New to forum with IMP Aztec V

Hello, I hope this is the appropriate place to post. I've been scouring this board thoroughly over the past 3 weeks and decided I needed to bite the bullet and join.

I recently purchased a 68 IMP Aztec V that was supposed to be good to go but is clearly a project. The price was right so I'm not too dissuaded. I read the entire 54 page IMP thread (good read), and I'm thinking this boat may be worth a little work to get it back to its glory days.

From what I gather, it has a volvo aq250 or 270 outdrive. It has a 302 which I'm a little concerned may have come from a car (has a dual point mallory distributor). I'm trying to determine if the starter and alternator are CG marine approved. The carb is a typical holley but no J tubes so I'm not sure if I should just add them or bite the bullet and buy a marine carb. I have had it running for a few seconds with muffs hooked up.

I haven't had it on the water yet but if I do a test run I will leave the entire engine bay wide open until I can determine with certainty that the accessories are marine grade. It came with two new (2006) 17.5 gallon Tempo gas tanks, unmounted, not hooked up. I'm going to try to get one connected for a test run to see what works and what doesn't, and if it will float. It had an electric fuel pump inline with the mechanical so I pulled it out and want to see if the mechanical will work on its own (don't like the idea of ramming fuel down a boat carbs throat unless I have too). Once I can determine what it needs and doesn't need, I plan to build a newer engine cover and rear bench seat to accommodate storage, batteries, and people.

As is expected, it is the typical wiring nightmare a boat pushing 50 would have. I put in a new ignition switch. The drive goes up and down, the bilge works, blower turns freely so I'm hoping that works after I figure out how to connect. Any advice anyone has is appreciated. Again, I plan to make sure the accessories are CG approved as I would like to take the family out in this and take my son fishing in it eventually. I'll try to post pics shortly.


Ryan

 

Photos

Here are they pics I hope

 

Welcome to the forum.

You are wise to suspect that engine as it does look like a straight up automotive transplant. Pull the numbers off the starter and alternator, so you can check what they are. The carb should be replaced, as the marine conversion is more than just some J tubes.

Check the drive bellows, as this is a common leak point. Lastly, buy the appropate manual for this boat. It should be the first part you buy on this project.

 

Thanks PAR,

It looks like we are going to sell it. It didn't cost a lot so it's not that big of a deal but after I got it running well I realized that it won't suck water through muffs and it won't go into gear. Also our CCR's won't let us keep a boat in the driveway and it's too big and heavy to fit in the side yard. Oh well, lesson learned I suppose. Hopefully I get most of the money I spent on it back. It's probably worth quite a bit of money parted out but I don't have the time or space for that. Maybe I'll find something smaller next year.

 

Hit the boat sides with a buffer, as shinny stuff sells much better.

 

Thanks PAR. It's a bummer since I like the boat but with no place to put it I don't have much choice. I titled it and registered it current so maybe that will help too.

 

Put her in the prettiest dress you can and tell the prospective new owner, she always did a nice job on the dishes, when it was her turn.

 

Well it seems the drive works fine. I'm still not sure about the water pump.

The biggest issue is I discovered the drive bellows is shot. I found one local for $70 and one on eBay for $40. Anyone know how hard a bellows change is on aq outdrive? Should I do exhaust too while it's apart just in case? Thanks.

 

There's a "transom kit" you can get that'll seal things up, but if you've never pulled a drive before, you're much better off not trying this. It's not hard work, but does require you have some tools and hoisting equipment, that aren't common in most folks garage. Besides, you HOA will take a dump, if they see you disassembling an AQ in your driveway. Doing a transom kit R&R is a pretty common requirement on an old outdrive boat and you could just play dumb, if the prospective owner asks about it. This is a common thing for many owners, they simply don't know about the bellows.

 

I read another thread on here that said it wasn't too hard to do a bellows on old Volvo outdrive. It was from member Don. It had a diagram that showed to pull the helmet and upper housing and tilt sideways to gain access to ujoint and drive bellows. Am I mistaken and thinking that is the wrong outdrive?

More somewhat good news. I found an outdoor storage site with surveillance that charges $30/month for boats. It's about 18 miles from here but that's not bad I'm thinking.

 

Again, unless you are a pretty serious "gear head", have some experence and tools, this isn't a backyard kind of deal for most. If you've some experence rebuilding engines and other mechanical adventures, you'll probably get it done, but if this is your first venture into the world of grease under your fingernails, not so much.

 

Well I have done mild stuff like transmission, clutch, brakes. Never rebuilt an engine. The storage place I found says they do boat work so if the hourly rate is reasonable maybe I'll do that.