There’s a lot going on this spring, and with all the things I probably should be thinking about, my mind keeps coming back to Kokomo’s main engine.
She’s powered by a 1990 Cummins 6BT with about 4,600 hours on the clock—hardly broken in by diesel standards, but old enough that a little attention never hurts. Over the past couple of seasons I’ve replaced the gear cooler, removed and serviced the heat exchanger, and installed a newer raw water pump. The coolant has been flushed and replaced, and I pulled the exhaust elbow for service while checking the turbo, which thankfully looked just fine.
This year the plan is a little more routine: replace the raw water impeller, install fresh zincs (of course), and give everything a thorough cleaning. I’d love to repaint the engine as well, but that may depend on how much time I actually have once the rest of the spring projects start piling up.
Still, there’s something about opening the engine hatch and seeing a clean, well-kept engine sitting there that just feels right. It might not make the boat run any faster, but it’s definitely good for the soul.