Help in knowing the engine model

I recently Bought my boat and

I recently Bought my boat and i am new to boating. I have been doing minor works that havent required me to have a part number. NOw i am in need of a trim wire and also my mechanic told me i needed to purchace a new distributer cap and brushes as one engine would not idle and continues to stall when i need to dock. It would run fine at high rpm but would not idle. The authorised dealer told me that on the out drive i could find the appropriate number for ordering but all the numbers have been corroded and not readible. I know the person whom i bought it from told me that the engines are volvo penta 5.0 That surely means nothing much to order parts. The outdrives are double props. They are also 1996 engines and i think someone said they are 302's. Thats as much as i know. Can anyone help me.

"Look at the port rear side of

"Look at the port rear side of the engine where it attaches to the bellhousing: there should be a stainless or brass plate with the engine serial and model number stamped on it. You may need a mirror to look at the plate, as the area is not always easily accessible.

Sometimes, you can also find a specifications decal on top of the carb flame arrestor or on one of the head covers."

Thank you. I will try and see

Thank you. I will try and see if i can get the info as the engine room dont have much space to see anything. One more question. COuld the distrubuter cap be causing the engine not to idle?

"A bad idle could be due to ma

"A bad idle could be due to many things: bad distributor cap, bad ignition wires, bad spark plugs, rusty connections at ignition coil, weak coil, gummed-up carb, carb with idle mixture out of adjustment, carb flooding, vacuum leak, faulty choke, bad gas, and a long etc.

When you find the location of the engine name plate, you can stick your hand with a digital camera and try to take a picture of it. That should work better than using a mirror. "