Hi all, here’s an update on my engine situation. Apologies for the length of this post, but I want to include all the details in case someone has any suggestions about where to go from here.
As I mentioned initially, about a week ago, while motoring out, my oil filter somehow came loose and dumped all the oil into the engine bilge. After replacing the oil and tightening the filter, the engine wouldn’t turn over. I was able to get back to the marina under sail.
After my last post, I bled the fuel system as Loren had suggested. I replaced all of the oil and put on a new, beer-can sized Wix filter. I pulled out the raw water impeller and the impeller shaft, and then loosened the v-belt and took it off. I got the biggest plumber’s wrench that I have, and tried to crank it by hand, but still had resistance. I turned it anti-clockwise for two turns, and then tried again. I repeated this several times, and finally got it to turn clockwise past the resistance. I then turned on the ignition, and it engaged for 5-10 seconds and then “clunked” again. I put a few shots of Blaster and some squirts of liquid wrench into the crankcase, then left it overnight.
When I came back the next day, I tried again to turn it by hand with the big wrench, but it wouldn’t turn. I backed it off anti-clockwise for a number of turns, then went on deck and tried the ignition and wow, boom – it turned over!
I let it run for a few seconds and then turned it off. I went below and turned it clockwise by hand, and it broke free from the resistance. I then turned it on and let it run for a full minute. However, I heard a noise in the engine and immediately turned it off.
I reconnected the impeller, raw water pump and the v-belt, and tightened everything up. I started the engine and it started right up, no black or white smoke coming from the exhaust, and the water was running freely. I put it into gear and let it run for a few minutes, but something was definitely clattering around in the engine.
So the engine is running but something is wrong. I’m not sure what to try next. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
- Dave