[Tvacek]

Does anybody else have this powerplant in their Mariah? According to the manual, a few simple pumps from a bicycle-type air pump on a clearly located schrader valve clear all of the water out of the heat exchanger & manifolds (engine has closed cooling system). This seems fine & dandy, but I'm still a bit paranoid.... has anybody ever experienced problems with this? I'm going to stick some RV antifreeze in the raw water portion of the heat exchanger & manifolds just to be safe, but I'm interested to find out if anybody else does has had any issues..... seems way too easy (Especially for a boat!)

Thanks for your help.

[z275st]

Tvacek,
I have the 496HO. I have used the air pump at the end of the season during a brief cold period before my last fall run. I have never trusted it for the long term (google the price of a new or rebuilt 496HO ). The amount of water pushed out by air is not all that much, but it may be enough to allow the ice to expand and not crack the block.

On a side note, I didn't know the 496's were available on 2000 year models. I would say yours was built late in the year, because most 2000,s still had the 502's

[ShabahZ280]

You're right, his boat was made in November of 2000. Could have been one of the first ones to be equipped with the 496!

[Tvacek]

Thanks for your help guys.

I went ahead and flushed some RV antifreeze through the heat exchanger & exhaust manifolds. Technically I shouldn't have to worry about the coolant in the engine block as its closed-cooling, but I went ahead and tested the dex-cool just to be safe.

Now all thats left is the fresh water, transom shower, and toilet.

Somebody wake me up when Spring gets here......