170 water in oil

[Redkneck]

So yesterday I got my electrical issues fixed, ended up bring the slave solenoid. Cranked up ok, but after a few minutes of running I killed it and pulled the filter and there's a lot of water in it.

Brief history, I picked the boat up pretty cheap, PO stated it just needed a starter. I replaced the starter and solenoid and sure enough it ran. I think he put one over on me, but I knew when I bought it I could pretty much part it out and get my money back, our close to it. My friend had a 165 that was flooding with water and ended up being the water pump gasket.

Any suggestions? I'll put two or three hundred more into it but this is not the kind of boat I would put more into.

Thanks in advance - John

 

[Maclin]

Re: 170 water in oil

Those engines have a tendency to leak coolant past cam bearing seals into the crankcase. They have some other not-so-good tendencies also If you do a search here (170,470,3.7lx)you will find out more than you probably want to know right now.

I am not an expert but have read a lot about those here and other sites. They are powerful and there are some upgrades and fixes to all of their inherent problems. Others here will respond shortly I am sure, and you will get some clearer idea of how to diagnose and fix your issues.

There is a fix for the cam sealing if that is your problem. Those engines also had too small of a heat exchanger in earlier models, those can be upgraded to a 4" from the 3". They also have an outboard style "alternator" with a stator and magnets around the inside of the big balancer thingy on the front. Not only is that setup weak for charging, the magnets tend to come unglued and cause problems. There is an alternator upgrade for it, but you should also get the magnets off and that can be a chore.

The head and block are not the same metal and that causes head gasket sealing problems later in their life due to the differing rates of heat expansion, but also because the head "floats" meaning no dowels or other head-to-block locating method. Again, all fixable but only if caught in time to avoid collateral damage.

Again, I am only regurgitating what I have learned from other's posting their misfortunes and the response to those from the more experienced here.

Yours may just need the one thing fixed, or you could find it has "layers" of other problems. Right now focus on the water in oil intrusion. Learn all you can and be ready for some more preventative checking and changing out stuff.

Good luck, hope you can get out on the water without a major cash infusion needed and have some fun this season!

 

[Redkneck]

Re: 170 water in oil

Thank you. That's where I am now, trying the "one fix at a time" approach. I have been reading about the issues with this unit. I just need to know how to diagnose cam seal leak vs other leaks.

 

[stonyloam]

Re: 170 water in oil

First off, assuming we are talking about a 4 cylinder here. Is it water in the oil or antifreeze? If antifreeze, get it out of there NOW it will take out your engine bearings in a hurry. With the engine running, do you see antifreeze leaking out of the little weep hole on the lower starboard side of the engine waterpump? If not, one of two things, either the cam seals are NOT leaking or the weep hole is plugged. Locate the weep hole and make sure it is clear, some owners unwisely try to stop the leak by plugging the hole, and that just forces leaking coolant into the crankcase. If it is antifreeze and the seals are not leaking then look to the head gasket. Do a compression test and cooling system pressure check (borrow the tools from Autozone), those tests will allow you to determine the condition of the headgasket. If it is water and not antifreeze and it is not very much water, it may just be condensation as it is very difficult for the raw water to get into the oil under any circumstance. Good luck.

 

[Redkneck]

Re: 170 water in oil

Thank you stonyloam!

I'm still evaluating the situation now.

 

[Redkneck]

Re: 170 water in oil

Finally got the oil dragoon plug out that had rounded off and almost nothing came out! I cranked it with the oil Level correct. So not only do I have water in the oil but levels of coolant and oil are dropping, how can this be?

Have not pressure tested cylinders yet. I can watch water drop out of the oil drain plug hole when I add water to engine.

Thoughts?

 

[stonyloam]

Re: 170 water in oil

Finally got the oil dragoon plug out that had rounded off and almost nothing came out! I cranked it with the oil Level correct. So not only do I have water in the oil but levels of coolant and oil are dropping, how can this be?

Have not pressure tested cylinders yet. I can watch water drop out of the oil drain plug hole when I add water to engine.

Thoughts?

WHAT IS A DRAGOON PLUG I am not familiar with that term? Are you talking about the oil drain plug in the oil pan? The oil level is correct on the dipstick? What year is the engine? If the water is going directly into the crankcase, and not dripping out of the waterpump weep hole, seems like it must be a bad headgasket.

 

[Redkneck]

Re: 170 water in oil

Holy crap what smartphone auto correct will do! Lol "DRAIN"

I saw no water from the weep hole. I'll have to check the serial numbers on the block to a what year. And yes, oil was topped of prior to running. Losing oil and coolant water quickly, must be blowing out the exhaust. Looks like I need to pull the tank off the manifold to get the plugs out? I'll try to pressure test this evening.

Thanks again Stony

 

[Redkneck]

Re: 170 water in oil

Update. Pressure tested all four between 145 and 165. Put it back together and filled with oil, put the hose on it and ran ok. No water in oil after five minutes and no coolant drop.

So... I suppose there could have been water in the crank case from the PO, but that doesn't explain how my coolant Level sank over night.

Monitoring coolant level now, I'll keep this updated.

Thank you all for the help.