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mercruiser 140 motor problems

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dmc0714

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I just bought a 1986 Imperial with the 4 cyl. 140 mercruiser I/O . it was winterized last fall. I just went to start it and it just clicked, I think the starter is bad. i spun the motor by hand to be sure it wasnt set up. i checked the oil and there was no oil on the dipstick but there were drops of water. I added 8 quarts of oil and i still dont have any oil on the dipstick but keep getting small drops of water. i pulled a hose and there is still antifreeze it from the winterization. I dont see any oil in the bottom of the boat. where have 8 quarts of oil possibly have gone to ? why are there drops of water on the dipstick. i would think with 8 quarts of oil , it would eventually show up on the dipstick. i am confused. anyone have an idea ? motor still just clicks, previous owner swears he had no problems with it last summer.
 
Your story makes no sense, you cant have 3 gallons of oil in a motor and not see it on the dipstick.
What you could be seeing is 3 gallons of water and AF and the 3 gallons of oil riding on top of that.
You need to pump it out thru the dipstick or pull the oil pan plug.
To winterize it , it had to have oil .
 
There is moisture in any engine after sitting for any amount of time. The rise and fall of the barometer causes the engine to breath, running the engine will cause the moisture to burn off eventually. Have you checked out on the ground it sounds like the plug in not in the oil pan to me.
 
i absolutely agree with you, it makes no sense, i cant figure it out. i have been a car mechanic for 30 years , i know my way around a motor. lol. everytime i check the dipstick, nothing but water droplets. i figure with 8 quarts of oil, it would show, i pulled the oil filter off and there was black oil in it. so why isnt anything showing on the dipstick ? is there anywhere it can leak to ? what if the rear main went ? but then again, where did the black oil go ? i'm completely stumped.
 
Maybe You have the wrong dip stick, Try using something else down the tube to see what you come up with.

A Mercruiser dip stick and dip stick tube will go almost to the bottom of the oil pan. Within 1/8" -1/4" from pan bottom.

A 140 should hold ~ 4 1/2 qrts of oil with standard merc filter.

If you put 8 qrts that's twice as much as needed.
 
i'm going to have to drain it today by the drain plug. after work. if the tube goes to the bottom of the pan, then i fear the maybe, the bottom of the pan has water in it and the oil is on top of the water so its not showing on the dipstick. then that means the 8 quarts is high up into the motor right now. if this is the case, how the heck did water get into the motor ? i will update after i pull the drain plug. thanks
 
if this is the case, how the heck did water get into the motor ? i will update after i pull the drain plug. thanks

Improper winterization cracked the block and/or manifold
 
update, yep, just pulled the drain plug and water came pouring out, followed by all the oil. so, now the question is, how did the water get in, the antifreeze is still in the hoses, the motor turns by hand so it didnt set up. what are the odds of putting fresh oil in it and it'll be fine ??
 
If it is water and not AF then suspect it was uncovered and got in thru the flame arrestor or
the drain plug was left in or was clogged by ice/ debris, etc. and the hull filled with water. If you suspect this was the cause pull the outdrive because it may have got into the bellow if it got above the oil pan joint
 
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AS BT says.............


I would change the oil and filter and see what happens but if the dip stick reading goes over full after you add only to the full line then you got water issues.
 
definitely was just water ,then oil. no antifreeze. i'm thinking the drain plug hole got clogged and the boat filled with water. just didnt understand how it could get inside the motor. i'll try to check the bellow.
 
after taking the plug off the oil pan, there is nothing left in the motor. maybe i'll leave the plug out and put a quart in just to be sure it cleaned all the water out.
 
dmc0714,I would think something needs to be run through your oil pan to flush remaining moisture out of main bearings,ETC, depending how much water came out of pan, How much water came out? quart,pint,less,along with the 8 quarts of oil
 
i was going to run a quart of oil thru to flush it out. i would say a few quarts of water cam out out first, seemed like enough to just fill the oil pan, followed by the old and new oil . i am going to put a little oil in each cylinder also. new filter and spin it by hand to get the oil around. then take the coil wire off and turn the motor over.
 
racerone said:
?----Does it have a closed cooling system ?
Click to expand...

dmc0714 said:
no, it isnt a closed system.

i pulled off a coolant hose to water pump and antifreeze was still in there.
Click to expand...

Question: you say; "no, it isn't a closed system" and that "antifreeze was still in there".
By chance are you winterizing by using one of the antifreeze wintering kits ? (i.e., the kits that run antifreeze in via the seawater pump.... such as the Camco Kit)
If so..... you'll want to know the risks involved when using these kits.

See Bt Doctur's response below.


Bt Doctur said:
dmc0714 said:
if this is the case, how the heck did water get into the motor ? i will update after i pull the drain plug. thanks
Click to expand...

Improper winterization cracked the block and/or manifold
Click to expand...
 
If improper winterize happened and block filled with antifreeze, the question is.... did water come out of oil pan drain or antifreeze.... If water, then likely winterize ok and the plugged hull/rain into dip stick scenario likely. If antifreeze came out of pan, then failed winterize.
 
I would just put new oil and filter in and run it for a few minutes and let any moisture in there mix with the oil and while still hot do another oil change and call it good if the oil pressure is good?
 
RicardoMarine said:
Question: you say; "no, it isn't a closed system" and that "antifreeze was still in there".
By chance are you winterizing by using one of the antifreeze wintering kits ? (i.e., the kits that run antifreeze in via the seawater pump.... such as the Camco Kit)
If so..... you'll want to know the risks involved when using these kits.

See Bt Doctur's response below.
Click to expand...
I didnt winterize it, it was already done, so I dont know how they did it. I do know the antifreeze looked purplish in color and that color did not come out of the oil pan, clear water did before the oil.
 
sandkicker said:
If improper winterize happened and block filled with antifreeze, the question is.... did water come out of oil pan drain or antifreeze.... If water, then likely winterize ok and the plugged hull/rain into dip stick scenario likely. If antifreeze came out of pan, then failed winterize.
Click to expand...

just water came out , followed by oil. antifreeze is still in the block.
 
In that the case, then water got into engine either by rain into flame arrestor or in thru the dip stick hole. That said, if water got in thru dipstick hole you are looking at having to replace the starter and possibly the alternator some time soon. Check to see if there is some evidence of a high water mark inside the hull somewhere.
 
kimcrwbr1 said:
Did you get the engine running yet?
Click to expand...

no, i had to pull the starter last night, all it did was click. when i took it out, i couldnt spin the gear, i tapped it with a hammer and i got it to wiggle. i'm going to test it with a battery today, if it doesnt work, i'll have to order a new starter.
 
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