2008 SANTE 230 ZR6 390 Engine - High Oil Pressure won't go away

[Team230]

I’m looking for some advice. I’m currently at Norris Lake (TN) on vacation with the kids. I’m fairly new to all of this and this is my first incident like this. Here is what happen:
2008 SANTE 230 ZR6 390 Engine

I was running full throttle for about 25 min. All of a sudden there was a hitch (stop and came back) in my power and I got a warning beep and message. I backed off on the throttle to neutral. The message said something like “See Dealer – Power Reduction Mode enabled.” As I looked at my gauges, my engine temp was at about 220 deg F. I believe my oil pressure was high too, but I do not remember how high (I should have taken a pic of everything). My Check engine light of course came on.

I sat there for about 10 min, watching the temp. I opened the engine cover – it seemed “hot” and I believe I could smell something wrong – it that makes sense.
I then went to “All Off” on my toggle switch. Wait another 5 min. I turned it all back on. I started the engine and verified water flow. The engine temperature quickly dropped down to 165 deg F. I closed the engine cover and decided to try going slow while monitoring the temperature. As soon as I started the engine, the Oil Pressure gauge went straight to a max reading. I proceeded to increase speed up to about 24 MPH. Engine temperature went to 172 Deg F, which I consider to be normal (I’ve owned the boat 3 seasons and this is what it always runs at). The Check engine light stays on.

When I got back to dock, I opened the engine cover to let everything cool. I checked the oil level then and then again this morning when everything is totally cool. Both times the levels look good. The oil was changed at the end of last season (by dealer) and it still looks clean.

My thought now is that I have a bad oil pressure sensor because I am not getting a high temp (no or reduced oil flow = engine running hot correct?), but the fact that I got a high temp yesterday, makes me suspicious. It’s also a bit of a fantasy because that would mean I could run today without any issue, potentially.

When all of this happen, I never verified that the boat was actually in power reduction mode (limp). I turned it off and back on before I tried to go any further. If it actually went into limp mode, would that have cleared when the engine cooled down too? Would a high oil pressure put it in limp mode too? Obliviously, it has not, but thought I would ask here too.

I just started the engine up before I posted this and the oil gauge is still maxed out. I watched the digital gauge run up to 1468PS as I started it.

Thoughts?

[Paxdad]

Sounds like to me you essentially pumped the oil pan empty of oil running at wide open throttle for so long and oil pressure switch over/ under pressured and ruined itself. So you starved the bottom end of the engine for oil and it got real hot. I bet your impeller is destroyed as well. Or the impeller destroyed itself and it overheated only. But 20 plus minutes at wide open throttle is not a good idea in my mind.


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[Team230]

Paxdad - thanks for the quick response!

If my impeller were destroyed, I don't think I would be getting water flow and my engine temperature would be going up? I like everything else you are saying and I think that makes sense, but the fact that I have water flow seems to make me think my impeller is ok. Thoughts?

Here is a link to another post that suggests my Oil pressure sensor is bad too: https://www.planetnautique.com/vb5/f...essure-sensors

[Paxdad]

I would at least check the impeller after any overheat situation. They will still flow water but not with any pressure.


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[Team230]

Good point. I will check it out.

[chefred112]

subscribed, I do agree that wide open for that period of time can't be that healthy for the motor...I think I've done wot at most a minute or 2... i would swap out the impeller when you get a chance, its cheap insurance...

[Team230]

Update - I'm confident it is the pressure sensor. After being on the water for about 1 hour, my sensor started working and everything was reading right. After another hour, it decided to go low, then normal, then high, repeat...constantly. The low oil pressure warning and beeping got old after a while, but all was fine.

I'll be changing the sensor and the impeller. I'll update after that too.

Thanks all for the help. It certainly lowered my stress level while on vacation. When you have 9 people depending on you driving them around in a boat...it's a lot of pressure when you have a maintenance issue like this.

[Paxdad]

Updates are always welcome to help us all out. Glad your stress level went down as I can relate.


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[ScooterMcgavin]

On a side note I'm with paxdad on WOT For 25 min can't be good for these boats.

[Fgroce]

Just a thought when was the last time you ran your car wide open for 25 min. This is why I run Amsoil synthetic oi,l just in case something happened it would give the engine extra protection to avoid damage..

[Team230]

Question - I have the new Oil Sensor, but I am struggling to find it. I created a new thread on this, but no one has responded. Can any of you help? I found the exploded diagram in the manuals, but the sending unit and sensor are just hanging out in thin air on the diagram.

[homer12]

Not sure what you're engine is like, but on my Excalibur 330 it is right down where the remote oil filter lines run to the block. That would put it at front starboard corner on mine. Here is a pic of what mine looks like. Connected to the 'T' - the brass nut looking sensor is the open/closed pressure switch that goes to the engine computer, the black acorn looking sender is what is connected to the gauges.

[Team230]

Homer12 - Thanks for the picture and info. That helped. My old sensor was all black and the new one is brass. Either the old one was painted or add crap on it because once I pulled it off, the black was flaking off. Anyways...I was not looking for a black sensor.

Here is a picture of mine. It's located on the starboard side midway to the front of the engine compartment tucked fairly close to the engine block. I disconnected the cable before I took this picture. It's the one laying in the on the water line.

Note: This requires a 1" wrench to remove. I did not have a 1" open wrench so I tried a crescent...that was a fail because the space is too tight. I borrowed a friends wrench.