86 Sunsport - Supertrap exhaust seal leaks

[suprasam]

I have an 86 Sunsport, I seem to be taking on some water. Its not a whole lot, but it is enough to kick the pump on a couple of times through out the day. I noticed the other day that my exhaust was dripping still....and I read somewhere where the seals could go bad and I could possibly be leaking from there. Since I will be winterizing in the next couple of weeks, I thought I might check to see if thats a true possibility and if it is easy to replace the seals(if there are seals). The floor was redone a year or so ago by the prior owner, the stringers were not done and he stated they were in perfect shape. I did do some digging around the motor mounts, and they are dry, and anywhere else I could get to was dry. If it's not the exhaust seals could it be another seal? Maybe the driveshaft seal? Thanks

[sybrmike]

The obvious sources are exhaust exits, drive shaft packing (supposed to leak a few drips/min), & rudder seal. Some not so obvious - internal engine hoses, bow eye, transom rings, drain fittings, etc.

[suprasam]

Sybrmike, Thanks. All internal hoses are good and dry, I am going to take apart the exhaust tonight and reseal with new sealant (3M). There is no way I can get to my rudder seal from the inside....can I ? I haven't looked closely, but the only place I am thinking I could get in would be by taking out the plastic/fiberglass rear compartment in the back, hell I don't even know how thats held in or if it can be taken out.

[wotan2525]

Sybrmike, Thanks. All internal hoses are good and dry, I am going to take apart the exhaust tonight and reseal with new sealant (3M). There is no way I can get to my rudder seal from the inside....can I ? I haven't looked closely, but the only place I am thinking I could get in would be by taking out the plastic/fiberglass rear compartment in the back, hell I don't even know how thats held in or if it can be taken out.

The exhausts are very likely leaking. Pull of the supratrapps and the mounting flange... Scrape out all of the old gasket material and use a wire brush to clean up the flanges. I even used a drill mounted wire brush to clean up the part of the transom that is beneath the flanges (be careful!) Use some new 3m 5200 or black RTV sealant and drill new holes for the flanges (you can reuse the old ones if they seem like they still have some "bite.") Mount the flanges and then remount the supratrapps. As soon as you get started you'll start to make sense of what all that means. Let us know if you have any questions... Should be a 2-3 beer job.

[csuggs]

The exhausts are very likely leaking. Pull of the supratrapps and the mounting flange... Scrape out all of the old gasket material and use a wire brush to clean up the flanges. I even used a drill mounted wire brush to clean up the part of the transom that is beneath the flanges (be careful!) Use some new 3m 5200 or black RTV sealant and drill new holes for the flanges (you can reuse the old ones if they seem like they still have some "bite.") Mount the flanges and then remount the supratrapps. As soon as you get started you'll start to make sense of what all that means. Let us know if you have any questions... Should be a 2-3 beer job.

Ditto what Woton said. The Supertrapps are likely the reason why so many Supras have rotten stringers. I don't think anyone really knew to re-seal the connections where the 3" exhaust tubing meets the mounting flange of the Supertrapp. I like how the Supertrapps sound, but would personally never re-install them after having gone through the expense of a stringer and floor job.

When you get them apart, and remove the mounting flange, you will see where it needs to be sealed. Use 3M 4200 or 5200.

[Jetlink]

I like how the Supertrapps sound, but would personally never re-install them after having gone through the expense of a stringer and floor job.

Just curious, what are you using instead of the Supertrapps and what is the sound difference? I love how my comp sounds now but, I think I have a leak on my starboard one that I will be taking a look at this weekend if the weather holds. Does everyone ditch the trapps especially after a stringer repair?

[wotan2525]

Just curious, what are you using instead of the Supertrapps and what is the sound difference? I love how my comp sounds now but, I think I have a leak on my starboard one that I will be taking a look at this weekend if the weather holds. Does everyone ditch the trapps especially after a stringer repair?

You can put on regular flappers or a fresh air exhaust.

[tomelenbaas]

Pardon my ignorance, but exactly what are "supertrapps"? Were they used on all late '80's Supras or were they an option? How can one tell if they have them?

Thanks.

[Jetlink]

CS, I noticed you are running flappers now and Wotan, not sure what you are running but, does the sound change when switching from the trapps to anything else? I like the tone I have now and I am not too worried about the decibel level as my boat seems to be more quiet than others out there. Just curious is all as I have always loved the sound of anything V-8 with a good exhaust and tone.

[csuggs]

Jetlink - The flappers that I am running now make more of a "bark", especially since I have no mufflers. The Supertrapps made some back-pressure which acted like a muffler and sounded good, but with the flaps there is no restriction. Kind of like open exhaust except for the "pop" or "bark" of the flaps closing.