Trojan Boat Forum

Hello everyone. I'm a new Trojan owner. We purchased 'Liquid Therapy' about a month ago on Lake Coeur d'Alene in North Idaho. We moved her about 40 miles north to Bayview, Idaho. Until last night, it felt like the best decision we had ever made.

The boat is in impeccable condition. She has been meticulously maintained and updated. The only issue the previous owner (who owned her for seven years) had with the engines is the automatic choke sticking occasionally on the port side. Otherwise, just normal maintenance.

I have put about 6 hours on her in the last month cruising around the lake with no issues.

Last night, we cruised across the bay to get fuel and pumped out. As we backed into the dock adjacent to the fuel pump we noticed a hot engine / hot rubber smell. I dismissed it in my mind thinking it was just one of the many other boats around us in close quarters at the harbor.

We fueled and pumped out, then headed out to the lake at idle speed through the no-wake zone. We were under way less than a minute and I handed the helm to my girlfriend and went below for about 1 minute. When I came back to the bridge there was a large amount of mostly white with a tinge of blue smoke coming out of the port side. I immediately shut it down. I noticed the temp was around 250°! I immediately turned back toward our slip running only on the starboard engine. It took about 3-5 minutes to get back to the slip. About 75 yards out, the starboard engine started sputtering. I feathered the throttle to keep her going and eased toward the slip. About 5 yards from the slip it died. We still had momentum, with zero control Thankfully, quick-thinking friends aboard kept us from slamming into the adjacent vessel.

First thought is something to do with the fueling - like accidentally putting diesel in it. I smelled the tanks, no hint of diesel. Plus, the overheating smell prior to fueling also lends itself to this not being the culprit.

I am thinking the impeller got stuck, broken or fouled on the port engine, leading to overheating and smoking. It is either terribly ironic that the starboard engine started giving me trouble within minutes of the port impeller failing - or they are related in a way I don't understand.

I am normally vigillant about watching the temp and oil pressure gauges... however, with the stress and distactions of entering/exiting/docking at the busy fuel dock - I don't remember looking at them until it was overheated.

The port engine was still running fine when i shut it down. I didn't hear anything abnormal like knocks, etc.

So, a few questions for the group...

1. With the temp climbing to around 250° is major damage likely on the port engine?

2. How concerning is the white/blue tint smoke?

3. I am planning to check / replace the impellers on both engines. Does anyone have a link to how this is done on the Chrysler 280's? I'm reasonably adept mechanically, but no expert by any stretch.

4. Other than Murphy's Law, Is there a logically reason the starboard engine was acting up within minutes of the port engine overheating?

Thanks in advance for any advice or input you may have.

Let's start with the port engine. All of what you said points to poor water flow. An impeller is a good place to start. If you have 4 hoses you will have 2 impellers in the pump. Also look at the hose to make sure none blew off. Look at the belts to make sure everything is turning and nothing is locked up. inspect the exhaust hose for overheating damage. You rubber burning smell likely came from that, assuming belts are ok. hopefully, the engine is ok.

The starboard engine issues, maybe fueling up stirred something up in the tank? Or bad fuel. check your filters. Also if the port engine was steaming badly it could affect the starboard though unlikely due to your setup of the engines.

One last thing if you pull off the pump mark how its mounted and take photos, Its easy to put it on upside down. and it won't pump. Your other engine is mounted just the opposite due to the opposite rotation.

Lastly Beacon marine (trojan boats.net) carries the impellers and pumps and gives support with the parts. Best to give Them a call if you want to order from him so you get the right part.

Keep us updated

On my 1974 tricabin that I owned for 16 years, the rapid overheating, burning rubber and smoke (from the water-starved exhaust outlet) derived from an impeller that disintegrated. If impellers for both engines were installed simultaneously (the usual method) then they are both ready to fail at approximately the same time.

Lesson learned the hard way because it happened to me twice, which was really stupid. Since that unfortunate episode I have never failed to replace them every two years (during spring launch) in any boat I have owned. I don't put a lot of hours on my boat up here in snow country, so every two years works but if I used my boat a lot, I would replace the impellers veery year.

