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Milky oil

I
Replace head gasket, thermostat, water pump , impeller and manifold.. last year now new fuel pump..new oil looked good last night took it to lake using old gas that still in boat gas about 3years old boat starts good idling good drove around lake for 10min alll good …Than I full throttle for another 10minutes. Boat runs strong than week than strong probally the old gas I use. After full throttle for 10min carburetor back fire . Took boat home this morning check oil dip stick saw thick white milky oil..
during test run boat never overheat.. temp always 140-170 degree .. thermostat for boat is 160f..
If you have time please let me know what you think..
 
Maybe share with us which engine and age and history? An improperly installed head gasket would exhibit these symptoms..just sayin'
 
I
Replace head gasket, thermostat, water pump , impeller and manifold.. last year now new fuel pump..new oil looked good last night took it to lake using old gas that still in boat gas about 3years old boat starts good idling good drove around lake for 10min alll good …Than I full throttle for another 10minutes. Boat runs strong than week than strong probally the old gas I use. After full throttle for 10min carburetor back fire . Took boat home this morning check oil dip stick saw thick white milky oil..
during test run boat never overheat.. temp always 140-170 degree .. thermostat for boat is 160f..
If you have time please let me know what you think..
Sorry ,,
1999 bayliner capri 1850Ls mercrusier 3.0 4cyl alpha1 gen2
 
Yeh milky oil is never a good thing. Depending on how long you ran it in this condition, it is possible that all the babbitt material has been eaten away from the bearing shells main, rod and camshaft (30 minutes? that's plenty of time to kill it). I would begin shopping for a good running take out while you pull that engine out and do some deep diagnostics. I fear tho, that you'll find that it has expired.
 
First of all I would like to Thank everyone trying to help me ..
Oil over fill about 1/2 inch over full line mark..
This was the first time I did a test run on since I put in all the new parts, inspected block as best I can ,can’t find any leakage.yes I ran it for about 30min total on lake .whats wierd is it never over heated..
A week before I took it out to lake for testing I started it up left it running on muffs for 20-30 mins 2 times a day check oil all looked really good seems like it only happens when I’m on the lake ..
checked compression cylinder 1- 130psi
number 2- 130psi number 3- 135psi
Number 4- 120psi..
Spark plugs 3&4 looks black also has smells of gasoline ..also I replace riser gasket..
planning on flushing oil replace new filter than run it on muffs for 30 min check oil if not milky take it to lake run it for 20min check oil .. to see if it a pattern ..
would it be a waste of time to do that??? Or should I just remove head and inspect it.. greatly appreciate any tips or opinions
Thanks,Tony…
 
Also, are their any guide or steps to do some test for crack block??
when I replace head gasket I torque it to specs. If manifold bolts not tight enough would it cause milky oil??? I only hand tight manifold bolts then did one full turn…
 
I
Replace head gasket, thermostat, water pump , impeller and manifold.. last year now new fuel pump..new oil looked good last night took it to lake using old gas that still in boat gas about 3years old boat starts good idling good drove around lake for 10min alll good …Than I full throttle for another 10minutes. Boat runs strong than week than strong probally the old gas I use. After full throttle for 10min carburetor back fire . Took boat home this morning check oil dip stick saw thick white milky oil..
during test run boat never overheat.. temp always 140-170 degree .. thermostat for boat is 160f..
If you have time please let me know what you think..
Not good if this is a freshwater cooled engine gasket between riser and manifold could be rotted out . Ok f not freshwater cooled ck manifolds and risers.might want t get that professional checked .oil and filter has to be changed a few times. And keep your fingers crossed water in oil not good.good luck.
 
Also, are their any guide or steps to do some test for crack block??
when I replace head gasket I torque it to specs. If manifold bolts not tight enough would it cause milky oil??? I only hand tight manifold bolts then did one full turn…
ALL fasteners have torque specs and hand tight plus one full turn IS NOT a torque spec. Who defines 'hand tight'?

Use a manual to find these specs and torque patterns.

Did you re-use the head bolts?
 
I use new head bolts it came with the kit..
dang feel so stupid and lazy did research torque specs for head bolts but not manifold bolts.. I’ll google for manifold torque .. I don’t know if it’s a fresh water cooled manifold gasket or not..when I bought the head gasket kit from a boat dealer it came with all gaskets..manifold and riser gasket new .. I only use boat on lakes…what sucks all I/O boat mechanic are booked up their over 6 weeks out..
 
