did i blow my motor up?

[gatortrax1]

i just bought a 1989 evinrude 88spl. i rebuilt the carbs and put new plugs in and had it idleing and running fine on the muffs in the driveway. i put it in the water for its maiden voyage. about 2 min underway i get the overheating alarm. so i shut down and drift for a few. 20 min later i fire back up and make a line for the landing. half way there it just boggs down and dies. no start. the starter spins but wont turn over the motor. after getting home i put a wrench on the big bolt on top of the flywheel. it still turns the motor over. and now it will run on the hose. it has to be coaxed to start though. im picking up a new inpeller on my way home today. what other areas should i be looking at?

 

[Sixmark]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

i just bought a 1989 evinrude 88spl. i rebuilt the carbs and put new plugs in and had it idleing and running fine on the muffs in the driveway. i put it in the water for its maiden voyage. about 2 min underway i get the overheating alarm. so i shut down and drift for a few. 20 min later i fire back up and make a line for the landing. half way there it just boggs down and dies. no start. the starter spins but wont turn over the motor. after getting home i put a wrench on the big bolt on top of the flywheel. it still turns the motor over. and now it will run on the hose. it has to be coaxed to start though. im picking up a new inpeller on my way home today. what other areas should i be looking at?

Yep, you got it very hot, did you check for proper water flow before running it on the lake?.......Other than the impeller, you will also need to test your thermostat, and I would suggest doing a compression test on each cylinder before running it again as you may have wrecked a head gasket in the process. You are also going to have to inspect the motor closely for new leaks, because when they get that hot it tends to play hell on gaskets all the way around.

If you got lucky then you didn't damage the electronics, but check out the other items first and go from there.

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

thanks, i will do that. is it possiable that the overheat alarm blew up?

 

[Sixmark]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

The alarm doesn't exactly blow up, it's just a buzzer in your control box, but you could have cooked the sending unit for it, which is usually located in the head on the motor.

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

ok im also going to pick up the thermostats and required gaskets on my way home as well. should i rebuild the water pump while im in there? and what should i be reading when i do the compression check?

 

[Eat Red Snapper]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

I wouldnt go as far as replacing the impellor, unless the motor is not peeing. Check the line to see if its not clogged with bugs or their nest. If the motor is 'peeing' water is circulating. If you dont have proper oil it will also sound alarm and, I wouldnt mess with the gaskets unless necessary either. If you can run it on the muffs-smoothly, then theres no water in your cylinders, however, youwill see water leaking out from under water plate if gasket is bad there, may take the motor to heat up before water is pushed out......not sure how much compression, over 125 psi or so,yours is probably 145 to 160 ?, if psi is w/in 10 or 12 psi of each other, its ok, just my 2 cents...

 

[Sixmark]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

Seeing how you just bought this motor, I wouldn't go buying a bunch of parts for it until you have tested the old parts.

You can test your t-stats by putting them in water heated to the opening point of the t-stats, the temp may be stamped on your old ones. If they are stamped 160 degrees then put them in water and heat it to around 160 and see if they open.

As Snapper stated check the tell tale spout , hose and fittings for blockages, if they are clear, it would be good to inspect the water pump assembly and impeller, and be sure to change out the lower unit grease while you are at it.

Personally whenever I buy a motor, I don't believe a thing the previous owner says that was repaired or replaced unless he has valid documentation to prove it and I can see the work was actually done. So plan on doing at least the basics even if they said they did it before you bought it.

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

ok i got a bunch of stuff for free from one of the old guys i work with. its hard to believe that its all for my motor. i got an impeller and 2 thermostats. ill have to pick up the gaskets. im going to put these in either today or tomm. is there any thing else i should be looking at? checking?

 

[Dhadley]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

A compression test is the next step - before you do anything else.

Also, what spark plugs did you use?

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

the champion whatever the part number is...the oe ones

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

ok i did a compression check and on 3cyl i got 90psi. and one 1 i got 70psi. the one with the lower reading im suspecting it needs a head gasket. it just looks like theirs a few small holes in it. the other side still looks solid. i ordered both just cause. is 90psi normal for this motor 1989 88spl.

 

[pmosier]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

I have 125 on all 4 in my 1976 85 hp......sounds low to me. According to the manual, 100 psi is the threshold, and no more than 15 psi variance. The manual covers up through 1990 and just has a section covering all motors, not specs for each individual motor.

 

[northwoodslivin]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

You could try decarbing your motor using sea foam "get the aerosol version and spray through carb throats using directions" If your rings are slightly stuck, this will unstick them in most cases" Also replace that impeller for sure and retorque your head gasket and take another reading after all is done, do the decarb at least twice, letting the stuff sit in your motor for at least 1 hour each time, replace with new plugs after.

Good luck!

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

i just did new head gaskets and now im getting 90 in all cyl. ill try that seafoam thing tomm.

 

[jgriner]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

ok i did a compression check and on 3cyl i got 90psi. and one 1 i got 70psi. the one with the lower reading im suspecting it needs a head gasket. it just looks like theirs a few small holes in it. the other side still looks solid. i ordered both just cause. is 90psi normal for this motor 1989 88spl.

im not a mechanic but after doing a lot of reading on the forums i belive that you will find that the psi is not the biggest factor, the biggest thing to look for is that they all are close to the same psi, with-in 7 -10 %

All psi readings should be within a 10-15% span.

* It has no effect to open the throttle.
* Don't get psi hysteria. Remember this is a 2 stroke engine and you are an amatuer at compression testing.
* Rope start engines will usually give lower psi readings than your know-it-all neighbor claims are required. Same for big JohnnyRude V6s

quote from http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=313963&highlight=compression top secret files sticky - compression test


yours is about 20% as i stated not a mechanic so i dont know how bad the 70psi compaired to 90 psi on others is

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

well its running strong now so im gonna let it be. at least untill the duck season is over. hopefully it will last. i completely redid the cooling system. tons of sand in there. thanks to all who chimed in to help me out. hopefully i can return the favor someday.

 

[northwoodslivin]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

I still highly recommend decarbing your motor, if anything go get some sea foam in the can and add a half bottle to a full tank of gas and it will clean up your motor "you will notice dark black nasty stuff coming out of your weep holes etc" that is all the carbon being taken out of your motor.

Glad to see you got your issues taken care of!

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

had it in that water. ran like a top. i plan on running a half bottle of seafoam in my 3gal tank underway this week to try to clean it the rest of the way out. dont worry ill be taking more gas of course. i just want to get the most cleanage as possible.

 

[gatortrax1]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

ok so i was running it again today and i ran it about 3/4 throttle for about 30-45 min. then came back to the landing for a cold one. the i ran 3/4 throttle again for about an hour then my over heating alarm came back on. so i throttled down to idle speed and about 5min went by and the alarm goes off. so i pick back up speed to get back towards the landing. and it comes back on after about 5 min of run time. so same thing slowed down and it went away then speed back up and it comes back on. this is not making sense to me.

 

[wilde1j]

Re: did i blow my motor up?

Some of the things which may cause overheating following water pump service:

a) pump not assembled correctly
b) you missed the pump outlet with the water tube
c) the grommet in the pump outlet got folded over during final assembly
d) incorrect parts used
e) pump body not well sealed to wear plate
f) pump housing or wear plate scored (if complete kit not installed)
g) pump air bleed hole plugged
h) water not deep enough for the pump to do its thing
i) debris stuck in water passages
j) stuck thermostat or vernitherm

Did you replace only the impeller? What was the condition of wear plate and liner or housing?