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Winterizing a 454


Michigan boarder

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I've winterized my carbed small block many times, it's very simple: drain both exhaust manifolds, drain both engine block drains (located on the sides of the engine), remove the hose that goes from the impeller pump to the tranny cooler, remove the large hose that goes from the thermostat housing to the circulation pump, remove the hose from the input side of the impeller pump.

Is it any different for the 454 EFI engine?  I should have a knock sensor, right?

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14 hours ago, Kmfish87 said:

To avoid starting a new thread...

There is only one drain per side on each the engine block and exhaust manifold for a total of 4, right? 

Yes, on my small block carbed engine.  Your's looks to be fuel injected, so I don't know if you have a knock sensor.

I thought I had a buyer for the 454 so I did not look at it, but that fell apart.

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On 10/28/2016 at 4:58 PM, oldjeep said:

I don't know if it has a knock sensor, but the block drain will be there regardless.

So does the knock sensor go in the hole that would normally be used as the drain on the side of the block?  Or would there be another spot for the knock sensor, and therefore two drain holes on one side?

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There will be one and only one drain on each side of the block (350 or 454).  They are sometimes plugged with simple pipe plugs, sometimes with a knock sensor.  General Motors cheaped out when adding the knock sensor by not providing a mounting point for it and just screwing it into the block drain hole. 

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24 minutes ago, MadMan said:

There will be one and only one drain on each side of the block (350 or 454).  They are sometimes plugged with simple pipe plugs, sometimes with a knock sensor.  General Motors cheaped out when adding the knock sensor by not providing a mounting point for it and just screwing it into the block drain hole. 

Got it, thank you.  Then winterizing the 454 will be easy (no shower or heater).

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3 hours ago, MadMan said:

There will be one and only one drain on each side of the block (350 or 454).  They are sometimes plugged with simple pipe plugs, sometimes with a knock sensor.  General Motors cheaped out when adding the knock sensor by not providing a mounting point for it and just screwing it into the block drain hole. 

Looked at it last night and there is a little "Y" shaped fitting screwed into the block drain of the "driver side" of the block on mine. Top side of the fitting has the knock sensor screwed in it and the bottom has a nice little ball valve drain. Only tool I needed to drain all the water out of the engine was a screw driver to take the few hoses off.

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2 hours ago, Kmfish87 said:

Looked at it last night and there is a little "Y" shaped fitting screwed into the block drain of the "driver side" of the block on mine. Top side of the fitting has the knock sensor screwed in it and the bottom has a nice little ball valve drain. Only tool I needed to drain all the water out of the engine was a screw driver to take the few hoses off.

I'm too lazy to look, but I know that there's a post from Paul at Bakes Marine back when he used to post on here regularly about how adding a drain between the block and the knock sensor is a big no-no because it interferes with proper operation of the knock sensor.

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I think Engine Nut has stated the same thing. He's the Rep from Indmar. I've always heard not to change the position of the knock sensors. When I was at GM I asked the question to drivetrain engineers. They said the same thing. Don't put anything between the sensor and the block. 

I have a block drain kit I bought from skid.com, it includes fittings to drain the knock sensors. I bought it years ago. Never used it after hearing not to change those sensors.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Update: there is the normally placed drain, and then a couple of inches above it is a 1" diameter thing that goes into the block in what looks to be another drain-sized opening.  So do I need to remove that thing too, or since I pulled the drain below it am I good?

By the way - this engine is much harder to get around than the SBC.  And the tranny cooler doesn't stay on the port side, it goes to the back of the engine, up and over the tranny, then along the starboard side which is where the tranny fluid lines are.  Totally blocking the raw water inlet and hose.  On the plus side - it does have a remote oil filter.  Which is nice.

I've drained everything else, but cannot get that tranny cooler done without a ton of pulling everything else.  So I'm thinking I'll just fill the whole system with 5 gallons of antifreeze and call it good.  I'll take some pics next time I'm out at the boat.

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1 minute ago, oldjeep said:

1" diameter thing?  A freeze plug?

No, not a freeze plug.  A larger fitting that is attached to something the size of a drain plug.  I should get a pic.

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22 minutes ago, Michigan boarder said:

No, not a freeze plug.  A larger fitting that is attached to something the size of a drain plug.  I should get a pic.

Is it in the block, or in the head? 454 has a water temp sensor about straight up from the block drain just above the exhaust manifold.

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This guy right here.  In the block, just above the drain.  You can see the drain an inch down and to the right.

 

Engine sensor on block resized.jpg

Edited by Michigan boarder
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14 minutes ago, oldjeep said:

That is the knock sensor.  No reason to remove it since the coolant passage it is in would drain out through the block drain.

Thanks man, that's what I thought but figured I would double check.

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A friend has nearly the same boat, repowered with a 502. I helped him winterize the first time and it did seem much more complicated than a 350. He had a fuel cooler? front/port side. Somewhat under the engine under a black plastic panel. About the size of an iPad mini. There is a cooler with a drain plug in there.

 

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11 hours ago, toddthelineman said:

A friend has nearly the same boat, repowered with a 502. I helped him winterize the first time and it did seem much more complicated than a 350. He had a fuel cooler? front/port side. Somewhat under the engine under a black plastic panel. About the size of an iPad mini. There is a cooler with a drain plug in there.

 

Crap.  That does make sense too, I vaguely remember seeing cooling lines and fuel lines converging.  I did this all in the dark, there was a problem with the power in the pole building.  That's fixed now, so I'll give it another look this weekend.  Thanks for the heads up!

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11 hours ago, toddthelineman said:

A friend has nearly the same boat, repowered with a 502. I helped him winterize the first time and it did seem much more complicated than a 350. He had a fuel cooler? front/port side. Somewhat under the engine under a black plastic panel. About the size of an iPad mini. There is a cooler with a drain plug in there.

 

That is a mercury thing.  My inlaws 04 LXI with 350 black scorpion has the same thing.

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I have the Indmar small block (looks just like the pic above). I do remove the knock sensor carefully. Without removing the electrical connection. That allows that side of the block to drain. The electric connection will spin freely if you hold it in one hand, while turning the brass fitting with a wrench. Then I replace it.

Steve B.

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31 minutes ago, oldjeep said:

That is a mercury thing.  My inlaws 04 LXI with 350 black scorpion has the same thing.

Must be a newer Mercury thing, don't believe the 95 has that. The manual didn't say it did.

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4 minutes ago, footndale said:

Must be a newer Mercury thing, don't believe the 95 has that. The manual didn't say it did.

Would only be on fuel injected engines, and maybe not even the TBI engines since the fuel pressure is so much lower and they are not as prone to vapor lock.

Edited by oldjeep
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12 minutes ago, Steve B. said:

I have the Indmar small block (looks just like the pic above). I do remove the knock sensor carefully. Without removing the electrical connection. That allows that side of the block to drain. The electric connection will spin freely if you hold it in one hand, while turning the brass fitting with a wrench. Then I replace it.

Steve B.

Do you have the block drain below it as well, or just the one drain?

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