mercruiser 4.70

[baggywinkles]

Am looking at buying a boat that was partially submerged (with the switch hot). The merc I/O obviously needs at least major electronic/electrical overhaul. Any ideas on the cost of this for the USA East Coast?<br /><br />Also, the stern drive leaked and the marina was not able to pull it loose from the engine to re-seal it. Any comments on what might be done here?<br /><br />The boat is a 20' Aquasport and otherwise is okay. No hull damage, canvas enclosure is good, etc. I can invest another 3-4K to get things back to normal but that's all I have for it. Ihave strong reservations about this, but am looking for an Aquasport of that size so willing to risk a little.. How would some of you feel about this boat? I know major problems only show up when you're too far offshore to limp home. That worries me some.<br />jimmy

 

[outboardguy]

Re: mercruiser 4.70

I'm assuming this boat was partially submerged in saltwater.If so I would be looking very carefully at the engine to make sure no water entered it.I'm guessing that the engine coupler is wasted or the water got up at least that high to seize the drive in place.Most likely you will be pulling the engine to replace the engine coupler.The only thing I can say about cost is that the average sinker in our freshwater ends up around 4000 to 5000 to fix,so if you save money on labor it may be worth it.

 

[DJ]

Re: mercruiser 4.70

baggywinkles,<br /><br />I would have some serious reservations about sinking that kind of $$$ into that engine/drive package.<br /><br />Can it be made serviceable? Yes, however, remember that that package has not been made for quite some time. They had their quirks too.<br /><br />For about $7-8 grand, you can repower that boat with a 4.3L V-6 and a new drive, Volvo or MerCruiser, your choice..

 

[fireship1]

Re: mercruiser 4.70

Hello, If you do the math a repower might be your best bet. The drive won't come off because the drive shaft is rusted to the gimbal bearing. When they are stuck that bad the only way to free them is to pull the engine and hammer out the bearing and shaft from inside the boat. The drive might not be worth anything once you have gone this far with trying to get it pulled off. If water entered the engine and was allowed to stay there for a little bit, you will be looking at rust and corrosion damage. You will also have posable electrical damage from the water intrusion. If the electrical system was hot during the submerge damage is very likely. So figure the engine has to be pulled and torn down, the electrical system would have to be replaced and rewired and the drive would either have to be rebuilt or at the worst replaced. When you add all of the rebuilding up with labor the repower really does make sense with all of the costs involved. If you really want to own a boat and the repower sounds like too much, look for another boat. For 3-4K you could pick up a decent used bowrider or small cuddy and have a lot less to worry about. Hope all of this helped a bit. Good luck

 

[Trent]

Re: mercruiser 4.70

Id pass...... Your going to have problems from now on with saltwater damage. Boat wiring is a big concern.

 

[baggywinkles]

Re: mercruiser 4.70

Thanks for the sound advice, guys. I'm going to keep looking for a good used open fisherman or bow rider rather a repair/repower of this one. Aquasports are my choice, but this one isn't worth the additional expense to me.<br />jimmy