79 Sundance Jet boat. Please help...

[d-jet-boat-may]

Hello All,
I am new to boating and just bought a 1979 18' Sundance Jet Boat. It has a 454 bbc, berkley jet, and a demon carb. First time I took it out i was on the water for 10 mins and the thing took a shit on me. Went back home figured out there was no spark, it was the ignition module. I noticed the oil was reading low on the dip stick so I added two quarts to bring it up to the proper level. The next time I took it out it ran fine for the first part of the day. Then I started having issues again, I started leaking oil, and every time I would bring the boat to 5000 rpm's it would die completley. I am not sure if I have the right dip stick for the motor, and have no idea how many quarts my oil pan holds. How can I figure out how many quarts my oil pan holds so I can get the proper dip stick? If i put to much oil in the motor could that have caused my oil leak? Any ideas why my boat cuts out after 5000 rpm's???:mad:

[jetboat]

check with tom at jetboat performance,or try another site,performance boats.com.theres many answeres to your question.

['75 Miller]

On my last trip to Pyramid, I had a similar problem. The boat acted fine up to about 4000 rpm, and after that it started to sputter and die. For me, the problem was not enough fuel pressure combined with too little fuel in the carburetor's fuel bowls.
Does your engine have a mechanical or electric fuel pump? Do you have a fuel pressure gauge? My pressure was at about 6 lbs, and was too low. After re-setting at between 7.5-8lbs, the problem disappeared completely.
Matt

[d-jet-boat-may]

On my last trip to Pyramid, I had a similar problem. The boat acted fine up to about 4000 rpm, and after that it started to sputter and die. For me, the problem was not enough fuel pressure combined with too little fuel in the carburetor's fuel bowls.
Does your engine have a mechanical or electric fuel pump? Do you have a fuel pressure gauge? My pressure was at about 6 lbs, and was too low. After re-setting at between 7.5-8lbs, the problem disappeared completely.
Matt
I have an electric fuel pump with no pressure gauge. Could the problem possibly be water in the fuel? I have a water fuel seperator/fuel filter, but maybe its filled with water, I just changed it the day I was having issues. Who knows...
Any ideas on my oil issue????

['75 Miller]

I dunno, dude. I think if you had water in your fuel, it would run like crap always. The fact that it runs fine upto 5000 rpm leads me to believe its either fuel pressure- or fuel volume-related. Which ignition control module do you have? Is it possible you have your rev limiter set too low?
As far as the oil leaks go, where is it leaking from? A little trickle around the breathers in the valve covers is considered normal.
What kind of 454 is this? Is it built or stock? What kind of fuel pump do you have? Is it possible that there's an obstruction in the lines?
Matt

[d-jet-boat-may]

I dunno, dude. I think if you had water in your fuel, it would run like crap always. The fact that it runs fine upto 5000 rpm leads me to believe its either fuel pressure- or fuel volume-related. Which ignition control module do you have? Is it possible you have your rev limiter set too low?
As far as the oil leaks go, where is it leaking from? A little trickle around the breathers in the valve covers is considered normal.
What kind of 454 is this? Is it built or stock? What kind of fuel pump do you have? Is it possible that there's an obstruction in the lines?
Matt
I believe its a stock 454, the guy I bought the boat from wasn't very infomative. It's a holley fuel pump. I think im going to have to break down and take it to the boat shop. Thanks for all the help:)

[d-jet-boat-may]

Took off my intake manifold and there was water under it. Any ideas???

[jtmarten]

Bad intake gasket, possibly due to too much water pressure from the pump. Check your oil, it's probably water contaminated.
Worst case scenario, cracked water jacket in the block or heads.

[d-jet-boat-may]

Bad intake gasket, possibly due to too much water pressure from the pump. Check your oil, it's probably water contaminated.
Worst case scenario, cracked water jacket in the block or heads.
No water in the oil... But my mechanic suggest I pull the heades as well. I just wanted to check with yall before I went through all that work... Is too much water pressure a bad thing, if so how do I coorect that.