Manifold & water in oil

[dgregg]

I have a 1983 WebbCraft with a 4.3L 229 V6 Mercruiser I/O. I have discovered water in my oil and a crack in both the port and starboard manifolds. I have a friend who, despite my protests, does not believe a cracked manifold can cause water to get in the oil. Can someone explain how exactly this can occur so I can prove to him I am right. Thanks!

 

[Trent]

Re: Manifold & water in oil

Your friend is WRONG.... The major cause of water intrusion is either a riser or a bad manifold. Im guessing he does not understand the cooling system.<br /><br />Risers.... web page

 

[flashback]

Re: Manifold & water in oil

Trent, can a significant amount of water get into the oil from a cracked riser, please explain, I feel a cracked block is most likely the cause.

 

[akriverrat]

Re: Manifold & water in oil

any water in oil that turns it milky is signifigant in my mind. going from fresh oil to gushing out breather in a short time will not happen from just cracked risers/manifolds/necks. that water has to leak past the rings and can do it without noticable performance loss. if cracks are from freeze damage a search of earlier posts will reveal this engine is prone to cracks in the valley under the intake manifold. that can put a lot of water in the oil in a short time. 4.3L=262 cid. 229 hp? nope-229 is odd fire buick. what engine are we realy dealing with?

 

[foresteronw]

Re: Manifold & water in oil

this may be off the wall, but is there anyway to tell if it is a cracked block by doing a simple compresion test? also is this something that could be caused by a cracked intake manifold?