Impellar Problem

[silverski]

First mechanical problem with my 05 v-drive. Messing around in an unfamiliar lake where I shouldn't have been. Low water levels translated to weedy, muddy dock access. Engine temp spiked. Checked water strainer and fully plugged. Cleared, but wasn't moving enough water through the strainer so was smart enough (thanks to this board) to take it out of the water and the impellar was missing part of every single blade. I can replace the impellar but wondering where the pieces went other than the couple that were in the housing? Do I need to get those out?

The good news is I have the day off. The bad news is that I was planning on leaving on Friday for a weekend on the water. The wife says there is only one thing worse than going to the inlaws cabin and that is going to the inlaws cabin without a boat.

Do I need to pull hoses and flush somehow? Don't think the engine got hot enough to be a problem as I wasn't out their long enough before I noticed the temp gauge. No blistered paint or smell.

Thanks for your help. In case anyone is wondering, current water levels on Snail Lake in the Twin Cities are too low for anything but a pontoon.

[txnx]

I found a bunch of pieces to the impellar on the intake side of the hose. However, I have a 97 direct drive w/the 5.7 gm mercruiser. I took off the short hose leading from the impeller housing to the motor and found that there was like a heat sink for my trans cooler right there. The holes were small enough to trap the fins in there. I had to do some digging and found that there were 2 impellers worth of fins in there.

Good luck and hope you get her running. I spent 2 weeks w/o a prop and was miserable! Only reason I;m back is I had to BORROW a prop for now.

[silverski]

Update - replaced impellar. Driveway test with fake a lake seemed to hold operating temp and have good exhaust flow. Spoke to the dealer mechanic and he was confident that the impellar shards passed right through. I'll keep an eye on the temp over the weekend.