Re: lost coolant, milky motor oil
the coolant in the freezer FROZE!!!! so there's my answer!
I'm guessing the heat exchanger is shot and mixed enough raw water into coolant, diluting it enough to freeze.
so when I pull this motor what is a nice newer motor that would bolt up to the 280 transom plate/housing? AQ171?
What's the temp in your freezer VS how cold it gets outside? Freezers can get awful cold, then again, so can Canada...
Pressure test the closed side of the cooling system. Put it under 15lbs of pressure, and let it set for a while. If the pressure drops (especially rapidly), you have a leak. Crack the drain bolt on the oil pan open just enough to allow a little dribble. If water or coolant is present in the oil, it will be at the bottom of the pan, and you will have a good chance of seeing it by cracking the drain plug free.
If results are inconclusive, try this. Put oil in the engine, start it up, and run it to full temp for a while. Shut it off, and let it sit overnight. Repeat the procedure on cracking the drain plug on the oil pan to see if water or coolant has separated to the bottom of the pan.
As far as the "Frost Plug" fix, bare in mind that what everybody calls a Frost/Freeze plug isn't really called that by the engineers who design motors. Their actual name is Core plug. Their sole purpose is just blocking off the holes used by the foundry to remove the sand from the block after it was cast. They were not intended to save the block from a freeze, and often times it has been illustrated right here in Iboats how ineffective they are at their rumored job.
As far as re-powering, you would either need to get an engine similar to yours, or a complete engine/drive package. The 171 is NOT a good option. Parts for it are obsolete, and expensive when found.
