Question about audible alarm

[ChrisCraftFan]

I have a 2000 Volvo Penta 5.7Gsi. I am finally getting back to some repairs and maintenance. One thing that always bugged me was the audible alarm system on this engine. I have never heard a beep or anything when starting up. I just bought this boat last year and i have never heard anything. I used a mefi 3 scanner from ODB Diagnostics and found a low engine oil warning but no codes. I do notice when running over 3000 rpm for awhile and then bringing to idle the Oil pressure drops way down. (I mean make me nervous low) If i bring it up over 1000 rpm it comes up and eventually will come back to normal range even at idle.

I was wondering if there is something up with my alarm? does anyone know how to test my current alarm to see if it is working?
Also anyone with thoughts on the oil pressure dropping after high rpm and then idle I would appreciate that as well.

Thanks everyone!

 

[alldodge]

Verify it is low oil pressure and not a bad sensor. Connect a mechanical hand held gauge and measure to verify

What type and weight oil are you using?

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

Straight 30 weight.oil. I was thinking sensor at first as well. started to worry that the dash gauge seems low and the fact that i got the warning message when i read the Mefi scan tool. Seems that both might not be bad but maybe they are. Was hoping an alarm would warn if really bad. Just don't know if it works. I hope it is nothing too bad. It does come back after running idle for a bit. I have a lot of no wake areas so it has time to settle back in when i come off the throttle. Just worried about the time when i first come off throttle.

 

[alldodge]

I don't understand the VP 30W oil thing, the VP and Merc are the same motor.

Suggest using a hand held gauge and see if your getting 10 pounds or pressure for each 1000 rpms

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

Will do!
Not sure what you mean by the VP 30W thing?? I had to search for that straight 30W ended up ordering it from NAPA.

I am guessing that at 1000 rpm I am at or close to 10. its just at 600 -800 i am maybe dropping to 6 after dropping Rpm down??? I should get a good gauge, the one i have is not detailed. It has a 0 mark, a line i am guessing is 20, then the a number 40 etc. I will try for a more accurate gauge. suggestions welcome.! Would love to have a more accurate gauge in the dash if at all possible

How low is too low.

 

[alldodge]

Merc recommends 15W40 and I use to use 40W since I only boat in warm weather.
These are GM truck motors, and their not that close toleranced IMO but muc will have the VP take

After repower, I'm running higher weight due to more HP

 

[Lubak572]

What scan tool do you have? My rinda has a test function for the alarm I believe. Stock analog gauges suck, your scan tool also should have real time accurate readings for oil pressure, etc..

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

I have the Mefiscan3 tool. I have not had it hooked up when out running around. That may end up being what I am needing and then play it back. Just need to have my laptop hooked up and running when out I guess

 

[muc]

The O.P. doesn't provide enough information to give a good answer to their questions. There are many different warning horn systems and 2000 5.7GSi isn't enough.
1. serial number
or next best
2. product number
or next best
3. product designation, as in 5.7GSI with more letters

Here is some general oil advise.
When it comes to oil, it's best to start with the operators manual for recommendations. If you don't have one, Volvo will normally provide an electronic copy for free. Use this link to find yours.

https://www.volvopenta.com/marineleisure/en-en/for-owners/your-engine/manuals---handbooks.html

The next place to check is has Volvo changed their recommendation? Yes they have. This is covered in parts bulletin P-18-3-6 I don't know if this bulletin is available electronically to anybody other than Volvo dealers. Your dealer might be willing to provide you with a copy of it. Volvo now recommends their top of the line full synthetic 10W/40, they also offer a semi-synthetic 25W/50 for people who shop by price rather than value. Their third option is a 10W/30 mineral oil that is only used as a break-in oil on legacy engines.