In my case, little hunks of rubber impeller also ended up getting stuck in the fins of the engine oil cooler. You'll need to check it as well. The engine oil cooler is the next stop for water exiting toward the exhaust outlet.

Great boat by the way, imo you definitely made the correct decision buying it. "Non-cored hull" amongst some other great features.

Rick

Congrats on Liquid Therapy!
This is my first season with "Today" a 1974 36 mid cabin.
I've had a few problems, but working through them. The previous owners were 2 young guys and they weren't able to provide much guidance. But they did emphasize changing out the impellers every other season as Rick mentioned above. The 4 new replacements they left me as appreciated when I read of your troubles. Unfortunately I have no other insights pertaining to your other questions. Maybe get a mechanic to go through it, might be worth the $$ for peace of mind.

I'm enjoying the boat, but very much still learning about it. In the process of redoing the fresh water system, but don't know if and where the access hatch is to the holding tank. It needs a rebuild / replace the powerwinch windlass, a replacement icemaker and resolving a few electrical phenomenon.

I hope the engine has sustained minimal damage if any at all, and that you resume cruising ASAP. I have to agree with others that you did make the right decision, if only because I did too.

Cheers,
Cedric

Cedric, I am trying to figure out what boat you have. 1974 36 mid cabin? In 74 they had an F36 sedan a Tri cabin and a tri-fly. The only mid cabin I know of is a 10 meter (33') and it did not come out until the 80's.

prowlersfish wrote: ↑Mon Jul 25, 2022 7:01 am Cedric, I am trying to figure out what boat you have. 1974 36 mid cabin? In 74 they had an F36 sedan a Tri cabin and a tri-fly. The only mid cabin I know of is a 10 meter (33') and it did not come out until the 80's.

Hi! I was told it's a 1974, but I suspect it could be a 1975, from my research. Does that make sense?
hull # is TRY05263C575 (from an old survey in 2003) or 440 5263 seen both those number on the sparse documentation
twin Chrysler 280's

Thank you all for the great responses! Sorry for the delay, I have been out of town. First step is checking the impeller/strainer/water pump. I will report back as soon as I get a chance to get to the marina and do some deeper looking. I'm reasonably adept with mechanical issues. However, my success rate goes way up when I have a youtube video or some guidance. Does anyone have photos of where the strainer/impeller cover/oil cooler are located?

Appreciate the help and insight!

P.S. We LOVE the boat... even with the issues, very happy with the purchase.

cedric wrote: ↑Tue Jul 26, 2022 1:42 pm

prowlersfish wrote: ↑Mon Jul 25, 2022 7:01 am Cedric, I am trying to figure out what boat you have. 1974 36 mid cabin? In 74 they had an F36 sedan a Tri cabin and a tri-fly. The only mid cabin I know of is a 10 meter (33') and it did not come out until the 80's.

Hi! I was told it's a 1974, but I suspect it could be a 1975, from my research. Does that make sense?
hull # is TRY05263C575 (from an old survey in 2003) or 440 5263 seen both those number on the sparse documentation
twin Chrysler 280's

The #TRY05263C575 is incorrect "C" should not be there. 440 5263 looks right. Model 440= tri-cabin 5 is 1975 Hull #263 . So you have a 1975 Tri Cabin.

grussell100 wrote: ↑Tue Jul 26, 2022 5:34 pm Thank you all for the great responses! Sorry for the delay, I have been out of town. First step is checking the impeller/strainer/water pump. I will report back as soon as I get a chance to get to the marina and do some deeper looking. I'm reasonably adept with mechanical issues. However, my success rate goes way up when I have a youtube video or some guidance. Does anyone have photos of where the strainer/impeller cover/oil cooler are located?

Appreciate the help and insight!

P.S. We LOVE the boat... even with the issues, very happy with the purchase.

Keep us posted and good luck

You both may find the owner's manual very helpful. Here is the link to get one

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2695