Water in multiple cylinders after running engine

[phaskins]

Good afternoon. New to the forum so any help/suggestions would be appreciated. I have a Mercy inboard engine that was in for repairs. During the repairs it was noted that water came in to different cylinders. It was noted that on different times it was noted cylinders 1,3,5,6,and 7 had water in the cylinders. It was noted that cylinders 2,4 ,and 8 have been clear of water on all noted tests.
The mech has come back with possible issues of Water could be entering through bad exhaust, head gasket, defective head or block.
Does one of these seem to more probable than the others? just trying to rap my head around this. Do I take the chance on a 3000 fix? and most of this is labor. is there a better check to identify the cause?

This happens when on the water. a Hydrolock on the engine.

it is a 1992 Mercury cruiser 4.6 engine.

Thanks for any help..

Pete H.

 

[Dieter]

I'm assuming Its a V8 but merc never made a 4.6 , doesnt matter for the discussion

Would think he can norrow it down by inspecting the exhaust which wont cost $3k to do and pressure testing the cooling system that will Identfy a bad head gasket or cracked head and block. I would think those two items would take 2-3 hrs to do at most. With the exhaust off you can see if the valves are rusty and stick a borescope in the cylinders. Bottom line I would think it would be worth paying a few hours of labor to properly diagnose.

Where did the $3k number come from ?

If you had water in it you want to get it fixed and running and change the oil before it starts to rust internally.

 

[makomark]

$3K into a 30 year old engine...????

Agree that $3K sounds rather steep without any supporting details.

I'd suggest more details on the engine and its history would be worthwhile before going further...maintenance history as well...

 

[Dieter]

$3K into a 30 year old engine...????

Agree that $3K sounds rather steep without any supporting details.

I'd suggest more details on the engine and its history would be worthwhile before going further...maintenance history as well...

Yeah you can get a new long block /base engine for $3400. But that doesn’t include labor... my time is always free

 

[timguy]

Now your on to some good techs....where is Jack?

 

[kghost]

Now your on to some good techs....where is Jack?

Waiting to see what your infinite wisdom will reveal.............Maybe he can ship the motor to you and you can fix it like the carb from other post!

YOU DA MAN!

 

[kghost]

$3K into a 30 year old engine...????

Agree that $3K sounds rather steep without any supporting details.

I'd suggest more details on the engine and its history would be worthwhile before going further...maintenance history as well...

2X on this,

OP mentions hydrolock while in the water..........This is a concern, it also may be his root cause based on the little we know now.

What yr and boat model?
thru transom exhaust or thru prop?

Is engine V6 (4.3)? Or V8 (5.0 or 5.7)

If engine requires complete disassembly to repair (if needed) then as makomark points out, 30 years old is not a really value added exercise.

Approximately $2000.00 for a complete assembled re-manufactured Engine (long block) Just block and heads all assembled. Requires swapping all outer parts from old to new. That also if done by a shop would cost around $3000 + with reman engine and labor.

I have done such a replacement for a 5.7 and total cost was $2800.00 all said and done (BUT this was a close friend so labor was bartered for other than cash) But if I had charged labor it would have been at least $3500 maybe closer to $4000

This is not a simple job.

Now if the root cause is back flow from exhaust causing hydrolock and the estimate for the repair is not needed as there actually may not be anything wrong with the engine other than water got into cylinders then the whole engine discussion is Mute.

More info please.

 

[o2batsea]

Hydrolock means the engine comes to sudden stop, usually with catastrophic damage. Just getting water in the cylinders is not hydrolocking.
There are some designs of exhaust manifold that induce an effect called reversion which allows water intrusion. It may be that this is the case here. However, thorough diagnosis is in order before jumping to any conclusions.
The mechanic has presented a plausible scenario of possible causes. Whether you decide to pursue those is up to you. As others have pointed out, the long term most cost effective solution might be to simply replace the long block and exhaust and move on. Spending on a sketchy engine isn't really smart money.