Something interesting: around 2000 Volvo didn't recommend SAE 30 oil unless it was their full synthetic oil. If you wanted to use something other then their oil, the recommendation was different. Most likely a 20W/50 or a 15W/50.
Something else is the automotive vs marine oil debate. Many years ago the engine manufacturers started using and recommending FC-W rated oils. I’m told that this was because cars run at higher temperatures and lower loads then marine engines. The oil manufacturers were changing the formula to meet the needs of cars and this was causing marine engines to wear faster. So the marine manufacturers came up with a new formula that would better serve their customers. How much of that is true? I have no idea. What I can say is that since that change in oil, the only time I see engines with low oil pressure or worn out rocker arms and pushrods are always engines that hadn’t been using premium FC-W oil since they were new.

The oil pressure symptoms you describe are usually due to cheap oil that has broken down or caused excessive wear. But further testing needs to be done to be sure.

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

From the sticker on the engine:

5.7GSI PEFS
4012018939
3869059

I had looked up the oil and 30 weight synthetic was what is was to use so that is what I used. oil has maybe 40-50 hours on it.
Its always warm down here in south west Florida so maybe i should try something else.

As for those manuals I looked there previously and they are about $60 each. there are I think 4 of them. Not sure it would be worth it so i didn't pull the trigger. I found a few others on line but the only real good one I have is for the DP drive.

 

[muc]

Yes they charge for the workshop manuals (I think they are worth it, those old manuals had a lot of theory of operation in them and the total cost is less then one service call) but the operators manual is free.

Thank you for the numbers. Makes this so much easier.

You might not have a warning horn, it was an option for your engine. The wiring and circuitry are there if you want to add it.

Low oil pressure will NOT set a code or sound the warning horn on your engine. Low oil pressure (less then 4psi) and high temp (over 200°) will put the engine into engine protection mode or it is sometimes called S.L.O.W. Read your operators manual on how it works and how to reset it. Volvo used 2 versions of this protection system, both of them limit RPMs to 2500. one of them required a key off to reset the other version just needed RPMs to drop below 1200. I don't know which one you have. If you want to test the system, find the oil pressure SWITCH. It will have a single tan with black stripe wire going to it. Disconnect that wire and run try to run the engine over 2500 RPM under load.

Your ECM doesn't monitor oil pressure, so no scan tool will read your oil pressure. You need a good mechanical test gauge to do that.

800 RPM ...................................................................... 15-30 PSI (103-207 kPa)
2000 RPM ....................................................................40-60 PSI (276-414 kPa)

Engine idle speed should be 600 RPM use the scan tool to confirm it's not to low.

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

Well. I got back to work on the boat today. It worked fine last use, i was able to load on trailer and when i got home I flushed it out. (Not the flush that you run the engine the one that is hooked up to the bottom of the block. Anyway. Super bad news is that it was locked up today.

Pulled the outdrive to see if that was it. No issues there. Pulled spark plugs —- basically the entire right side (1,3,5,7) had water in them. It actually ran out of 1 and 5. It’s been sitting like that for at least a month, I didn’t know,

I am thinking no way back from that. The left side had no water. I have new exhaust manifolds and risers. Maybe 50 hours on them. Flush every use.
I am thinking just put a rebuilt long block in. I am thinking with the oil pressure issues and now this water in the cylinders for over 30 days 600 hours on salt water, 20 years old, That is my best route. If i am wrong please advise. I want to have a reliable engine after all this. Kind of a rough day!

 

[dypcdiver]

I feel your pain. Best of luck with your rebuild.

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

Okay so not much sleep and started thinking i better find the way water arrived in the there. Should i do some sort of test on exhaust manifolds before I separate them from the risers? How can i tell if it came from there? They only have 40 - 50 hours on them but i guess you never know. I did flush after every use. 90% of those flushes I used salt away. Just want to make sure I don’t do the same thing to a new engine. How do i figure out for sure where this water came from?

 

[alldodge]

Water in one side but not the other and they are new, I'm thinking a gasket issue.
Are they VP exhaust or aftermarket?
If aftermarket was flatness checked and which gasket was used?

If gaskets were leaking there should be signs when separated

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

They are Barr manifolds and i used the gaskets that came with I think they were green and i used Permatex Aviation Sealant on them. no scientific test for flatness just a straight edge. Seemed fine for 40 hours but,,,,, Maybe i should get some oil in those cylinders. maybe engine can be saved if its the manifold/riser??? I was thinking salt water did some unthinkable damage to the block or heads. It seems that the water came in when i flushed it. Ran good when i loaded on trailer. flushed when i got home and 30 days later found it locked up and water in it.

