1992 Mastercraft Prostar 205

Any Advise would be appreciated.

I'm looking at purchasing a 1992 Mastercraft Prostar 205 it has 390 odd hours. Any common items to look for before purchasing ? Any known problems or issues ? I got them to do a compression test and the readings vary from 6-9 is that normal? The belt snapped while she was running, the bolt that holds the belt mechanism seemed to be bent and they are going to replace it what would cause this to have broken? The exhaust silentcer leaked a few drops of water they are going to repair that. On the one exhaust manifolds there is silicone around the one piece that fits onto the engine?? These were the only items i was able to identify visually any advise on these items i mentioned to be concerned about? Anything else i can check before i take it out for a run to make an offer? The items listed above are they common issues? Should i rather stay away from this boat?

[shepherd]

I'm no mechanic, but the bent bolt would concern me and I'd do exactly what you are doing before buying: Getting input from the experts on this forum.

Those PS 205's are great boats, especially if you're a skier. Hopefully everything will check out OK for you. Good luck!

[Bouyhead]

Post some detailed pics of the boat especially the motor. This is also a good read on the PS 205>ProStar 205 Changes By Year.pdf

[Kyle]

If the boat is well taken care of inside you should be fine.

Bent bolt is probably because someone didn't adjust the belt properly.

Compression was not tested properly if you are getting 6-9. The psi should be around 140+ psi and you don't want a cylinder to be 10% less than the average compression.

The silicone around the manifolds is a quick fix. Remove the manifold and put a gasket inbetween the manifold and head. Someone never used a gasket. I've seen this before.

The silent choice mufflers are prone to leaking and you more than likely can repair the one you have with fiberglass. Not a big deal


I wouldn't run away from this boat quite yet.

Make sure the gt40 heads are on it. There are 3 vertical marks on the front side of the head. The 3 marks indicate gt40. If you do not see 3 marks then the engine has been molested and a major red flag as more info should be disclosed.

I'll try to find a head pick with the marks that I'm talking about.

[east tx skier]

Originally Posted by Kyle

Make sure the gt40 heads are on it. There are 3 vertical marks on the front side of the head. The 3 marks indicate gt40. If you do not see 3 marks then the engine has been molested and a major red flag as more info should be disclosed.

I'll try to find a head pick with the marks that I'm talking about.

If it does not have GT40 heads on it, I wouldn't call it a major red flag. I would say that, more than likely, the original owner ordered the boat with the base engine package, a 250 hp 351 as opposed to the optional 285 hp 351HO. On the positive side, the base 351 came with a 4160 Holley as opposed to the troublesome 4010 on the 351HO.

One way or another, you'll either be upgrading the heads or upgrading the carb.

This is a picture of what Kyle is talking about. These are GT40p heads. So they have 4 tick marks instead of the 3 that appear on the GT40 heads.

[Kyle]

Its a major flag if the title says 285HO and there are no, none, zilch, nadda, for ticks on the heads.

I learned the hard way.... Had to replace heads and get a cam and it was costly. If I knew about the heads before buying, I would have bought another boat. Also the HIN# is helpful. Call the local mastercraft dealership and have them pull up the original equipment for that boat.

Since I got screwed on my purchase and I'm gear head, I just built a better engine than the HO anyways. Still though I wish I knew the little details about the mastercrafts before I bought mine. I would have waited on another deal to come around. Although I do love my color and I don't see it too often.

[east tx skier]

I gotcha. This is a story about your experience. I hadn't seen anything to indicate which engine was advertised on the OP's boat. So I was confused.

I was the same way when I bought my MC. Clueless about the details and got lucky with most of it. Wish I had known about the carb or had taken a longer test drive to make it act up.

Appreciate everyone's feedback, thank you. Just on the 3 vertical marks on the front side of the head that was mentioned what marks are these -ink / spray? Apologies i'm clueless what to look for

[east tx skier]

Originally Posted by CC_Chris

Appreciate everyone's feedback, thank you. Just on the 3 vertical marks on the front side of the head that was mentioned what marks are these -ink / spray? Apologies i'm clueless what to look for

Take a look at the picture I posted above. They are cast into the head.

Good luck.

[JimN]

Originally Posted by CC_Chris

Any Advise would be appreciated.

I'm looking at purchasing a 1992 Mastercraft Prostar 205 it has 390 odd hours. Any common items to look for before purchasing ? Any known problems or issues ? I got them to do a compression test and the readings vary from 6-9 is that normal? The belt snapped while she was running, the bolt that holds the belt mechanism seemed to be bent and they are going to replace it what would cause this to have broken? The exhaust silentcer leaked a few drops of water they are going to repair that. On the one exhaust manifolds there is silicone around the one piece that fits onto the engine?? These were the only items i was able to identify visually any advise on these items i mentioned to be concerned about? Anything else i can check before i take it out for a run to make an offer? The items listed above are they common issues? Should i rather stay away from this boat?

Sealing the exhaust manifold at the head isn't a problem- they mate well enough and the manifold has water running through it, so heat isn't an issue.

I have never seen a compression gauge with numbers in the 6-9 range. It's always PSI and yours should be in the 150-170 range, with a maximum deviation of 10% from average. If you see a wide variation on two adjacent cylinders, suspect a bad head gasket.