No, I really don't want to DIY repair the motor. As mentioned in
another of my post in this thread, I am fixing the rotten core of the
deck and the deck core is exposed, and is not in the position to bring
the boat to a mechanic and risk getting rain water inside the deck
again. I just want to do enough on the motor to be able to finish
winterizing it. Next spring or later when I am done with fixing the
deck, I will bring the motor to a marine mechanic (my boatowner
neighbor has recommended a really good mechanica in my area) and have
the motor checked out and also to look into a few things.

Thanks for the suggestion of a couple good reference books for
maintaining motors. Also thanks for suggesting to buy those books from
eBay at a low price.

Jay Chan


wrote:
Jay, it's a shame you wern't able to use it this year.

If you would still like to do-it-yourself repairs on the engine, which
at this point I really wouldn't recommend. (If I were in your position
, I'd take it to a reputable mechanic).

BUT, i would get a repair manual for that model or series of engines.
like a "Peterson", "Chiltons" or "Motors" or likewise book that you
could study really well, A book that will tell you in great detail on
how to even overhaul your engine if necessary. A vast amount of
knowledge can be found in these books. just for if anything else, a
reference point. You can find these books at about any boat
dealership, or what i did was bought an almost brand new manual for my
mercruiser off Ebay, for less than half price of what the stores
wanted.

For my book, the dealership retail price was about $49.00. I bought
mine with a high bid of $18.00 plus $3.75 s&h.



wrote:
wrote:
wrote:
I left the boat in the driveway for one year without starting the
motor. Today, I put the lower unit into a bucket of water, and start
the motor to winterize it.

Jay, just out of curiosity, if you haven't used the boat in a year,
then why are you deciding to winterize it at this time?

According to what yoyu say, it must have sat all through the colder
winter months of last year,a nd the first part of this year.

why now?

The reason of winterizing the motor even without using it for a year
is:

Last fall when I winterized the motor, I didn't run the fuel
system dry. I ran the motor for 5 minutes to let treated fuel get
inside the fuel system and then I shut down the motor. This means
there is still fuel inside the fuel system of the motor. Although the
fuel was treated with stablizer, it will only be good for one year. If
I didn't winterize the motor now, by next spring the treated fuel would
have sat in the fuel system for 17 months -- that would be 5 months
longer than what the treated fuel is supposed to last. This is the
reason why I need to winterize the motor now.

Jay Chan