I use new head bolts it came with the kit..
dang feel so stupid and lazy did research torque specs for head bolts but not manifold bolts.. I’ll google for manifold torque .. I don’t know if it’s a fresh water cooled manifold gasket or not..when I bought the head gasket kit from a boat dealer it came with all gaskets..manifold and riser gasket new .. I only use boat on lakes…what sucks all I/O boat mechanic are booked up their over 6 weeks out..
kghost and I were discussing boat service and the fact that many do more than Winterizing in Fall, then take the boat directly to the water in Spring. The problem with that is it ignores any testing BEFORE it needs to run. Another huge problem is in the fact that boat dealers and service shops don't like to pay well unless they actually understand why techs SHOULD be paid well- they need to be reliable/dependable, they need to be well-trained in most areas (especially electronics, now that fuel injection is prevalent), they need to be great troubleshooters and they need to know when to ask for help if they're stumped.

I have mainly seen milky oil caused by cracked blocks and gasket failures but if water enters a cylinder because a riser gasket fails and bypasses the rings, it's going to mix with the oil. In transmissions, I saw milky oil when the oil cooler wasn't drained before Winter and a seam cracked, allowing water to enter.

Did you test the compression before taking it to the water?

While this next part doesn't address the milky oil, it's important-

Don't use 3 year old gas. When MTBE was used before Ethanol, I asked someone at a carb rebuilding shop about it and he said it starts to go bad in about 20 days if it wasn't treated. Without the correct treatment fluid, 3 year old gas should stink and be much darker yellow than fresh gas. It has lost Octane and it has probably absorbed a fair amount of moisture.

I'm not telling you to do this, but I knew people who said they restored OB motors that had been submerged, by extracting the oil, adding some Kerosene to the fresh oil and cranking it to mix everything and dilute the milkshake. Extract it and repeat, replacing the filter every time, using the largest filter that will fit (long filter instead of the short ones- I don't remember the AC Delco number (Pennzoiol PZ3) but when IO had a Silverado, I used the AC PF-1218 because it has twice the filtering media.

Eliminating that stuff is no fun, it takes a lot of time and it's not cheap (supplies & materials).
 
Ok.. i did compression test after I found milky oil ..I i will try flush oil and run it for a few minutes. Will try 3 times see is it’ll clear up .
I will check and retorque manifold and riser bolt to specs.. will empty gas tank with fresh gas plus some heet additive . Will use oil filter you recommend..I never heard of oil cooler .. can’t find any info if my motor has oil cooler or not.. would you know if it does have one ??? It is does ,, need help on location and what it looks like.. I’m wondering if it does have one I would never empty it before winter wondering if their ls one than check for crack
 
It may be that your engine doesn't have a cracked block and that you could replace a gasket or two and be fine. However, as mentioned, the chances that there has been catastrophic damage to your bearings is very high. It is a very good idea to pull the oil pan and remove the caps to check along with the rod caps. If you see copper, you'll have to rebuild as that material has gotten into the entire engine (pistons and rings, valve train) and wrecked it. I guess if this is a lake boat, you'll be able to hail a tow back to dry land if you decide to let it go.
 
Ok.. i did compression test after I found milky oil ..I i will try flush oil and run it for a few minutes. Will try 3 times see is it’ll clear up .
I will check and retorque manifold and riser bolt to specs.. will empty gas tank with fresh gas plus some heet additive . Will use oil filter you recommend..I never heard of oil cooler .. can’t find any info if my motor has oil cooler or not.. would you know if it does have one ??? It is does ,, need help on location and what it looks like.. I’m wondering if it does have one I would never empty it before winter wondering if their ls one than check for crack
Head, intake and riser gasket failure/leaks are most common.

I was referring to transmission coolers as an example of how water can mix with oil but the main places in most engines are but power steering coolers are used in some cases but I just saw that you have a 3.0L- did you remove the hose going to the thermostat housing and check for blockage? My boat has a 4 cylinder engine similar to yours and because it overheated badly, I checked everything. I found that when I run it on the hose, the temperature is fine, but when I try to pull antifreeze in, it runs hotter. The raw water hose was replaced a couple of years ago, while I was still making sure everything was repaired from the pinhead who owned it before me.

This engine has a rectangular cover for accessing the lifters on the starboard side- it can be removed easily and if you do this, look for a horizontal crack with evidence of water seeping into that area.
 
