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5.7 crusader raw water cooled leaking water underside of starter

Discussion in 'Engines' started by cleanslate, Aug 26, 2019.

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  1. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    Got a problem with my CC Dory engine. Looks like it's been leaking water from the underside of the starter up where it bolts into the bell housing and runs down to the end of the starter into the bilge. Water leaks most at idle , a good trickle, then goes away 1ooo rpm and up.
    Engine runs great, all oils clean and free of water.
    It's a GM 350 , btw.

    Engine water temp has been a consistent 175 F at 1200 rpm or less; 185 or so at 1300rpm on up all summer.
    Is this a big problem or can it wait till winter for me to fix? And what do I fix?
    I realize it IS a problem and not right.
  2. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Sounds like a bad freeze plug to me. Salt water does a lot of damage......how far away is winter for you? How much is it leaking?
  3. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    November or another 40 hours....
    It's a light trickle.
    Weird that it seems to go away under higher RPM... Or is it just leaking out elsewhere ... I can not see it if it is.
  4. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    It's leaking out the flywheel housing bottom at higher rpm.
    Two freeze plugs on the back of the older SBCs.

    Who ever marinized the block did not replace this one (or any) automotive steel freeze plug with marine specific brass plugs.

    There are other places automotive gaskets leak but this is my first bet.
  5. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    Ok , you would think Crusader would have done it right? So when the fly wheel gets spinning around faster it slings the water all around in the bell housing ..? I'll look at the housing while under way.
    So basically I' m rusting things up with in the housing including the transmission and starter ? And drive shaft spline ?
  6. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    Your the original Crusader owner since new?
    Now, The later SBCs with the valve cover bolts down the center had one piece rear oil seals and no back freeze plugs. If that is the case;
    The after corner of the intake manifold, the after corner of the head gasket and the exhaust manifold could also be leaking. I still think it's the freeze plug in an older block.

    Yes, All in the bell housing is getting wet.

    Chevy builds the blocks per the marinizer specs. Brass plugs are SOP for raw water cooled engines.

    One last thought, It was to be a closed cooled system and never installed or was removed.
    The serial number will tell you that.
  7. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    The engine is a 2001 5.7 power pack, valve cover bolts going down the top centers.
    It's a low hour engine, stil looks brand new. Serial number 610616
    I am the second owner of the engine.
  8. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    Ok, I've been obsessing over this **** engine problem now..
    I did some research with the model and serial numbers.
    My serial number ; 6 = 2000 decade ; 1 = 2001
    Model is a ; left hand rotation ; distributor - carb ; 350 cid ho GM.
    Looks like from the service manual on line , that there are two ''plugs'' in the block behind the fly wheel. I assume these are the freeze plugs?
    Maybe I or previous owner did not winterize the engine properly?
    Since I never make mistakes and have done the winterization myself , it must have been the other owner..LOL.
    Perhaps I did not get the engine up to full running temp, before I ran the pink stuff through it.
  9. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Since the engine is 18 years old, it's entirely possible that one has rotted out, even if it was bronze. It would have to be bronze, because steel ones certainly wouldn't last 18 years. Unfortunately, you're going to have to slide the gear off of the back of it in order to change them. Do both.
  10. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    Mid term block, newer Vortec heads with carb. Yep, that's HO. Up to 290hp at higher rpms.
    May be a 4 bolt main block. Diffidently worth saving at near any cost.

    Replace all the plugs, 8 or 10 of them.
  11. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    WHATT? 10? Lol! Maybe 11 plugs....I've done all of that, plus and new fuel pump and alternator they went fist year from lack of use I would say.

    Thank You both, just the guys I was hoping to hear from for straight advise. Well it's been this way all summer, this is my second or so summer with the boat. You would never know the engine was a 2001. All the paint is still in place through out. New engine in 2001 and sat in a barn mostly with little use in MD. May be 20 hrs per year till 2011. I got the boat 2017. Original owner too. Never had bottom paint on it since 1974. Was a virgin bottom! I changed that quickly! ..Lol. Baltimore copper red..well Interlux red, and a black water line.
    Anyway I run/flush the motor with fresh water after use, every time at the dock at 180 f. Will work on it soon, but not yet. Will do it in my shop this winter.
  12. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    You been hanging around YF members to much.
    We are the experts and Never make mistakes....

