[edit: below is a bit of an adventure I had with faulty Mercruiser water pumps -- went through 3 of them in a span of 3 years. Finally decided to swap the belt driven pump for a crankshaft mounted pump -- lower cost, better design, much easier annual maintenance etc... -- feel free to read through the series of posts, or I will summarize in the conversion steps and some lessons learned in the last post}
Hey all -- need your help and input.
Have my boat way around the west coast of Vancouver Island for the month of August. Opened the engine compartment to find several inches of water in the bilge area and water dripping from the shaft/bearings of my SeaWater pump.
I've got a Mercruiser 350 MAG MPI, 2004 vintage that uses the late model pump -- part number 862914C (or the new model uses T10 rather than C).
Looks like I have a few choices:
1. Risk not replacing it and run the pump as-is. But given I'm fishing offshore, I'm thinking this is a stupid decision as the bearings are going to eventually seize (it's a matter of when...)
2. Replace the entire pump assembly: however, none of the Mercruiser parts dealers have the pump in stock as apparently there is a "casting issue" with the manufacturer and they have been backordered since June or earlier with no stock expected anytime soon....
3. Find an after-market pump (eBay or otherwise)
4. Replace the shaft and bearings on the existing pump.
I'm looking into options 3 or 4. Have any of you rebuilt the pump yourself? I can get the shaft with the bearings and seals new for about $135 but not sure if this is something I can tackle on the dock, 3 hours (by road) from home? Can any of you comment whether this rebuild is relatively simple? The parts diagram is here -- and quoted replacements are basically parts 2-7.
Would also like comments on how difficult removal of the old pump will be. Looks as simple as removal of the two hoses (block the water intakes), remove the belt, remove the hanger bracket and the pump should be in my hand. Concerned that the hanger bracket looks pretty rusty -- any tips for easy removal?
Hey all -- need your help and input.
Have my boat way around the west coast of Vancouver Island for the month of August. Opened the engine compartment to find several inches of water in the bilge area and water dripping from the shaft/bearings of my SeaWater pump.
I've got a Mercruiser 350 MAG MPI, 2004 vintage that uses the late model pump -- part number 862914C (or the new model uses T10 rather than C).
Looks like I have a few choices:
1. Risk not replacing it and run the pump as-is. But given I'm fishing offshore, I'm thinking this is a stupid decision as the bearings are going to eventually seize (it's a matter of when...)
2. Replace the entire pump assembly: however, none of the Mercruiser parts dealers have the pump in stock as apparently there is a "casting issue" with the manufacturer and they have been backordered since June or earlier with no stock expected anytime soon....
3. Find an after-market pump (eBay or otherwise)
4. Replace the shaft and bearings on the existing pump.
I'm looking into options 3 or 4. Have any of you rebuilt the pump yourself? I can get the shaft with the bearings and seals new for about $135 but not sure if this is something I can tackle on the dock, 3 hours (by road) from home? Can any of you comment whether this rebuild is relatively simple? The parts diagram is here -- and quoted replacements are basically parts 2-7.
Would also like comments on how difficult removal of the old pump will be. Looks as simple as removal of the two hoses (block the water intakes), remove the belt, remove the hanger bracket and the pump should be in my hand. Concerned that the hanger bracket looks pretty rusty -- any tips for easy removal?
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