Ok I will check that for cracks..
I did pull the thermostat hose that goes to the outboard with muffs garden hose on full holding it
Horizontal water shoots out 6-10inch from tip of hose so I assumed I install impeller correctly ..
I install new intake manifold with new gasket also riser new gasket.. its giving symptoms of over heat but it never over heated, during the 30min test run in lake my son check temp with infrared temp gun about every 30sec son check all around the whole motor from top to bottom left to right . Front to back the hottest temp was in the 150’s Fahrenheit
In the begin of post I thought hottest temp was 170 but double check with son he verified temp was in the 150’s .. I’ll be back in town on Friday will inspect whole motor with magnified glass definitely will unscrew the rectangular plate you told me for inspections.. one again thanks everyone for spending their time trying to help me.. I’m a extreme newbie on boating.. willing to learn.. for the past few years I had mechanics Handel everything.. but man very costly.. its time I learn if I want to stay in the boating hobby
 
Also I’m confuse on compression some people tells me my numbers are ok and some says their bad probally blown headgasket again.. cyl 3 and 4 are 15 psi off..
Cylinder 1=130psi
2=130psi
3=135psi
4=120psi
Spark plugs 3&4 is black and looks oily any input appreciated..
 
Ok I will check that for cracks..
I did pull the thermostat hose that goes to the outboard with muffs garden hose on full holding it
Horizontal water shoots out 6-10inch from tip of hose so I assumed I install impeller correctly ..
I install new intake manifold with new gasket also riser new gasket.. its giving symptoms of over heat but it never over heated, during the 30min test run in lake my son check temp with infrared temp gun about every 30sec son check all around the whole motor from top to bottom left to right . Front to back the hottest temp was in the 150’s Fahrenheit
In the begin of post I thought hottest temp was 170 but double check with son he verified temp was in the 150’s .. I’ll be back in town on Friday will inspect whole motor with magnified glass definitely will unscrew the rectangular plate you told me for inspections.. one again thanks everyone for spending their time trying to help me.. I’m a extreme newbie on boating.. willing to learn.. for the past few years I had mechanics Handel everything.. but man very costly.. its time I learn if I want to stay in the boating hobby
If you want to do more of the service on this (engine and/or outdrive), I would recommend buying the manuals- 3 & 4 for the engine and #6 for the outdrive (IIRC, but I'm pretty sure that's the one)- they have a lot of useful info that CAN'T be subject to guesswork. They also have troubleshooting info and all specs.

135 and below is low. The head on my engine needed work because the previous owner redefined 'overheat', resulting in a bent valve and slightly warped head. After the work to repair the head, the compression was ~155 ±2 lb on all four cylinders- did you test this after running the engine, or was it cold? You'll usually see a difference between the two. Also, make sure all four plugs have been removed and the throttle is wide open- you don't want the pistons to draw gas in because that skews the results. Opening the throttle minimizes the vacuum under the plate and you want to test compression dry.

Where are you located and does Winter in your area include below freezing temperatures?
 
Those numbers are OK. You want no more than around ten percent difference across all the cylinders. Plug 3 & 4 point to a problem somewhere. If it was the head gasket, that would tend to steam-clean the inside of the affected cylinders, so I doubt that as the cause of the oil.
The thing about a cracked block is that the engine can run without any appearance of being in trouble, until you check the oil and see the disaster. I will again recommend that you begin to shop around for a good used engine of the same type. There are thousands of old Bayliners just like yours out there. A very popular boat but sadly don't live much past their teenage years. No doubt there are several in your area that are going to be willing donors for a transplant.
Or, just cut your losses now and start looking for a new (used) boat. By the time you get through with the one you have, I bet you'll have put more money into it than it is worth. Sell it as a parts boat. Chalk it up to a learning experience and move on. Believe me it won't be your last boat. You tend to always want something different/bigger after you have had a boat for a while.
 
Those numbers are OK. You want no more than around ten percent difference across all the cylinders. Plug 3 & 4 point to a problem somewhere. If it was the head gasket, that would tend to steam-clean the inside of the affected cylinders, so I doubt that as the cause of the oil.
The thing about a cracked block is that the engine can run without any appearance of being in trouble, until you check the oil and see the disaster. I will again recommend that you begin to shop around for a good used engine of the same type. There are thousands of old Bayliners just like yours out there. A very popular boat but sadly don't live much past their teenage years. No doubt there are several in your area that are going to be willing donors for a transplant.
Or, just cut your losses now and start looking for a new (used) boat. By the time you get through with the one you have, I bet you'll have put more money into it than it is worth. Sell it as a parts boat. Chalk it up to a learning experience and move on. Believe me it won't be your last boat. You tend to always want something different/bigger after you have had a boat for a while.
Between the cylinders, the compression is OK but if it was tested at normal operating temperature, it's low.

