Raw Water Pump - Grease


S

SabrToothSqrl

Well-known member
is there any type of greenish grease inside a bravo raw water pump?
I found some drops of something green and it kinda looked thicker than drive lube, but a similar color. I didn't have my tools with me and only had a few min to look it over, but the underside of the raw water pump looked slimy. (the metal shaft, not the plastic housing).
the 2023 writing is the pump housing + impeller i put on this spring.
I think the assembly it's self is 22 yrs old.

Can a water seal at the rear of the pump cause water to force through the bearings and it to leak 'grease'? I'm not ruling out gear lube, but it seems odd drive lube would collect here. I didn't find any leaks, and the hose runs back the port side of the engine, while this is on starboard...

I can dig into it more this week, and have ordered a new raw water pump in the mean time. Just would rather not have to replace it if it's not actually a problem... no other symptoms. No noise, no over heating, etc.

I did actually replace the whole assembly 2 year ago - installed a brand new OEM one on both engines, but the port engine squealed like crazy. So bad pump new? Installed the 'old' one and it's been old since. figured I'd replace it when it needed it.

I'm guessing replacing a 22yr old part never hurts, but still...

thanks



pumpMine.jpeg
 
I just read the factory service manual. there is grease/lube in there, and I believe the oil seal on the front of the pump failed at about 22 years and 900ish engine hours.

Best to catch it early, and not have a raw water pump failure 60 miles from home! that's a 10 hour boat ride on 1 engine!

Picked up an aftermarket on on Amazon for $170. says next day delivery. OEM was $600. so... yeah... we shall see if this lasts 1/3 as long or until 2035 when I sell the boat ;)
 
I'm not sure which pump you have, but I'm pretty sure there is a full rebuild kit for the newer B3 pumps. This kit includes new impeller, wear plates, shaft, bearing and front seals.
 
Mine is this one:


I swapped the whole thing for $170. took under 25 min.

Normally, I use these kits, every 3 seasons:




PumpNew.jpegPumpOld.jpeg

I took the pump off the (old) assembly when I got home. the shaft spins, but there is more friction and noise than I'd like. Which leads me to think the bearings are on their way out.

Hopefully replaced before it failed, but also not needlessly... I don't have a bearing press to take it apart and verify, and a bearing press would cost more than replacing it lol.

from the peeling paint/etc it did look fairly old.

the new pump seems to work, did a. quick 15 mile loop, and the temps of both were similar. (due to analog 20+yr old gauges they will never align perfect).

did a few WOT runs, and at no point did it get hot. Nor when coming in hot and cutting back to idle. The fact that they use the same pump up to the 502, makes the heat my 350 make seem trivial.


This dude tears one down, for reference:
 
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