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Rebuilt Motors


Wakesetter

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Has anyone had any experience with rebuilt motors? I beleive it comes with a 2 year warranty but don't want to invest in a rebuilt motors just to have more problems in a couple years. I know no guarantees but if you could share your experiences, good or bad, I would appreciate it. I am debating rebuilt motor vs. new motor (if reasonable) vs. trading in as is. What does a rebuilt motor do for re-sale value? Thanks.

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I am not a big fan of the mass produced rebuilds. I am suspicious of quality control vs profit....also I have seen a few cases where there were warranty issues.

I personally think the way to go is to take it to a reputable engine builder or to get a factory replacement engine.

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I'd only do a quality rebuild or a crate motor. Those "Jasper" and other mass produced rebuilds don't inspire confidence.

On my last boat, the motor let go and I went the crate motor route. That added value for sure and made it easier to sell - that said, it was also an 89 I/O where people are going to be a bit more skeptical of the power package in a boat that old.

Edited by Nitrousbird
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I was referred to Barr Engines. I assume they are a mass rebuilder similar to Jasper. Thank you for the advice. I will talk with a local rebuilder and get some input from them.

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I am told it floated a valve. Spring came off rocker, bent the valve and scored the piston so I assume a whole rebuild. There was also water in my oil and spark plugs were fouled so there must be other damage as well. I know little about engines but was told it would be cheaper to throw a rebuilt in than tear mine down and rebuild it. With the general view on rebuilt motors, I'm definately looking into the cost of doing the best long term solution rather than the cheapest if I decide to keep this one and not get a new boat.

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:( Well let me tell you, the last motor I put in my Sea Ray was #7 in 6 years. Had some really bad luck with Jasper Marine, and even the 1st Mercury rebuild. To make a long story short, I would spend the money on a new one, not a rebuilt.

Long story, we purchased this boat new from the Sea Ray dealer. Boat ran fine first 6 years, then dealer was doing a spring start and check, the mechanic was not satisfied it was running correctly (EFI). So he tore the motor down, and found a hole in the cylinder, bad way to start off the year.

Money was short so went with a Jasper Marine rebuild, they always run the motor outside the boat before installing the motor in the boat. First motor blew before even getting into the boat (bad block that was rebuilt).

They sent a new motor to dealer, and it was installed, ran two days before it lost a cylinder.

Next motor ran 3 months, before the core of the spark plug blew out and caused the cylinder to go through the head.

Next motor ran 11 months, before we noticed really bad acceleration, only 1 cylinder had compression greater than 50%.

Getting really fustrated at this point, so bought a Mercury rebuilt, they had a 1 year guarantee, had dealer install this motor, it went out 14 months later.

However, Mercury sent a new motor to replace this one, got smart sold the boat, and bought me a BU :biggrin: . Best move I ever made.

FYI - all engines were broken in properly according to manufactures requirements. Turns out some block are rebuild after the cylinder walls are too thin this was the problem with a couple of the Jasper, and 1 or Mercury rebuilds. (Thats why Mercury replaced it, there rep came out and looked at the motor, and determined it never should have been rebuilt).

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Wow, Malibu_Mike, that is a horror story. I went and looked at the boat for myself last night and what a sickening sight. The spring was indeed broken in half, the exhaust valve was bent and exhaust manifold gasket was blown (explaining why water was in places it shouldn't have been.) The piston was scored, not sure to what extent since i am unknowledgable, but it looked like minimal damage to me. I am talking with an engine rebuilder who seemed very knowledgable so I will get his opinion on what can be done. Is it possible to fix the piston without tearing down the engnine? Resurfacing it to some extent? If the whole engine has to be taken apart to fix the piston then I will 100% go with a new motor if I keep the boat, or just rebuild mine if it is rebuildable for less (assuming I sell it.) I'm still hoping for some good news, but glad this happened at the end of the season rather than the beginning!

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Geez, Malibu Mike, that's the worst! Reminds me of a movie quote:

"Other kings said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built it all the same, just to show 'em. It sank into the swamp. So, I built a second one. That sank into the swamp. So I built a third one. That burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp. But the fourth one...stayed up! And that's what you're gonna get lad: the strongest castle in these islands"

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Wow, Malibu_Mike, that is a horror story. I went and looked at the boat for myself last night and what a sickening sight. The spring was indeed broken in half, the exhaust valve was bent and exhaust manifold gasket was blown (explaining why water was in places it shouldn't have been.) The piston was scored, not sure to what extent since i am unknowledgable, but it looked like minimal damage to me. I am talking with an engine rebuilder who seemed very knowledgable so I will get his opinion on what can be done. Is it possible to fix the piston without tearing down the engnine? Resurfacing it to some extent? If the whole engine has to be taken apart to fix the piston then I will 100% go with a new motor if I keep the boat, or just rebuild mine if it is rebuildable for less (assuming I sell it.) I'm still hoping for some good news, but glad this happened at the end of the season rather than the beginning!

One of the other things you will need a Malibu dealer to check out is the computer, if you have an EFI or TB motor. This could cause pre-deditination which could have caused the problem and force even a new motor to have a similiar problem.

Edited by Malibu_Mike
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I have a '95 Sunsetter that I bought with a tired engine. First time out the raw water impeller blew, overheated my engine, and blew the head gaskets. I planned on keeping it for some time so I found a local engine re-builder and did some checking. I also talked to them and they gave me some names of local folks that they had done rebuilds for.

I did decide to go ahead and have them rebuild my engine. The original engine would be swapped he said to save time. He requested casting numbers for the block and heads, and the boat info to make the match. The original price was only $1700. Less than half of a crate engine. When I dropped off the long block he asked me if I wanted to modify it at all. In the end I went from the std 2 bolt main Mercruiser to a 4 bolt main HD engine block, upped the compression ratio, changed to a slightly bigger cam kit for low-mid rpm power, roller timing chain and gears, and it was all done in 2 weeks from the drop off date. I think that was about 7 years ago.

To this day I have only performed normal maintenance. It is a carburetor engine so I have to get the gas pumped up to the carb after it sits for a week or two, but otherwise it run great! Strictly a turn key operation. I have more than enough power to handle a boat full of people with my 1400 lbs of ballast and the wedge down.

If you do your research, I don't think you could go wrong with having yours rebuilt. I was very satisfied.

I was thinking of putting crossfire injection on it to get rid of the carb. My friend is an expert on it and has developed an new manifold that really works well.

Good luck!

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The motor has/had 600 hours. 2005 Monsoon 340. The price difference between rebuilding mine and a new one is only about $1,000. I think a new motor is a better investment in my case, at least for the peace of mind. I'll mention the computer to teh factory. I assume they will know what to do...? Would it throw a code if something was wrong in the computer? Mine did not throw any codes.

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