alter ego

I installed a closed cooling system on my motor this year. The tank mounts to the intake with 2 bolts at the thermostat housing and has a gasket on the mounting surface. I have had nothing but problems with leaks at the mounting point this year plus it just doesn't look right on that motor. I keep the boat in the water all season and now that its coming time to take it out I am thinking about a better way to cool this motor and still make it last so I can be ready for next season. This system would work well if it didn't leak all the time but I have replaced the gasket and put longer bolts, called cool-craft to see if they could help and nothing seems to work. The boat is in salt water...is there anything I can do without this system that will keep my engine life and be simple and reliable? My motor is a 502 mpi in a 28 stryker equalizer.

Badtoon

I've had the same problem but with a different manufacture. I finally cured it by taking the piece that fastens to the intake off and took it to the machine shop (at work) and had them grind it smooth (it was off). Then I got the GOOD FELPRO Stat Gasket (5 bucks it has a silicone bead both sides sim. to Vortec intake gaskets) from AutoZone and put it back together and NO Leaks.

Good Luck

alter ego

I will try that gasket. Did you have to special order it?

alter ego

How many of you guys have it set up so that you flush the motor after runs? will that work just as well or am I better off keeping the fresh water cooling? I just don't know too many people with performance boats that have closed cooling or keep them in the water.

Badtoon

alter ego

It's not a special order my local AutoZone had it on the shelf. I looked for plastic it came in but I couldn't find it. The closed cooling comes on a lot of High Performance Mercury engines. Mine runs 10 to 15 deg. cooler and the cylinder temps are more consistent.

mcollinstn

In salt, closed cooling is FAR more friendly to your motor. Since you already got a kit that seems to be able to cool your motor, you should only be concerned with making it work. Stuff that fits doesn't leak. You just need to tweak your existing setup.

If you don't like the look, you can always make new brackets and move the exchanger to another location (on top of the bellhousing, etc).

alter ego

Thanks for the information. It just gets frustrating because nobody around my area seems to want to know anything about performance boats or this engine. Whenever I talk to local boat yards or stores they look at me like I'm crazy when I tell them I need something for a 502. I am going to work on a better design for the mount this year so next season I won't have this problem.

Sydwayz

Just a thought, but the Fiore's of Outlerlimits could not be nicer folks, and they are in RI. Might try looking them up for some local machine shop/engine loving guru friends. There have been stories of Mike himself sitting down to talk over stringer issues with someone rebuilding a older boat, of a different make.

blue thunder

Here is where my heat exchangers sit. The hose clamps hold them to aluminum saddles that are bolted to 1" tube weldment. Works nice. Just a thought,

BT

FlyFast

ego,

Not all closed cooling systems mount to the intake manifold. My system is bolted to the side of the heads. I have a aluminum intake and would never consider bolting a heat exchanger to it.

the heat exchanger brackets are bolted to the side of the heads and then the t-stat housing has a car type of housing. My system was made in seattle but there are alot of systems out there that do not bolt onto the intake manifold. They might be able to make a special bracket for you. The company I bought mine from made the bracket for shipping charges.

Good luck