Ford 1600cc crosflow marinization

[John Mason]

I am restoring a 1975 Delta Clubman ski boat which is fitted with a Ford 1600 crossflow. I have had the engine completely rebuilt and it runs beautifully, except that there is water getting into the oil & quite a lot at that.

The oil cooler has been pressure tested and is fine, the head has been checked for cracks and is OK. I recently replaced the head gasket for a much better quality version, but the problem still exists.

Has anyone had experience of this type of engine fitted to a boat and could suggest any possible solution to the problem?

Thanks, John

[wet feet]

I have no experience of the crossflow in a marine environment but I did over 100,000 miles in a couple of cars that had them.Your post does not indicate the type of cooling used on your engine.If it uses raw water and has seen any amount of use in salt water,I would investigate the possibility of corrosion in the block.

[John Mason]

Hi, thanks for the response. The engine I am now using is the second with this problem, I acquired this second engine because I suspected that there may have been corrosion damage to the first. This second engine was not used in a boat and is in very good condition.

It is a raw water system, drawing water from the bottom of the boat, then through the oil cooler, up through the pump, into the water-jacketed exhaust manifold then out of the manifold to go around the engine block, up through through the thermostat housing, through a pipe to the rear of the exhaust manifold and then finally exiting through the exhaust pipe.

Thanks for your interest.

John

[650xs]

hi ,there i have had lots of exp with this engine ,is the raw water pump mounted at front of engine being driven by the camshaft??? ,if so look to see if raw water pump has a thrower inside body ,if not poss water is running down ,pump shaft into front timing cover ,also check to see if both seals are in pump housing,one to stop water and the other to stop oil, i have seen this problem before!!!! worth a look john ps make sure your rear core plug is ok !!!

[John Mason]

Thanks very much for that advice, very interesting. Yes, the water pump is at the front of the engine and driven by the camshaft. Could you explain what a 'thrower' is please? Many thanks, John

[650xs]

hello john, a thrower is only a rubber washer to divert water away fom shaft with centrifugal force ,spinning water in this case off the washer away from the shaft so it can not travel into the front of the engine in this case. i hope that makes sense? has this set up got an engine oil cooler??wat type of raw water pump has it got jabsco.....johnson.. etc?????