Need Mercury ID and help also

" I have a Mercury 40 hp 402.

" I have a Mercury 40 hp 402. The serial number on the transom bracket is 1427-3284. Can anyone tell me what year this motor is? Also, the first time I ran it this spring (in a big trash can full of water) only a small amount of water came out of the water drain, most of it was coming out of the top spark plug hole. Can you tell me what the problem is and if it is worth trying to fix. Thanks "

" Most of the water was coming

" Most of the water was coming out of the sparkplug hole?????????? .The water jacket cover may have a small leak, but never that big a leak.Put a new impeller in to be sure of the motor cooling . The year is the early 70's "

" that number is the part numb

" that number is the part number for the bracket. if you want to know exact age of that merc the serial number is on the tilt hinge at the front of the motor, and give us some details on your problem and we will try to help. "

" I thank you two for answerin

" I thank you two for answering me. The number stamped on a silver plate on the tilt hinge is 3727201. I will give you a brief history of this motor. I bought it from my brother in law in the summer of 99. He did not use it much prior to that but the few times he did I know it was run on straight gas instead of a 50:1 mixture. It has always seemed to run hot and have more smoke than seemed normal. In the summer of 2001 it was taken to a shop and all of the wiring and electrical connections and the stator were replaced, also a new impeller was installed. It ran great all of 2001 (summer). Last summer my son and I went to a lake north of here and it started to sputter and smoke and felt like it was losing a lot of power. We did not use the boat after that and winterized it and kept it in our garage all winter. So when we got it out and got it ready for fishing this spring the problems in my post above started to happen. When it first was started it seemed to run OK but got hot real quick. Thats when we saw the water coming out thru the top spark plug hole. I took out the plug, dried it off and put it back in, made sure it was tight and fired it back up, and water still leaked out. So now I'm out of answers. I just ordered a Selock manual for the motor, it should be here in about a week. By the way, we live in Wisconsin, near Oshkosh, and the lakes are shallow, about 15 ft. or less. Could the silty water have anything to do with how long the impeller lasts? Thank you very much. "

" it is a 1973 model. i also h

" it is a 1973 model. i also have a 73 402. that straight gas deal probably done it in. if it were me i would perform a compression test on both cylinders. you have problems i would say that will require a powerhead recondition. buying a manual will help you a lot to diagnose, but i would test that compression first. it should read at least 100 psi, but the two cylinders should be at the very most 15 psi in difference. i hope this helps. that impeller should be changed every season. although i have went up to three seasons on an impeller with a strong telltale stream. i suppose that silt could be hard on impellers. i wish you well with the ol merc. they are tough old motors as you know with the straight gas accident, but it wasnt your fault. i strongly suspect that is the root of your problem. "

Thanks Tom J. I'll let y

Thanks Tom J. I'll let you know whats happening when the manual comes in and compression check is done.