1800 Cylinder full of Oil

[njstanford]

I have a 1999 Challenger 1800 with twin Rotax 717 engines.

The boat was running fine (well, pretty fine anyway) and then was on the trailer for 2+ months. Next time out, 1 of the engines would not start/or crank at all because 1 of the cylinders is full of OIL.

This happened about 2 years ago & we drained the oil & everything worked fine. We would sometimes disconnect/pinch off the oil line while it was on the trailer. Then we left it connected and everything worked fine for about a year (even after sitting) and we forgot about it.

Now it is back.

I am wondering if there is a check valve or something that controls the flow of oil that could have gone out.

My dealer says the crankshaft seals are bad and the entire engine needs replacing!

 

[Dr Honda]

Unfortunatly... your dealer is kind of right.

Yes... it's one of the center seals that's leaking. It could be a rotary valve seal... and it can be replaced. But if it is a center crank seal... it's not an easy thing to change... and if you are going to a dealer, the cost of the labor would be far more expensive than just replacing the engine with a rebuilt unit.

I wish I had an easy solution for you... but the only thing you can do is to pinch off the hose while the boat isn't being used, or go out and start the boat every few days to keep the engine clear of the oil that leaks in. (but that could get expensive)

If you do decide to pinch off the hose... don't forget to open it before using the boat. Otherwise, you will kill the rotary valve gears.