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Another water in oil

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Scott Wollesen

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" I am really at a loss here a

" I am really at a loss here and think it's really great some of you are taking personal time to help us "idiots" out. Anyway, I have learned the hard way how I should have winterized my boat. I bought a '90 Cheeta with a 4.3 litre alpha one. I figured it would be fine in my garage. A couple weeks ago i brought it out to spring run it, it ran great, so good i was really surprised when i made my next discovery, the port (behind the motor mount) freeze plug was laying in the bilge. Not good I know. The motor ran for about 3 minutes before I noticed the water coming out the drain hole and shut it off. Noticed the port exhaust manifold is big time cracked and there is a slight bit of water in oil although not much.
Can I do anything along with a compression check on motor to help determine if block/heads are cracked? I'd like to know at least as sure as possible before pulling motor to replace it. I bought the boat from a friend who hardly used it and he gave me a great deal. I'm finding remanufactured engines are running about 2/3's the cost of what i paid for the boat.
Thanks,
Scott in Tn. "
 
"It may not be as bad as you t

"It may not be as bad as you think, Scott. At this point, I think I'd replace the exhaust manifolds (both of'em), reinstall the freeze plug, change the oil and run the engine at least 1/2 hour on the hose and check for leaks. Then check the oil for water, wait a day or two and check again.

If the oil looks good, you're probably home free. If not, then a short or long block is in your future. A compression check is always a good idea, but may not show a problem.

"
 
" Scott,
Before you can do an

" Scott,
Before you can do anything, you have to replace the freeze plug. Then you will want to pressure test the cooling system. This will require bypassing the broken manifold. If it holds 5 psi. for 10 min. or so you are lucky and just need a manifold. If it does not and you can't see another freeze plug leaking, pull the motor. Good luck "
 
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