I have a 170 and had some experience with fixing the internal water pump. Look for any sign of coolant in the bilge - it’s hard to spot where it leaks out if the seal is bad. As I recall there’s a weep hole around behind the pump near the distributor.
Don’t forget to drain the heat exchanger. One winter where you are will destroy it if you don’t - it’s around $1000 from Mercury and mine was around $500 getting it through an online guy who supplies the OEM part direct from the manufacturer. If you end up needing one, let me know and I’ll hook you up.
Welcome to the site - it saved my sanity when I was fixing my water pump.
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 Scott, Portland, OR '85 V-20 I/O, Merc 170
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09-26-2018, 11:44 PM
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