DIY Tune Up Advice
 

With Spring right around the corner I just ordered tune up parts for a DIY engine/boat tune up. Boat is a Sanger V210, Black Scorpion MPI engine. This is my first time tackling the tune up process and thought I could save a boat load (no pun intended) by doing it myself. I'm just looking for a little advice from anyone that's done these jobs below to make things go hopefully smooth.

1. Replacing Cap, Rotor, Plugs, Plug wires
2. Impeller change (I'll be using the DIY topic for this one)
3. Oil and Filter change
4. Water/Fuel Seperator change
5. Draining and replacing v-drive oil and transmission fluid

Any and all advice welcome.

Brad,

I do the same every year (2002 Sanger V210, 350 Mag) to save $400-500. Everything you're doing is pretty easy. A couple of hints from doing this for a few years:
- The Walter V-drive suggest that you change the oil after the first 100 hours and then every 500 thereafter. I've changed this twice, but stopped doing it every year due to the 500 hour suggested interval. I couldn't get my oil pump hose down to the bottom of the V-drive unit to get much/any oil out. Instead, I used the square drain plug on the bottom stern/port corner of the drive unit with a shallow plastic drain pan below.
- I have an oil drain hose clipped to the top of my motor for draining. I used to put an oil pump hose down it and pumped the oil out. Now, to be sure to get it all, I pull the hose through the stern bilge drain connect my oil pump straight up to that and pump out the oil. This has the extra benefit of avoiding possible messes by not pumping the oil inside the boat, but outside standing behind it.

That's all I can think of at the moment.

Chris (rio_sanger) had been a long-time V210 DIY'er. He may have some good helpful hints.

Thanks for the feedback Andy. Last time I changed the oil I just warmed the engine up and let it drain through the drain hose out the stern bilge drain; however, it didn't seem like I was able to drain all the oil out. I was planning on buying an oil extractor pump do you have any recommendations?

Also, this is my first time changing out the cap, rotor, plugs and wires... It seems pretty straight forward. Do you have any tips on this or anything to be careful of? The plate on my engine recommends NGK-BPR6EFS plugs with a 0.030 gap.

I have the same engine without the oil drain hose. I use the Pela Oil Extractor - it works very well. Great thread here, Brad, you've got me thinkin now lol...

Brad,
If you have the drain hose and buy the extractor use both. You can attach the extractor hose to the oil drain hose and it will suck it dry in minutes. You should still get the oil hot first though.

Try putting a large plastic trash bag in your bilge right under your oil filter. Drop the filter right into the bag after taking it off and there won't be any mess.

Pay attention to your firing order when doing the cap and plug change

if you don't know the firing order, just do all the wires one at a time. although knowing the firing order makes things a lot easier. How many hrs?/ since last tune up? just make sure the distributor is tight before you start monkeying around in there. Good luck, easy stuff to do

I purchased the boat used a couple of years ago and have done regular interval service of changing the oil/filterand fuel filter. It currently has about 250 hours on the engine. I keep it out at the river year round and decided to bring it back to So Cal to give it some extra special TLC before the season. Thanks for all the suggestions. I've seen the Pela Oil Extractor online, does anybody know of a retail brick and mortar shop I could pick one up at over the weekend?

West Marine sells a few different extractors but I'm unsure of the brands. I've just noticed them on the shelf but I'm sure they will make you pay dearly for them as usual.

i suggest you buy the factory manual from mercury
it is written in English and gives you great pictures and step by step on the procedure
somebody on here has them
or i can send you that section only

Buying the manual was in the plan. In the meantime if you have an electronic version of any of the sections you think would help that you could forward I would certainly appreciate that. I'm planning on doing some work on the boat this weekend and I don't think I'll be able to get a manual in time.

email me the serial number and motor and year if you got it

PM sent. Thanks for any help!