'86 Bayliner w/ 3.0 4 banger (Iron Duke?) revival?

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LineArrayNut

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This was a bankruptcy auction refugee. A buddy bought it for $850. The trailer seems to be worth that much.

He gave it to me to tinker with. I am not boat saavy! It's about 24' and rough. It has sat for over 3 years. What would you do to start it's resuscitation?

The oil is black and thick, the crank won't move by hand. I figured I'd suck as much out as I could w/ a seasense. Then drain as much as will come out into the bilge? Pull the plugs and squirt some Kroil in there, put some HDEO and kreen in the sump? What do all you boat gurus think?

There's lots of punky wood, the intake has jb weld on a crack, and the guy said the P.O. said the foot has some sort of pump and a line that needs replaced... Maybe pump the fuel tank and use some sort of carb cleaner? Any thoughts?
 
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Any sign of freezing damage? I own a 24' cuddy (Chaparral) with the 350 Mag, a 3.0 motor (IMHO) would be pretty slow, and Bayliner hulls have a reputation for being a little weak. First job is to see why the motor is locked up, if it is rusted or thrown rod or what has happened.
 
I don't think the 3.0L is a Pontiac (1977 - 1993) Iron Duke exactly. I believe it is more closely related to the old chevy II 4 cyl of the 60's. The 3.0 has been in production since the late 60's.
 
The Chevy version was always called what it was originally installed in (unofficially),the Chevy II/Nova engine.Although that car stopped using it in 1969 (very uncompetitive engine as compared to a 200-6 Ford Falcon/Maverick and slant-6 Valiant/Dart).The Pontiac 2.5 job was termed "Iron Duke" in reference to its replacement for the aluminum block Vega 2300 engine.As the standard engine for the horrid X-cars,it then became the "X car engine",finally when GM boosted hp for 1991,it was termed "Tech 4" even though the air cleaner decal shows the "4" over the "tech".I believe the engine finally died when the S10/Postal LLC went to the Cavalier 2.2 engine around 1993.Amc used the engine for a number of years,and Pontiac racing offered a Super Duty version for off road use.The Fiero was said to offer a SD 2.5,but that never happened.
 
Originally Posted By: LineArrayNut
the guy said the P.O. said the foot has some sort of pump and a line that needs replaced... Maybe pump the fuel tank and use some sort of carb cleaner? Any thoughts?


If water pump is dead, one is not supposed to start it. Removing plugs and cranking by hand or even starter would be fine.
 
In running condition it's worth $850 with the trailer. Your friend might as well have thrown the money out the window. Expect LOTS of rot and less than adequate performance if you can get it running at all. Best of luck. Twenty four footers of that year all had V-8 engines so it's likey 21' or less. Are you sure that's not a Volvo four cylinder? They were 2.1l and 125 HP I believe.

In good running condition with trailer and V-8 engine it might bring $2800.
 
Part it out and use the money to buy a better boat. Your going to rebuild that thing to end up with something that wasn't very good new.

BTW most of those boats used the Volvo 4 cylinder, the 2.3, same motor used in the 240 Volvo's, with an excellent Volvo 270 out drive. If its a Merc its been re powered. Bayliner used them in some pretty big boats because they were the least expensive boat you could buy in the 80's.

My uncle bought a kick [censored] 21ft 4winns on Ebay for less than $3k that's like new, and was a freshwater garage stored boat all its life. If you want a boat buy something like that, its cheaper.
 
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Yeah, but free use if I get it back to running is kinda nice. It's probably shorter, lol - I didn't measure it. Yes it's rough, but the PO said it was removed from water running, and we both knew the poor guy. I've got no clue what it is besides a 3.0 Classic pretty well blazoned on the side of it.
 
If that 3.0 is rebuildable it is definitely still worth some money as-is to the right buyer. Use the cash to offset the cost of buying an engine with a better power to weight ratio for your boat.
 
You will learn really quickly that free doesn't mean much when it comes to boats.

I don't think they came with Mercruiser's in 1986, pretty sure it was all Volvo, so either its a newer drive line, or a newer boat. Look at the transom ID number the last two digits will tell you the year.

Either way its a good motor, and I assume has an Alpha 1 on the back which is a good drive. But I can almost guarantee you unless the boat was kept dry and stored indoors all the wood is going to be rotting, and all the foam under the floor is probably full of water sitting against an aluminum fuel tank.
 
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lotta things to be done. bayliner was not the greatest brand back then... Good news is boat yards and the internet loaded with parts.
first and formost... walk around hull... any cracks??
next up the rubber boots around the outdrive... cracked or dry??
enginewise... just pull it... might be good winter project on a stand... replacements can be bought cheap. if you do any rebuilding... get marine parts...
depending on how the boat was stored wood rot may be a problem... bayliner wasn't famous for great construction techniques... just cheap boats.
might be able to get some manuals for the boat and engine online...
sounds like a good project if you got the time... keep us up to date... post pics too.
 
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I don't think they came with Mercruiser's in 1986, pretty sure it was all Volvo, so either its a newer drive line, or a newer boat. Look at the transom ID number the last two digits will tell you the year.


^^^^This^^^^ If it is an '86 model then it has Volvo running gear. Check the hull number.
 
Does it have hydraulic cylinders on the outdrive for tilt/trim?

Volvo long ago used some odd methods to tilt the outdrive. And in some cases, it was tilt only, not trim.
 
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No offense intended to those that own them and take good care of them, but Bayliners are more on the "disposable" side as boats go. The hull layup on them leaves a bit to be desired. An abused one seems the worst of all worlds.

If I were the OP, I would just part out the power train and move on.

Otherwise, you'll wind up spending a fortune polishing a . . . well, you know.
 
I agree with volvo. I was in the marine industry back when this boat was built, bayliner just pumped boats out. This boat sounds like a money and time sinkhole...
pics would be nice though...
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
Does it have hydraulic cylinders on the outdrive for tilt/trim?

Volvo long ago used some odd methods to tilt the outdrive. And in some cases, it was tilt only, not trim.


Unless it was changed I can almost say with 100% certainty it is a 270 drive which IMHO is one of the best you can get.

They only have tilt, no trim, you lock the drive down and that's it, and its electric.
 
Originally Posted By: Volvohead
No offense intended to those that own them and take good care of them, but Bayliners are more on the "disposable" side as boats go. The hull layup on them leaves a bit to be desired. An abused one seems the worst of all worlds.

If I were the OP, I would just part out the power train and move on.

Otherwise, you'll wind up spending a fortune polishing a . . . well, you know.


Oh your right its a turd, more so these days when for cheap you can buy very good boats to polish away.

Putting a few grand into fixing it is a waste, more so when you can buy a good boat for a few grand...
 
Originally Posted By: Tuffy1760
I agree with volvo. I was in the marine industry back when this boat was built, bayliner just pumped boats out. This boat sounds like a money and time sinkhole...
pics would be nice though...


Same here and I sold Bayliner along with many other brands. They've come a long way since then but this is a project that will drain the bank and still be worth very little.
 
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