Mercruiser 470 aternator

[telstar1]

I have a well used well maintained 1989 3.7 litre MC also known as a 470. This was the last year they made this model so it is definitely late model. Anyhow I have the old "alternator magnet rattle" actually its been around for a couple of years but now I want it FIXED. Still charges and things run actually very well. My questions are as follows:Can I drive a real alt with a belt off the existing groove in the alt /vibration damper? Does anyone reglue the magnets? I think I found someone at the Vancouver BC boat show who did this but I lost the number.Anyone know anything about how these magnets are configured,last time I had wheel off everything looked normal so assumably the loose magnets are layered underneath what I can see.Id like to have a go at it but this is currently outweighed by the possibility of being BEACHED waiting for parts.A new vib damper/alt rotor is $600, A conversion kit is $600, Id like to try buying an alt and making the bracket as this would be cheap to do but wonder about the pulley question. 470s are in my opinion th best stern drive engines ever made. Any help would be appreciated

 

[Bondo]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

470s are in my opinion th best stern drive engines ever made.

Ayuh,.....

In that case,.. You shouldn't have any problem throwing $600. for the Alternator Conversion......

 

[Dakota47]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

Oh and Bayliners are the best built boat too.. Yea??

 

[bomar76]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

470s are in my opinion th best stern drive engines ever made.

ROFLMFAO......

I needed that.

 

[newbster]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

Does the **** on 470 crowd think its a decent engine if the cooling, charging, leaking cam shaft issue are dealt with?

Basically, I have a 470 in my boat with a 4 inch exchanger. It still has the stator but it works fine and the Alt conversion kit is about 300 bucks which isn't huge money. Its showing no sign of water leakage out of the cam. What bothers me with a 4.3l conversion is the additional 300lbs of weight and the same HP unless you go with MPFI. Is it really worth doing if the weaknesses of the 470 are dealt with?

What am I missing?

 

[Dakota47]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

you really think that a 470 is as powerful as a 4.3...

 

[newbster]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

470 with a 4 brl carb is 190 hp. 4.3 is 190 hp. I don't know the torque on both but given a large bore straight vs. v6 I'm guessing they are close enough to not matter much.

Am I wrong?

 

[Bondo]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

470 with a 4 brl carb is 190 hp. 4.3 is 190 hp.

Ayuh,..... My 4.3LX is 205hp.....

The Biggest, Major difference is quite Simple.......

You can Still buy any part necessary for the 4.3l....

 

[newbster]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

I don't know any better so please clue me in on what parts are not available for the 470. Isn't the pistons, rings, head a ford 460? Distributor is a Delco and replaceable, Charging system is replaceable. Are the cooling parts common items? I'm trying to figure out when I should punt on the motor and replace. So far, I have had no trouble finding parts.

 

[telstar1]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

Nice to see some passion abt engines out there.A couple of things re the 470, and another question:First, the widely talked about camshaft cooling leak which often stems from a groove worn in the camshaft by a seal gone hard from an overheating event,can be easily repaired with a speedy sleeve on the camshaft. I think they are under $10 I did mine 15 years ago.Second I believe the early 470s had a lot more bugs than the later ones(mine is later and actually was sold as a 3.7 litre), possibly because the heat exchanger and manifolds were not perfected?Re the 4,3 versus 3.7/470, I do agree the 4.3 has more pep but if you dont need that pep it is a lot cheaper to buy 1 exhaust riser for a 470 than two for a V6. Dont know anyone on salt water who doesnt buy these things every few years.I also find my fuel consumption to be very good.What parts are not avail I dont know Ive never had any prob whatsoever as well there are aftermarket parts in most cases, not the block of course, you buy that used from the Buy and Sell Anyhow could the fellow who found the alternator conversion kit to be $300 please tell me where?Still hoping someone can solve the magnet mystery One final point the 470 is one of the few engines Ive encountered where changing the starter is a breeze AND you seldom need to because its up good and high where your forgotten bilgewater wont nail it.
Cheers
Cheers

 

[bhammer]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

Okay, back to the OP question. You can make the brackets if you have the ability to machine the parts and cut the proper spacers needed to mount the alternator forward on the engine. A delco 63 Amp single wire MARINE alt will do the job. But, check on eBay as you can find them cheaper than $600 all day long. I have seen them for half that. Some use the existing balancer pully shaft while others use a mount-on pully. It all depends on if you have PS or not.

I haven't reglued the magnets before but have heard of folks who did with success. You could try JB Weld or some other metal adheavisive; just make sure it's clean and shinney.

I had a well maintained 470 and after I did the speedie fix, I didn't have any issues with it. For the 17' boat I had, I would outrun many of the same size and bigger boats while not buring the gas as much.

I don't know if I'd say they were the best ever made. For the weight and size, they were good engines IF maintained. For the time during the gas crisis, they were a good fit to sell boats. Browse around the site and you will see other engines have their issues. I never had any issues finding new parts for mine.

 

[bhammer]

Re: Mercruiser 470 aternator

here is a link to a guy I have seen making them. I think he uses a CNC to produce:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MerC...014QQitemZ330245144848QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW