93 SkiRay MerCruiser Tournament 350 - water intake hose question

There are 2 water pumps.

The raw water pump with the replaceable rubber impellar draws lake water in.

The circulating pump is mounted to the front of the motor, that’s what moves the water through the motor and out through the exhaust. If either pump is bad, you will overheat.
 
It sounds like "all of a sudden" the engine was getting zero water to it. What changed in the time between when it was working and wasn't? Do you have a seacock - is it now closed? Do you have a strainer - is it clogged?

The "circulating" pump is different than the raw water pump. The raw water pump has the rubber impeller in it. The circ pump is mounted directly to the engine, just like a car (front, center), and typically has a metal "impeller".

A raw water impeller can sometimes "look" fine, especially to an untrained eye, yet it may still be bad or the housing/wear plates could be scored. Try this... follow the "output" hose of the raw water pump to where it connects to the t-stat housing. With a cold engine, remove it and start the engine. Run the engine for a minute (you won't damage anything in that timeframe) and observe the water flowing out from the hose.
 
Last edited:
That's the weird thing, nothing happened between uses... it sat for 1 week (out of the water). If we have a seacock valve, we didn't touch it. Not sure if there's a strainer.

He will remove the water pump and bring it home to get a new one. He also removed the thermostat incase that was the issue, but it sounds like that's not it.
 
Like LD mentioned, throw that raw water impeller that's years old away. They look fine but aren't, it loses tension
 
so don't take off the circulating pump?

i want to tell him before he leaves the cabin :)


Does the circulating pump have anything to do with pulling water from the lake into the transmission cooler? The reason I ask is because the hoses to and from the transmission cooler were empty when it was idling when I had the overheating issue. I squeezed them and there was nothing inside.

He checked the plates with the impeller, nothing was scored at all.
 
Last edited:
Don’t mess with the circulating pump yet - not likely that is a problem, they last a long time. The first sign of failure is the seals leaking water from the front of the pump. Need to figure out why the raw water pump is not supplying water. Replace that old impeller and make sure all the hoses are in good shape and tight. If not the pump will suck air and not prime. Also, if you unhook the back hose on the trans cooler, water should flow in, if not follow the hose back and figure out why. Something simple going on here, these are not complicated systems.
 
Well it's been a while now (Winter, COVID, etc...) and last fall we replaced the thermostat, belts and some other things (not the raw water impeller) and the squealing went away, and then it sat all winter (we never got to try it in the water).

Went this past weekend and it still overheats.

We took apart the raw water pump and the impeller looked great, until i took it out of the housing... it was destroyed and the pipes were full of the fins. Oops!

I ordered a new Quicksilver #47-59362T1 and that should fix it, else I'm going to sink that damn boat!

The impeller housing has 2 small dings on the inside, hopefully that won't be a big deal, else I'll have to get a new one of those as well (#46-807151).

The boat does have the strainer thing on the bottom, but I could not take it off, the 4 screws came out with ease, but it seems to be glued on.

Question: when I install the impeller, what type of grease do I lubricate it the housing with? I've read silicone grease and dish soap. Would brake lubricant work (Kleen-Flo Eze Slide - silicone based) or Ultra Slick Synthetic Grease - both safe on rubber?

 
Last edited:
You sure you have the correct part # ?. Is it the plastic pump? If so they're cheap enough. Shop ebay or amazon.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_8964.jpg
    IMG_8964.jpg
    197.8 KB · Views: 145
Silly question. The pump housing says left hand rotation (clockwise).

When Installing the impeller, I also twist in a clockwise direction so the fins bend to the left?
 
It's actually really easy - just look at the old impeller before you remove it and duplicate. Take a pic, if you feel the need.
 
ok i replaced the housing and impeller, now the engine does not overheat, it almost reaches 170F while towing.

thanks everyone! we could finally take my little girls out on the "big boat" as they call it (compared to the 12' aluminum with a Yamaha 15HP).

now, the transmission oil cooler is dripping again, not sure if it's the hose or the actual part. The hose comes off easily when the clamps are removed, the other hoses on the boat i need to really work at to get off.

We tried JB Weld water putty, etc and it's still coming through.
 
Last edited:
well just an update, we took the transmission oil cooler completely off and scraped all the crap my dad put on and found the cause of the leak. We never removed it from the boat before.

One end of it is crimped on, not welded. So that basically popped off on an angle and created a 1cm gap. All the junk my dad put on it held it together and kept most of the water in.

We sanded it down, added JB Weld, put it together, added more JB Weld and a clamp.

Rock solid now, not 1 drop of water.

Thanks all! Now to perform an oil change :p
 
Steve, I just ran across your post and was curious to see if you had any updates this season.
I Aquired a spitfire from a good friend last fall. Have been researching and maintaining it since. Planning on taking it out for the 1st time in a couple weeks. Its in mint condition but hasnt been ran in 5 years.
Its not easy finding info on this model is it?
 
93TXspitfire said:
Steve, I just ran across your post and was curious to see if you had any updates this season.
I Aquired a spitfire from a good friend last fall. Have been researching and maintaining it since. Planning on taking it out for the 1st time in a couple weeks. Its in mint condition but hasnt been ran in 5 years.
Its not easy finding info on this model is it?
Click to expand...

Hi,

We ran it yesterday for the first time this year, started up no problem. Cooling was perfect as it was after we fixed it last year.

Do you have the manual? I downloaded it a few years ago, but i think it's engine specific. The nice thing about this boat/engine is that it's very basic, no high-tech stuff to go wrong.

#1 - new fuel filter
#2 - oil change and filter
#3 - new spark plugs and possibly wires if corroded
#4 - check and change coolant if needed
#5 - remove and inspect water housing and impeller
#6 - make sure all hoses are snug
#7 - new battery if needed
#8 - clean the air intake thing on the top (can't remember it's name)

That's basically all we do and it's great.

The only thing that doesn't work on ours is the blower, and it was replaced a few years ago. It may have corroded wires or blown fuse, so after filling up with gas, I just open the engine compartment and let it air out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,236
Messages
1,429,050
Members
61,119
Latest member
KenBoat
Back
Top