Yanmar engine time?

[pwilletts]

what is considered 'high' time on a yanmar 29 engine??

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by pwilletts

what is considered 'high' time on a yanmar 29 engine??

What model is a Yanmar 29?

I'll go out on a limb and say that lack of use and low hours kill more engines than high hours.

We've got a marinized kubota 3 cylinder with 1800 hours and have done nothing to the engine but routine maintenance. The marinzed parts are another issue though.

[a64pilot]

I'm not familiar with that engine, but think ver 3,000 being up there, with 5,000 being high time for most Diesels, a very few seems to last forever, and a very few seem to have problems.


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[daletournier]

Sorry, I disagree. I don't believe 3000 hrs is that much for a Yanmar. Mine has nearly 3500nm and going strong. I expect 10000hrs out of her and have seen this a number of times. Run her between 2400rpm and 2800rpm. I'm talking 3gm30f.

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[Calif.Ted]

I asked someone who used 3GM30F's in a fleet of shoreboats how many hours they could run, he didn't really know, they just replaced them every 10,000 hrs. Others are correct in that we probably shorten the life with infrequent use and maintenance.

[Cheechako]

A diesel used frequently and for extended periods will do 10k hours. A seldom used one will be lucky to get to 3k hours.
I had two 3GM30's (1992 vintage) One made less than 500 hours and by 1999 the other required rebuild at less than 2500 hours.
hard to say....

[a64pilot]

Seems though on average an engine with 3 to 5 thou on it, is at or over 20 yrs old and getting long in the tooth. Few run hundreds of hours per year, most sit at the dock.
Mine according to records had 500 on it when I bought it, but is now 28 yrs old. Now if the 500 is real, it's a low time enigne, but the age and obvious dis-use of course count, so I'd say my 500 hour engine I hope is mid time, but truthfully may be getting up there due to the calendar time. I hope that rigorous preventative maintenance will keep it around a while


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[Hudson Force]

I have almost 8,000 hours on my 14 year old Yanmar 4JH3E with an oil cooler replacement, oil pressure sensor replacement and a transmission repair over the years in addition to regular maintenance. Things are looking good.

[RDW]

I have a 1997 Yanmar 4jh2e with 6,000 hours that is running fine, not using oil and starts immediately. I am planning on doing the world arc so I am replacing it. It was hard to pull an engine that has started everytime.
I was told 10,000hrs was expected.
What is mine worth?
RDW

[TacomaSailor]

When I bought my boat new in 1995 it was powered by a 4JH2E. At 600 hours I had the local Yanmar dealer go thru it to check everything. I spent some time with the head mechanic as he worked on my boat.

His shop serviced all the Yanmars in the Puget Sound commercial fishing fleet. That is thousands of four and six cylinder marine diesels.

He said a Yanmar is a high speed engine and wants to run fast and hot. If the engine is run that way it will last forever.

He serviced Alaska fishing boats that made two round trips to Puget Sound a year (4,000 miles or about 400 hours) and fished non-stop for weeks at a time. The engines never shut off during those months of service.

He had a lot of 10,000 hour engines that ran as well as the day they were installed. They seldom had to replace a Yanmar.

He said sailboaters wreck their little Yanmars by:

- running too slow
- not heating the engine all the way up
- using stale diesel
- running too slow
- running too slow...
- running too slow and not stressing the engine

Once every 5-hours of run time - put it at 24-hour max RPM (3200 in mine) and run it that way for 5-minutes

Run the engine at 70% - 75% of 24-hour max RPM when cruising ( 2400 or so in my boat)

IF you start the engine - run it to full operating temperature for at least 10-minutes to cook the contaminants out of the oil.

Bottom Line for this very experienced Yanmar mechanic - they will never fail or die or wear out in the lifetime of a sailboat - IF - operated properly.

Mine has 2,850 hours and runs better than new

[a64pilot]

You know stationary engines like those that were used in the oil field to run pump jacks, ran for tens of thousands of hours.
But that is not normal sailboat use, like you say we disdain our little Diesles, and most of us look forward to turning the thing off, While I won't say I hate motoring, sailing is much more pleasant.
And it seems most sailors are not motorheads, quite a few cruisers seem to be, and I don't know why that is, but the Professional Captain I hired to help with my delivery was I'm sure a stunning sailor, but the first time the thing quit, his answer was to call Sea-Tow. He had no idea where to even begin troubleshooting.
Most sailors seem to only think about their little Diesel when it doesn't, and they call a mechanic then, but PM? Forget about it.

So I'm saying the while Hudson Force may well still be running the same engine when he finally swallows the anchor, he's not the common sailboat owner from what I've seen.
Most people don't mow their own grass or change the oil in their own car, have no idea how to maintain them. I have always maintained my own vehicles, whether they fly, roll or float and I can tell you I have honestly never had an engine failure from being worn out, I finally get rid of vehicles when they essentially just fall apart, meaning the interior, paint, seats etc are just worn out, but the engines and drive lines have always been good. I'm driving a 97 Miata to work now for example, and I'll give it to my kid when we go cruising, it's got at least another ten years in it.

Point is, that most modern engines if properly maintained and serviced will last an extremely long time.
But most aren't properly run, and often are serviced when they break, and last a fraction of what they could.


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[J Clark H356]

My 13 season 3GM30F has 1243 hours and my Northern Lights 5kw Generator has 3013 hours. Changed out injectors, changed oil and impellers regularly and they both run like a champ. I expect more than I probably have myself.


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