96 GTX Oil Bleeding and priming

[Bflauto]

Im changing out the oil lines and cleaning out oil on my new to me 96 GTX. The previous owner put the wrong kind of oil in it (some blue crap, said it was pennzoil 2cycle).

So i took the oil pump off the stator cover to make it easier to replace the lines and add hose clamps.

When i put the oil pump back on, should i replace the o-ring (part #24)?

What is the preferred way to prime the oil injection lines? Do folks use the drill-in-reverse method?
Or can i remove the spark plugs and just crank the starter for 30 seconds until the injection lines fill up?

If using the starter method, should i dump some oil in the pistons to help lube while waiting for oil lines to fill up?

Thanks

 

[etemplet]

Just a comment on the running the starter; I advise everyone to crank the engine in 5-7 second bursts and after4 of those let it cool for a minute or so... longer is better. You can burn up the stater and people do. It gets very hot. Since the ski is new to you it wouldn't be a bad idea to replace the brushes in the starter.

On the oil pump - drill motor in reverse is my prefered method. Prime the pump using the bleed screw then tighten the screw and connect the drill motor. I wire the throttle on the pump wide open to facilitate getting the oil through the lines cuz I rarely do the priming with the engine in the ski. I suppose you can clamp the throttle wide open. It is gonna take a couple minutes to get the oil where it needs to go. I'd also recommend an 80:1 mixture on the fuel tank just after priming the system. That way... you got oil no matter what happens and you can be sure it's all primed.

I buy the Lucas oil API-TC Synthetic Blend. $25 gallon at O'Reilly's Auto and also from Academy. Full Synthetic is $30 a gallon. You'll get opinions on that here. Good Luck.

If you didn't do a compression check that would be a good idea.

 

[mikidymac]

You can use whatever method you are most comfortable with.

The easiest way is to open the bleed screw and let it flow until there is no air coming out then close it.

Start the ski and with it idling hold the oil pump arm wide open until you see oil pulse it's way all the way to the intake manifold and the ski will start smoking. That is it, you are done.

These engines need basically no oil at idle, out of the water with no load on the engine so any residual oil in the crankcase from the last time you ran it is plenty to lubricate the engine when priming the oil lines.

 

[themk]

I've always found the new API TC and TC-W3 oil blends kind of ironic. If I read the specifications right they are potentially contradictory to each other?

 

[mikidymac]

I've always found the new API TC and TC-W3 oil blends kind of ironic. If I read the specifications right they are potentially contradictory to each other?

Yes, which is why I don't recommend them.
They are two completely different testing methods and additive packages with different goals so I don't see how they could possibly meet both specifications.

 

[Bflauto]

I was able to bleed and prime using the drill method. One thing i noticed...
I had the pump off the stator cover and spun the drill with the pump lever opened wide. The injector line fluids inched their way to the intake manifold. About 3 or 4 times i stopped and noticed an air bubble in the pump feed line (from the oil reservoir). I am guessing this is from the (new) oil filter having a few bubbles. Each time i noticed a bubble nearing the oil pump, i would stop spinning the drill and re-bleed the pump to remove the air bubble.
The injector lines are perfectly filled with no bubbles. Am I good to go? Will i keep getting bubbles in my pump feed line or will those settle out?

Thanks all.

 

[etemplet]

Sometimes the air bubbles are because the bleed screw is leaking. I've had to tighten a couple and that solved the problem on both. Be careful with the tightening as they are very small I don't have to tell you. There is suppose to be a gasket on the bleed fitting. As the ski sits a few days take a look for bubbles in the oil lines. If you see some long ones you have leak. Good Luck.

 

[Bflauto]

Sometimes the air bubbles are because the bleed screw is leaking. I've had to tighten a couple and that solved the problem on both. Be careful with the tightening as they are very small I don't have to tell you. There is suppose to be a gasket on the bleed fitting. As the ski sits a few days take a look for bubbles in the oil lines. If you see some long ones you have leak. Good Luck.

Which oil lines? The injector lines or the pump supply line?

 

[etemplet]

The lines coming from the injector pump to the cylinders will get bubbles if the bleed screw isn't tight or is leaking. If you are getting oil from the supply line you need to look into that. Good Luck!

 

[Bflauto]

No bubbles in the injection lines.. only bubbles in the line from the reservoir (which contains a new oil filter).

 

[etemplet]

Not sure how you installed the new oil filter but I manipulate the oil line to get all the air out of the filter before installing it on the pump. Sometimes it is a pain.

 

[Bflauto]

Not sure how you installed the new oil filter but I manipulate the oil line to get all the air out of the filter before installing it on the pump. Sometimes it is a pain.

I'll check it today at lunch, i have a feeling the bubbles will have floated back to the oil reservoir tank.

 

[mikidymac]

Sometimes you will get an air lock in the filter and the only way to remove it is to pull off the hose on the filter just for a split second. It makes a mess but I have had this happen a few times.