Hey guys, hoping to crowd source some info regarding my 2012 SANTE 230. Last fall, my engine took on water. Wouldnt crank, towed it home, and has the local pro work on it. He basically did several oil changes to clear the water and told me it was fixed. We've only used it two or 3 weekends since then, and last weekend it happened again. Wouldn't crank had to tow it home. I've already paid the first mechanic to have this repaired, and now he tells me he is backed up until August. I am obviously going to have to take it somewhere else for the repair, but wanted to be as knowledgeable as possible when discussing the issue and subsequent billing with him. Has anyone dealt with this before? Do we think this is likely a cracked head gasket that's letting water into one of the cylinders? Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated!
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We have a jet boat that took on sand going up river one season. Winterized it the next weekend, sand blocked one of the ports from drainage and we cracked a head that winter.
So my 2 cents, could be any number of things, but very likely a bad head gasket on a water port. Without going into details of the analysis and fix, what did the last mechanic fix exactly, or did he just change the oil a couple of times. My opinion is that if he didn't fix the problem, then he should warranty you ahead of everyone else. It's $60 for small claims court, not that I'm suggesting that. If you take it to a different shop, you won't need to explain much, just tell them what you just stated and they will finish the sentence. It's not that hard of fix, just time and wrenches if you have the skills, and you'll probably have it back on the water faster than the shop route. -
By far the most common cause of water getting into a marine engine is a crack in the exhaust manifold(s). The crack lets water from the exhaust cooling drain into the cylinder(s) when the engine isn't running. Then is slowly passes the piston rings and into the crankcase.
Second most common is a crack in the cooling jacket of the block.
More often than not, bad / blown head gaskets don't let significant amount of water into the engine that makes it too the oil because the water system only has pressure when the engine is running. And when it's running the cylinders have enough pressure and heat to get rid of the water. There are exceptions of course.
If your description of the first mechanics repair is accurate and complete, then he doesn't know what he's doing. If you left out that he repaired something else, then that is the important part. Changing the oil is only needed to remove the water in the oil after the actual source has been fixed.
There has also been a winter since this first person did the work. Who winterized the boat for this past winter? Do you have documentation that the winterization was done with enough details to prove it was done perfectly? Do you have detailed documentation of exactly the steps done during the first water in oil repair.
Unfortunately, with a winter between the first repair and the problem now, you'll have an extremely hard time proving fault with the first mechanic.
In terms of finding someone reputable to do the repair now. That's a tough one especially given this time of the season.Comment
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BreezyE21... one possibility jpwhit left out is the exhaust flapper. If the flapper is missing over the exhaust on the transom, it could be possible for water to backflush into the engine. I would look at it and make sure the flapper is in place.
Agreed we more info if you have it about possible damage/repairs done the first time to give a better possible solution.Jason
All black 2003 SANTE
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