My stbd engine's block is probably cracked...:/

[airdvr1227]

Slinging a nice chocolate shake, no power, the usual symptoms. My question is one for the service professionals. I'm confident this problem didn't exist last fall when I gave her to the marina to winterize and store. I've always had a theory that I would have the pros do the winterization so I would know who was responsible for the repairs if this ever happened. How likely is it that you would be able to spot water and oil mixing together while you are doing the winterization?

ETA...I did not have them change the oil.

 

[JoLin]

I'll let the pros give you a definitive answer, but man, you have my sympathy. That just plain sucks. Right after I bought my boat last Spring, the starter boss on the port engine block... broke off. No choice but to replace the block. After considering all my options (and punching a wall) I sprung for a brand new Quicksilver Gen + reman. with a 3 year warranty on all of it.

(my gut says that if they changed the oil at the time they laid it up, they woulda seen it then. Otherwise, I say they screwed up the winterization)

 

[Grub54891]

Always change the oil when winterizing.period..nobody can claim the marina screwd up because of poor winterizing,if the oil change was not checked on the forms: if they achutally have a form,we do. You do not want old oil in the crankcase over layup,not only because of contamation,but as a safety from any problems that may have showed up during the season. A service tech may pull the dipstick,see clean oil,as it's been sitting. The oil floats on water,thus they may not see it. If it was changed,it would have been warmed up,and been found to be milky. Then you would have been notified of an issue.
And Jolin,,if the starter worked fine when I started it,it has nothing to do with winterization. Starters are starters,if they are loose and it shows up later.....
Kinda like I brought my car to the shop for a radiator cap,now the transmission don't work,,,,must be their fault. As a service tech,I've seen a lot of it's not me it's you. Sympothy please?? Nope,when I save you'r weekend,I'm a hero,no tip,but when it hits the fan I owe thousands.... Not on my watch.

 

[rallyart]

Water in the oil is a sad sight. It could be from other sources than a cracked block, but that is a likely one. Loss of power might be a blown head gasket instead, and that can put water in the oil. In the spring, if they checked everything they may well have checked the oil but after sitting the winter you would not see the milkshake affect. I'm sorry to say that I think Grub is right and without them changing the oil when winterizing, which is normal, there is no way to know if it was like that before.
Without changing the oil there would be no way to spot water in the oil when you did a normal winterization. If the block is cracked it most likely is winterization not done well. Anything else and it's probably nothing to do with their work. The problem could be that the block froze before they winterized and that would not be their fault. Good luck.

 

[JoLin]

And Jolin,,if the starter worked fine when I started it,it has nothing to do with winterization. Starters are starters,if they are loose and it shows up later.....
Kinda like I brought my car to the shop for a radiator cap,now the transmission don't work,,,,must be their fault. As a service tech,I've seen a lot of it's not me it's you. Sympothy please?? Nope,when I save you'r weekend,I'm a hero,no tip,but when it hits the fan I owe thousands.... Not on my watch.

Hold on, grub. I'm not a moron. I never implied it was anyone's fault, and it certainly had nothing to do with winterization or anything anyone did. The starter boss broke off the block. Period. It's rare, but it happens sometimes with the GM small blocks. I was merely sympathzing with airdvr's plight because I had a similar 'surprise' only a month after I bought the boat.

 

[Grub54891]

Ok Jolin,sorry I was just venting,some days.....lol

 

[JoLin]

No harm, no foul. Sorry if I overreacted.

 

[airdvr1227]

Just got off the phone with the service manager. He and I agree that we don't know what's going on until we tear the top off the motor and take a look. I guess we'll see. I know from past experience that you'll catch more flies with sugar than with s#@t so I am cautiously optimisitc that we can get to the bottom of the problem quickly. I guess we'll see. He did say that a compression check showed good numbers on all cylinders. Also, there is water in the number 6 cylinder.

 

[81 Checkmate]

s this closed cooling system or sea water cooled?.......Saltwater ? ……. 1989 – When was the last time the exhaust manifolds changed? Could be bad manifolds, have them do a cooling system pressure check before they start ripping things apart. Once you open it up it’s hard tell what the problem is – only if it’s obvious.

Good Luck!

 

[airdvr1227]

Freshwater...not sealed.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... 1st Test oughta be a pressure test of the complete block,.... Before it's torn down,....

 

[bruceb58]

Ayuh,.... 1st Test oughta be a pressure test of the complete block,.... Before it's torn down,....

Agreed. That will tell you a lot.