    LOL.gif
  13. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    CR, This one is fast! Was racing a new 24'? Sea Hunt with a 300 hp out board and four Adults on board , same with me four adults on my Dory and I pasted him a first , then he got by me OB trimmed up all he could, by a knot or two.
    We raced to the same dock side bar and he told me his GPS was at 50 mph , so I must have been around 48 mph at 4900 rpm with my new prop..I still don't have a GPS unit yet..or a depth finder! Lol
  14. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    4900 would be near the pins. I remember when VolvoPenta took that block to 290HP (their previous was 260).
    Big full flow muffler hooked up to the original 290 drive.
    A screamer past 5000 rpm.
    You have more weight, wetted surface, more drag and a V at your asp than that new fancy thing.

    You want to leave him?
    Clean that skeg and rudder up like a steak knife. Take a fat inch out and ad a medium cup.
    Ad about 3-4 degrees advance and burn high test.
    Move weight aft just till you start porpoising then move it back forward slowly till it just stops.
    3 more knots at least.

    We used to final our Fin's trim, sliding a ice cooler for/aft for wot top speed.

    Depth sounders eat top speed. Your not cored. Experiment with a glued in transducer for depth.

    Burnish your bottom paint could help also. I bought a lift for one of my past boats just so I could get & keep the bottom paint off and glass waxed. Near 1 kt speed increase.

    I only tell my best friends; I used to work on gas engines.
    Now if you tell anybody, Ya know, I have to beat you with a stale noodle.
    smily_ROTFL 2.gif
  15. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    Holy Crow CR!! Time, time , time is hard to find . Just changing out freeze plugs is going to be an ordeal for me!
    I do have trim tabs which I installed . This boat won't run or handle right with out them. To keep from porpoising and rolling side to side etc.

    Maybe I'll paint it black and put KAMA down the sides and drive like Betty Cook , that should be good for three more knots .

    Thanks for the personal tips . I'm not that smart, I'll just change the freeze plugs .
  16. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    If you didn't bottom paint the boat...…….you would've had him!!!!!! :D:D:D:D:D
  17. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    It's only been almost a year since I brought up this question/post so thought I would give an update.
    All freeze out plugs are fine. I check visually what I could this spring, also noted no water running out the start starter whether at idle or under way.
    BUT, I have noticed why at time water trickles out the back of the starter. Keep in mind the bottom of my bell housing and transmission are maybe 2 or 3 inches from the bottom of the bilge. It's tight!

    My Dory solely relies on bilge pumps to remove rain water, wash water...anywater that gets in the boat. If that water is just a little high water gets into the lower bell housing then the flywheel whirls the water all around and into the starter till it pumps overboard. This does not happen all of the time, depending on how much fuel is in the aft transom fuel tank , the boat sits stern down full, stern up light fuel. So the water collects at various spots on any given time. This includes when getting up on plane and water collects against the mid bulk head and runs to the aft area and aft bilge pump through a factory limber hole. At times this causes a temporary leak out the starter via, flywheel water whirl. NOT all the time.
    I have two pumps one aft in front of the rudder. One forward just under the front of the motor.

    Finally my question is this, how can I top water from entering the bell housing? I thought a Crusader MARINE motor was designed not to do this. Thought it would be water tight. Or is something wrong with the bell housing?

    Yes the motor is older, 2001, but it's only been run and used since I've had the boat( 2016). Entire motor still has factory blue paint everywhere on it. No hour meter on the motor guessing less than 300 to date.

    Motor heads! please advise!:)
  18. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Get a diaphram bilge pump with a really low pick up. And low float switch.
  19. cleanslate

    cleanslate Senior Member

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    Is it possible then or normal ,in this situation, to get water in the bell housing? Or is there a way to seal it up?
  20. boatpoor

    boatpoor Active Member

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    I've never seem a sealed bell housing on a gasoline engine. If you seal it and one of the rear freeze plugs leaks you'll end up presurizing the bell housing with water and it will go through the rear main seal into the oil pan and push the oil out the dipstick tube and you'll really have a mess.