$2500 sounds good like a heck of deal for a runner. My Tahiti if add up all my bills, including the cost of the boat is about $3000. And the gel coat on it is dull, and severely faded.
also for short runs, I put a sprinkler under the pump (10 seconds or less). For long testing I undo the coupler, and hook up the garden hose to the block connection. Nice thing about this is I can feel the u-joints, I am always paranoid about the U-joints.