Lister Diesel Engines

[reiner]

We are looking at a 36ft Adams Pilothouse with a 44HP Lister Diesel Engine fitted. We believe the engine has done about 6700 hrs.
I had Diesel 4WD's most of my life and one of my landcruisers had done over 800,000km. So I know if you look after a diesel engine it can do a lot of hrs.
But I have no idea what 6700hrs in a marine engine means.
How many hrs do they do on average?
Thanks
Reiner

[F51]

Well, if it was in a land vehicle and averaged 35mph for all 6700 hrs, it would have about 235,000 miles--that's not excessive for a diesel powered vehicle. My '93 Cummins has 255,000 miles and is still going strong. Far more important than the total hours on a marine powerplant is the quality of maintenance the engine has received. Any engine can be ruined in short order by poor maintenance. I would have a reputable mechanic check it out and if he finds no abnormalities, cast off!

[Boracay]

6700 is a lot of hours. Yes, if it is in good condition then it will go for a while longer. Listers have a well deserved reputation for lasting.

Keep in mind that your engine is at least (at a guess) 25 years old and could have been secondhand when it went into the boat. The transmission could be the same, and transmissions, particularly if undersize, don't seem to last as well as engines.

The call really is how much more use you can get out of it. Just putting round the bay, getting off a mooring and a little battery charging, maybe 150 hours a year, it could last forever.

But put the engine to some serious use, expose it to electrolytic corrosion, find some wear in the injector pump, do a head gasket etc. and you've got an engine giving concern.

My experience has been that old engines/transmissions are very hard to fix. Bolts break, parts corrode and become unavailable. Labour is going for over over $100ph now in some places. So you can start getting a series of very expensive short term repairs. Fixing in an exotic location becomes problematic.

So if you really like this boat then price in a new engine. There are some good sounding Kubotas in your power range. Combined with an oversized transmission you could have reliable power for as long as you want.

Do keep in mind that a professional install could cost more than the new engine. Check if the shaft size will support a bigger engine and maybe go one or more sizes up if possible. When doing the engine its a good time to replace mounts and fuel lines, clean out tanks and upgrade fuel filters. It may need a new propeller. The list is almost endless.

Replacing the engine on Boracay myself took around three months with little help, and the extras maybe the same again.