Question about salt water engines
 

I'm from Michigan and am looking to repower my boat. I currently have twin 454 carb'ed motors with several hundred hours. One of them is starting to get very tired and I'm looking to replace both of them with lower hour 454 MPI's. I have a chance to buy 2 motors from Florida that have fresh water flush kits installed and approx. 200-300 hours on them. They were made in 2000. What should I look for when inspecting these motors besides the obvious( exhaust manifolds, compression, possible major teardown)?

I know the hours can't be verified because they are not in the boat. Just wondering what some of you experts think? Thanks

8 years & 2-300 Hundred hours these are likely to be pretty tired as well.
20-300 in salt even with a flush kit- how may hours did salt water sit inside the engines without being flushed out?
Was the boat slipped or trailered?

Unless you're getting paid to take them away I'd just do something else.

I've seen salt water turn a SBC's innards to powder in 6 years.


Uncle Dave

So has anyone had any good experiences with a motor exposed to salt water??

I have boated in salt my whole life and have never had a engine failure . My current 454 is a 91 and has been in salt from the start. I did a complete tear down 2 summers ago(wanted more power)and other than the exhaust it was fine. I flush after every use for 20 mins. Sometimes with salt away and others with dawn soap.

I'm looking at a boat that's in salt, and not too clean either. I'm worried about the engines (500efi's), but then I realize that there are thousands of boaters in salt who don't go to nearly the extremes people on here talk about. Funny, many of those boats continue to run?

So it sort of feels it is a bit too much worry?

The few people that I have talked to around here(Harrison twp.) all say I'm nuts to even think about buying motors that came from salt water(almost impossible to verify hours from someone you don't know). They say that the salt will eat away the aluminum intake and unless the motor is flushed every time out, I'm just throwing my money away. I would have to spend at LEAST double to get what I'm looking at in Florida for fresh water only motors. I guess its true what they say" you get what you pay for"