 

[muc]

First things first. ASAP suck a little oil out the dip stick to see if any water got into the crankcase before you crank it, get the water out, oil the cylinders and run the engine. At this point, you still don't know how bad this engine is. Iv'e seen small block chevys run for many years with very low oil pressure at idle. And you still don't know how low that pressure is.

Next is how did the water get there? You said that you used the block flush hose this last time? Have you used this before? The reason I ask is because I don't think your engine should have that feature, I don't think it was used until the next version of that model. If it was added at some point, brings up the question. Is that flush system compatible with the exhaust manifolds you have? I don't know if Volvo changed the manifolds when they added that system. Maybe Barr would? Next question is how did you flush it? Was the bow down when flushing? I'm Minnesota so have never used this system. But Volvo only used this style for 1-2 years (I'm assuming because there were problems with it) it might be possible that with the boat bow down water filled the cylinders when you flushed.

I don't know much about salt water. But I always thought how many years the manifolds have been in service is way more important then how many hours.

If you do need a new engine. I'm a fan of having EFI engines rebuilt instead of buying a reman engine. This increases the chance that the program in the ECM will be correct for your new engine. I've seen a lot of problems when somebody upgrades from a 305 to 350, switches to Vortec heads or installs a different cam. And it's almost always cheaper.

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

Thanks!!! I will take a look at the oil and see.I would absolutely love to know how the water got there.

The flush system has been there since they got it in 2000. Its a hose connection at the back of the transom above the swim platform area. I bought it from a teacher in Cape Coral that said they have flushed after each use right on their boat lift for 19 years. While I am not sure they actually did flush it every time. I do believe the flushing system has been there for 20 years. It goes from the hose connection in the back, tee's off to both sides of the block and into the drain holes there. Its not intended to flush with the motor running.

I have added "blue cap" flush system as well so i could actually run the motor and flush it. but that was not the one i used, I used the original flush as i have many times. (The Blue cap system is simply a Tee into the water supply from the out-drive feeding the raw water pump) I flushed the same way I always do. on the trailer just about level. Maybe bow up just a little so water drains out the back if rain happens to get in the boat

As for rebuild I have been told that an engine run in salt water for 20 years is not a candidate for a rebuild. Too much corrosion.. The last guy I talked with said he uses the same cam for exactly that reason. Same block number and same heads - long block for about $2300. I will have to see if the intake has any corrosion hopefully I can use that. Oil pan can hopefully be reused as well. I guess they are unusual as well?

The oil pressure is(was) only low when coming off high RPM. It would settle back in after idling for awhile. I was going to try a 20-50 OR 15-50 oil to see if it helped. I am now worried that my cylinders have rusted from sitting a month.

Oh and i was born and raised in Minnesota. Back then i had a couple wooden Chris Crafts. an 18 foot 1953 Riviera and 27 foot 1956 Sedan Cruiser. Both had the old flat head Hercules engines. Ahhh Minnesota summers are the best!

 

[ChrisCraftFan]

Okay sucked out lots of water in pan before i got to oil. turned it over to get water ot of cylinders and it never seemed to stop.

So I disconnected the exhaust manifold and riser and pulled it a couple inches away from the head. Then turned on the flush water again. Water came out of the exhaust port on the head so I think I can eliminate the manifold and risers as the culprit. Could be head gasket or head cracked no way to tell. I just think my Dad was watching over me to get me home and on the trailer before she went!! (He is the one that got me into this boating madness anyway LOL)

So I am back to thinking new long block. for the money i think its best. By the time I pull the heads and figure it all out i am pretty invested and still have a 20 year old engine. maybe just bite the bullet on this one. When I am cruising in the gulf of mexico i may be happy I have a new engine.
Thanks for the Help everyone. Not sure there is any question anymore. (Maybe on removal but that can wait a little.)

 

[alldodge]

Agree, something is cracked, need new motor