There is surprisingly little about marinising car engines and putting them in boats.

Manufacturers like Mercuiser, OMC, Pleasurecraft and others have being doing this under their own brands for many years and it was quite common in the early 70’s through to the mid 90’s that various companies were doing it themselves in a workshop. My new boat is one of the later.

So after having owned my Nereus for a while now I thought I’d detail what I’ve learnt about it so far about the marinised Ford 6-cylinder engine that is in it;

• Ford 250 pre-crossflow inline 6-cylinder (donor either Ford Falcon XA or XB)
• Strongberg 1-bbl down draft carburettor
• Delco Alternator (10SI body) with external regulator (RE55)
• Bosch starter motor
• Standard Kettering Ignition with Bosch GM573 points (!!!) and 12V coil
• Borg Warner Velvet Drive Gearbox
• Savage MK1 Compact Heat Exchanger
• Fynspray 3/4″ Raw Water Pump
• Marinised Wet Exhaust – Unknown

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So the only unidentified part on this engine is the wet exhaust manifold, I’m hoping that at some point I’ll work out who made it. There may be a plate or a marking that I’ve not found yet that will give me a clue.

From the list above it is quite clear that this is a “car engine in a boat” which has not yet been completely marinised. Many of the accessories and ancillary parts are still automotive grade parts which are not intrinsically safe in a marine environment. To properly marinise any engine and make it safe one has to reduce the chance of a spark from igniting fuel vapour in the bilge and/or prevent fuel vapour from being released into the bilge in the first place.

With anything that I rely on to get me home safely the engine in this boat is certainly right up there on my list of things to pay attention too. So as I go through the boat doing my usual checks and maintenance I’ll be upgrading various parts to improve safety where necessary. Since this boat was made in the mid to late 1980’s there is no immediate need to rush out and replace the engine and all of it’s accessories, since it has lasted this long already without them.

More to come.