Lots of other boat brands used this engine and they all mount the same way, with that stupid front mount that makes it impossible to rotate the crank for diagnostics and setup.

For a relatively small amount of money, the head can be checked for cracks. If it's good and everything outside of the block has been ruled out, the engine can be parted out and sold off, to offset the cost of a replacement. If the head IS cracked, a replacement can be bought and it takes care of the problem for a few hundred dollars + gaskets and labor.

If the head gasket fails, it can also route water to the oil passage(s). Even if it seeps in, it's a problem.
 
I’m from Kansas City .. yes in winter it does get below freezing temperatures.
Jim you are so right I do want a bigger boat. But I don’t dare to tow anything heavier than 3500 pounds until i get a powerful truck than can handle towing more weight for a bigger boat..
 
I’m from Kansas City .. yes in winter it does get below freezing temperatures.
Jim you are so right I do want a bigger boat. But I don’t dare to tow anything heavier than 3500 pounds until i get a powerful truck than can handle towing more weight for a bigger boat..
Yeah, it gets cold- I was there in late-December, 1999 and remember the storm- we left after the cold & snow started and the drive to Dallas was ugly.

IMO, this might be a good learning platform for the next boat- it wasn't a case of spending a ton and having problems on the '99 and repairing/replacing the engine isn't terribly difficult since it's wide open, if the boat is a Capri. I worked on some of those and was impressed by the improvements over the '80s versions.
 
Totally agree great learning experience..
just got back from Colorado..
drain milky oil new oil and filter check caps rotors .. also visually inspected block for any signs of cracks can’t find any… last on lake test run boat temp never past high 150’s… running wot carb backfire hard once got scared turn of motor than turn it back on next morning check oil it was milky..so with new fluid when test in muffs if it get too hot than check for blown head gasket if temp stays good than move on to lake test run and see if oil get milky again..
please lmk if I’m missing anything else I should check before test in on lake, thanks…
 
Got 12v extractor took out as much oil as possible its was pretty thick took about 30min. New oil ran motor on muffs about 20min rev to 1500 rpm motor started booging check temp on anything or hose that deals with cooling.. all in 120 range execpt right where valve cover meet motor it was very high close to 200 Fahrenheit shut motor than took off thermostat.. idiling good rev to 1500 rpm for 15min no more bogging down.. thermostat gotta to bad
 
Messed with distriburator no timing light motor sound much better Atdc than Btdc check new spark plugs the head are turning off white . Does that means it’s to lean ???? I will test boat on Tuesday morning will the boat at 1500 rpm for 10min on lake tied to dock if all good I’ll cruise away than full throttle toward dock incase somthing breaks I’ll be closer than farther from dock.. Forgot today after running on muff let engine cool down for 2hrs check oil it looks clean and clear .. will check oil again in the morning hope it won’t turn milky..
I know I’m writing a lot trying to put out as much details for the next newbie incase the have similar issues as mine it will help give them ideas of what to look for.. . Crossing fingers hope all is good when testing boat on Tuesday..
 
Do at least two more oil changes. Get the thing hot, let it cool then change the oil. Repeat. Then go out and run a sea trial. Go through all RPM range. Check oil again. If clear then run it until you either blow it up or sell it. In any case, your time with this one should be considered "borrowed" while you shop for the next one.
 
Just for your future reference, when engine blocks crack it is often inside with no visible damage outside. I will admit to throwing away a couple of boats back when I was first getting into it due to missing the glaringly obvious signs but telling myself they were fine cz they looked good on the outside.
 
Do at least two more oil changes. Get the thing hot, let it cool then change the oil. Repeat. Then go out and run a sea trial. Go through all RPM range. Check oil again. If clear then run it until you either blow it up or sell it. In any case, your time with this one should be considered "borrowed" while you shop for the next one.
Agreed. When my neighbor ruined his engine a few years back he used it for 3-4 weeks before the crack opened up and filled the crank case...
 
Drove boat at cruising speed 30mph for 2 hours runs great.oil looks clean nomore milky . but when throttle at 2000rpm or above I hear lots of fast small popping noise from carb try to adjust carb no success. Than try to adjust distributor going leaner popping noise gets faster .. try go richer still same lots popping noise .. carb is new would improper valve adjustment cause it?? Any ideas pleases..
 
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