High Oil Pressure

[Jefe24]

Hello All,

I purchased a 1988 American Skier Advanced last fathers day for myself. The boat run great and I have not had any major issues with the boat( trailer bearing's went out on second trip to Barryessa). I was out with my family and a friend of mine the other day and he notice the oil pressure was high(60 psi @ idle hot). I told him the boat was always around 60 psi since i bought it and have been out 10 plus times with no issues. Per my friend I did an oil change 10w-40 and a new filter dont remember the numbers but it was the same motor craft filter i took off. Was helped by a guy at Eagle Marine (local boat shop ) and he confirmed it was the right filter.

Oil looks great came out a little dark and new oil is a beautiful honey color. Unfortunately the psi is still the same 60psi at idle hot. Anyone have any ideas i can do or take a look at to figure out whats going on. Any advise would be highly appreciated. first time boat owner newbie.

Thanks Jefe

[Mike Harry]

If it were mine and I was worried about it the first thing I would do is take out the oil pressure sending unit and hook up a good or new mechanical gauge.

[backfoot100]

If it were mine and I was worried about it the first thing I would do is take out the oil pressure sending unit and hook up a good or new mechanical gauge.

+1
Never hurts to get a confirmation from a known source.

I personally think 60 PSI isn't horrible. What does the pressure do when you first start it cold? How much does it change with RPM?
My engine runs well over 80PSI when I first start it cold. It runs anywhere from 10 PSI up to 60 PSI warm through the entire RPM range.
Was the sender and/or gauges changed at any point?

[Jefe24]

It starts at 80psi cold then goes down. When going through the rpm it goes up about 75-80psi. Warm idle is at 60psi. how do i use a mechanical gauge

[Mike Harry]

You can pick up a oil pressure gauge kit at any auto parts store. It will come as a kit with the line and fittings needed. You can either pull your sending unit out and replace it or you can put in a "T" and run both at the same time. I would run both so you can compare but that's me.

Im with Backfoot, my engine runs close to 70-75 at startup and 50 to 60 (down to 30 from high rev to idle speed then picks back up) normally at warm idle. My engine is a new crate engine with less than 40 hours on it though.

[Jefe24]

The boat has the original engine 351w, installed in 1988 and only has 449 hours. boat sat in storage for 15 years. My worries is that sat to long and slowly it will crap out piece by piece. Replaced starter and steering cable

[backfoot100]

The boat has the original engine 351w, installed in 1988 and only has 449 hours. boat sat in storage for 15 years. My worries is that sat to long and slowly it will crap out piece by piece. Replaced starter and steering cable

Just because it sat for 15 years doesn't mean that everything is ready for the bone yard. Yes, stuff will happen. That's a part of owning a boat. They're pretty amazing machines considering that they're constantly loaded as soon as you put them in gear but at the same time they're extremely simple unlike trying to work on an auto or truck.

After sitting that long, the oil pressure that you have should be the least of your concerns. If it runs, don't even think about chasing internal engine ghosts.
Stuff like the starter, alternator, cables and wiring are things that I would probably assume will need replacing or rebuilding. Do a good tune up (cap, rotor, condenser, plugs, plug wires). That would eliminate the ignition as any potential starting, missing or poor running conditions present themselves. A carb rebuild wouldn't be out of the question but if it runs as good as you say, I wouldn't worry about it now. Change all fluids including tranny. Make sure that you change the raw water pump impeller NOW unless you've already done that. If that thing frags on you, then you could end up with real engine problems after it overheats.
The trailer bearings you mentioned I would also consider standard replacement items after sitting that long. Not to worry.

Run the old girl and get a feel for her. You said she runs good. Enjoy it with your family. As long as you've done the basics above take each issue that comes about with a grain of salt. Stuff will happen but the good times enjoyed with your family far outweigh a little hiccup along the way. 

[Jefe24]

Funny you say that mike about the trailer. My friend told me it was the first thing he would have done. trip number two last summer the barrings went out. Good news is i have learned how to replace the hubs, barring and all that good stuff. I am planning to rewire soon, i noticed a lot of them are no good. I will do a good general tune up this weekend and get her feeling young again. I love the boat, never even heard of them until i bought it and love the fact it has a 351w makes getting parts a little easier the others.

I have replaced the starter,  steering cable, oil and filter, spark plugs (not wires but should),and some wires to the lights and blower.

You mentioned trany and raw water impeller. I am familiar with the trany but not sure about a raw water pump  and
impeller. any advise on this would be greatly appreciated sorry i am a boat newbie. i will google but like the advise of people who know what their talking about since every boat seems to be different and these boats do not seem to be that common.

Thanks Jeff

[backfoot100]

If the trailer hubs/bearings had any water in them at all when it was put to bed 15 years ago, you can bet that they rusted up and the reason that would be a good idea to remove/inspect/repack at the very least. You found out the hard way. No big deal. It's a part of first time ownership.

Tranny fluid? What color is it? Have you changed it? It should be a Borg Warner 1:1 Velvet Drive that you suck the fluid out using a fluid transfer pump you can find at any auto parts store for $10-$15. Suck out the old fluid and replace with new standard Dexron III fluid. Make sure that it's not a synthetic version of Dexron III. It'll take about a qt. and a half of fluid.

Now for the Raw water pump (RWP) impeller. There is a hose that runs from a thru-hull fitting back by the tranny (usually through a water strainer and a tranny cooler) then to a pump on the front of the engine. The pump could be mounted to the crankshaft pulley or is a standalone unit bolted to the engine someplace and driven by a fan belt. It's purely dependent on the engine marinizer (Indmar, Commander, PCM, Hardin, etc.) Inside that RWP is a rubber impeller that sucks water from the lake via that thru-hull fitting. The water runs through the strainer (if equipped) to filter out anything that may get sucked up in the water and then through the tranny cooler to cool the tranny fluid and finally to the RWP. Some older Commander marinizations were routed a bit differently but you get the idea.
The RWP then discharges the water to the engine and exhaust manifolds to keep everything cool. The impeller has several fins on it and if they become brittle or hot they'll break off, you loose water suction and the engine overheats. It can only take a few seconds for that to happen. This is a pretty important little piece that I like to change every year or two years at the very least. Depending on what type it is, it could cost anywhere from $30 up to about $50. If yours has been in there for 15 years you have no idea what condition it's in or how long it was in service before that boat was put to bed.
Let me put this very mildly. CHANGE THAT IMPELLER BEFORE YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT STARTING THAT BOAT UP EVER AGAIN!!!!!!! YES, I'M YELLING!!!!!!

Call up Ron at Skiboatpartsonline and talk with him about getting a new impeller and I'm sure that he'll be more than happy to explain how you change it. Then make sure that you look at the some of his videos that he's made on how to test that impeller with a bucket test before you put it back in the water. This can literally prevent thousands of dollars damage. DO IT NOW.

[lcgordon]

+1 on the immediate impeller change