Mismatched radiator caps on old Bayliner could this be my temp issue?

[wakewatchersclub25]

I was getting my old Bayliner ready for spring, and I noticed something odd, one of the motors has always had a bit of a jumpy temp gauge. At first, it didn't seem like a big deal, but then last weekend, I saw some coolant spewing out from around the cap. Yikes!

So, I took a closer look and found out that one motor has a 16-pound cap while the other has a 14-pound. After some digging, I discovered that it should actually be a 13-pound for this setup. And to make things worse, there's no recovery tank, just an overflow that dumps into the bilge.

Now I'm left wondering, could that higher pressure cap be the reason for the temp issues? I'm really curious if anyone else has run into something like this with older Bayliners. Would love to hear your thoughts

 

[fr13sorch1ps]

I was getting my old Bayliner ready for spring, and I noticed something odd, one of the motors has always had a bit of a jumpy temp gauge. At first, it didn't seem like a big deal, but then last weekend, I saw some coolant spewing out from around the cap. Yikes!

So, I took a closer look and found out that one motor has a 16-pound cap while the other has a 14-pound. After some digging, I discovered that it should actually be a 13-pound for this setup. And to make things worse, there's no recovery tank, just an overflow that dumps into the bilge.

Now I'm left wondering, could that higher pressure cap be the reason for the temp issues? I'm really curious if anyone else has run into something like this with older Bayliners. Would love to hear your thoughts

well, yeah, the wrong pressure cap can cause issues. A 16lb cap on a system designed for 13lb increases stress on hoses, gaskets, and the heat exchanger.
However, coolant spewing from around the cap suggests the cap itself might be faulty or the system is overheating and exceeding even the higher cap's limit

 

[CannedJuice]

Did the temp gauge spikes start around the same time that mismatched cap got swapped in? That 16-pounder could definitely be pushing the system too hard, it might've been overpressurizing and causing that overflow