86 Stinger 222 Water in oil

Mccafaz · 08-05-2009, 11:33 AM

I went to take my stinger out for the first time since I have owned it and before I left I checked the oil to find a milkshake. After further inspection there are a couple freeze plugs missing as well. My thoughts are that there could be a couple things that are wrong with it. Either a blown head gasket, Cracked manifold, or cracked block would be some of the most common things I would assume?? Are there ways to tell what it is without tearing it down first? Is this a regular rotation engine. I was told when I bought it that it has a 351 ford engine in it. I have a fresh 351 long block that I could use. What would I need to do to modify it for marine use. I have heard that the freeze plugs need to be changed out. Any information that may make this less painful and a little cheaper would be appreciated very much.

Wally · 08-05-2009, 11:59 AM

Freeze plugs out is not a good sign! First thing i would do is rotate the engine around till the valve close on each cylinder and pressurise that cylinder with some compressed air and see if there is any air leaking out...will tell ya real fast if you have a blown head gasket or intake gasket or leaky valves....if that all checks out then i would take the exhaust off and see if you see any signs of water reversion or leaking past the riser gaskets....if that all checks out then you need to start tearing it down and look for craks in the block etc....

Ghostrider · 08-05-2009, 05:04 PM

you have a ford engine? Interesting!

Oil in water is a bummer, but something I'd never leave to chance. Check the motor as Wally said, but if anything seems off, yank the motor and strip it while it still (hopefully) has salvageable parts. Othewise you risk losing all your spares for the other motor!

To convert your long block all depends on A: what you do with the boat (ie:leave it in the ocean or run it in a lake etc), B: what you want out of the boat (longevity vs performance) and , C: how much work do you want to do?

If you've got a ford engine in it, then you have all the mounts, brackets, bellhousing, exhaust, intake etc that are required for marine use and that's the hard part. To make sure the block is correct, you'll need to make sure it's all sealed up right, use marine grade welsh (block) plugs, stainless High Strength bolts for the brackets and mounts, use loctite, make sure it has a marine gasket set so it wont perish. Stuff like that...

Just personally, I cold gal, prime and paint or powdercoat everything to protect it. If it's polished, it's clear coated. Corosion will end your hobby quickly!

Let us know what else you need.
Good luck and like I tell everyone, post pics! (If you can't post them, email them to me and I'll post them for you.)

John

TomZ · 08-05-2009, 09:19 PM

Ford engine?

Is the distributor in the front or the back? Is this a Mercruiser setup or OMC?

If the freeze plugs are out of it, then more than likely she's done. Been there done that many years ago with my first boat.

"If" you have a 351 in there, you really won't have to do much to marinize the engine you have. Freeze plugs (brass), stainless head gaskets (even in fresh water normal head gaskets can corrode), and a marine-oriented cam. Now would be a good time to replace the manifolds and risers just for piece of mind.

I hope you got the boat for a major bargain. If not, I would choose to have some words with the seller!

Good luck and keep us posted.

Mccafaz · 08-06-2009, 09:52 AM

As far as I know it is a ford 351 Clevelend I assume. To be honest I dont really know the difference between a cleveland and a windsor but I know the windsors are pretty rare. The distributor is toward the front of the boat. If i had to make an assumption I would say that this is not the original engine and probly came out of somebodies barn. My plans for the boat are for it to be a trailer queen really. I store it at my house and will take it to the lake a couple times a month for a day at a time. As far as performance, I like going fast, but if its that or having a reliable boat that wont let me down in the middle of a lake with it full of friends then I would prefer a milder setup that will be more solid and reliable. You guys may know better than I if I got a bargain. I bought the boat for 3500 with trailer. The paint is rough, the cuddy is unfinished, but the cockpit area is in good shape and has been redone recently as well as the outdrive has been gone thru last year. I was planning on starting with paint but it seems that this is going to take precedence over that and the paint will be a spring project.

Mccafaz · 08-06-2009, 09:59 AM

Some pictures of the boat are here if you want to take a look it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33433397@N02/

TomZ · 08-06-2009, 03:53 PM

Being a Ford engine, then probably have a 302 or 351. You would more than certainly NOT have a Cleveland (those are rare). It looks like you have a Mercruiser drive so that's in your favor!

Personally, I would look at getting a low hour take out from a local marine dismantler. Putthing the engine in isn't that big of a deal, and depending on how low you can get the boat, you can get it in with a standard engine hoist. Get the replacement engine with the bellhousing and any other parts you can get (basically everything from the coupler forward). Bolt the engine in and go boating.

If you want to build something more fun, then the ideas are limitless, but frankly, I think you'll go farther with a Chevy versus the Ford.

$3500 for a 22ft boat with a bad engine would make me a little upset. I bought mine with no engine (but all the parts to build one... which I sold off) for $2500, but it was in great shape and had been stored indoors for years.

Mccafaz · 08-07-2009, 11:31 AM

Thanks for the input. I have to take a little of the blame on that myself. I should have noticed it myself before I bought it which kinda makes me the dummy. Oh well, I cant really return it now. I found a guy here that is very reasonable to check it out for me. I would rather get a professional opinion of whats actually bad so I dont tear a motor all apart to find that it didnt need it. I do appreciate all of the help and will keep you posted on progress.

TomZ · 08-07-2009, 11:43 AM

Good luck with it! Gotta keep these old Stingers up and running... not too many of them left!

Mccafaz · 08-28-2009, 12:48 PM

I took the boat to a guy that came highly recommended to have him look it over for me. He got back to me yesterday and said that he had changed the oil out and put the block plugs back in it, then ran on the hose for about 20 minutes and it was clean. I had him change the oil again for good measure and am gonna put it in the water on saturday for a real test. We will see.... I think im still gonna try to paint it in september sometime and put it away for the winter as long as all tests go well.