm i have to keep the rpms about 1100-1200 (sometimes even 1500) to get it to warm up w/o stalling. Once warm it will idle pretty well.

* the boat will also stall when it is warm when shifting into forward or reverse. If i shift slowly it will make a grinding into gear noise and/or stall, if i shift quickly it usually does alright but will also die if i am not fast to get on the gas...this makes docking it pretty tough i need this thing to run/shift all the time so i dont hit stuff...

tuesday i am going to replace the spark plugs, and check the cap/rotor. Is it best to get the expensive plugs from the boat store or just use those normally put into 302 v8 car engines?

I should probably also note that more often then not to get it restarted or to start it I have to have the throttle open a bit.