Yanmar or Beta

[barboak]

We are considering repowering with either a Beta 50 or a Yanmar 4JH4E (54hp) and wonder what experience others had with both installation and satisfaction with the engine. The Yanmar is probably $1500 cheaper though with wanted options may be a bit closer in price. I'm replacing a Westerbeke 58 which is becoming difficult to get parts for. As both have oil filter on the right side as viewed from the stern, which is my tightest dimension, I would probably want a remote filter assbly, and have not found it for the Yanmar yet. Any thoughts? Thanks

[Zednotzee]

I own a Volvo, but of those two my preference would be the Beta.

I worked on a Yanmar generator once, & the nearest parts distributor was in Toronto. You can buy Kubota parts almost anywhere. True, some parts specific to the marine conversion may not be available (I'm thinking of the water pump here), but most others should be.

[barboak]

Thanks, one thing I noticed is that the exhaust manifold is on the left side of both the Beta and Yanmar and right side on my Westerbeke. The Beta seems as if if may be a bit more flexible to cross over

[sabray]

maybe cummins you can see the config at TAD for Cummins 4B 3.3-M Engines - Cummins Diesel - Cummins Marine - Cummins 4B3.3M - 4B3.3M - Cummins Marine Diesel

I installed one and love it

[noelex 77]

Ithink they are both good engines.
The Yanmar is a better IMHO. Designed as a marine engine from the start.
I have to disagree with Zednotzee. I have a yanmar main engine a Kubota (Nanni) 12v generator. The Yanamar is much easier to get parts for. There is a Yanmar dealer available in some very remote parts of the world.
The delivery time for the Yanmar parts is much less than the Kubota. It tends to be the marine parts that need replacing,
A concern with Beta is that they are small British company. If they go belly up, in the future, marine parts will be very hard to get.

[barboak]

I know that Yanmar parts are almost everywhere I've cruised. That is a good point about Beta as a small company, could be a problem in the future.

[barboak]

The Cummins seems to be too tall in height to fit in my cabin sole where the diesel lies

[beetle]

I'm on the back end of repowering my boat, replacing the Perkins 4-108 with a Yanmar 4JH5E - so far everything is going quite well.

There are remote oil filter kits available for the Yanmar 4JH. Where are you located? Yanmar parts distribution and sales is pretty carefully controlled by Yanmar to protect their distributor network. Talk to your local distributor, they can quote a remote kit for you.

I chose not to go with the Beta 50; I seem to recall it had to do with the space available to swing a larger alternator - so check with Beta to see if the alternator you want to run will fit into the space available in front of the heat exchanger.

I was also concerned with parts availability from Beta for the pieces they add that 'marinize' the engine. I had a Universal diesel on a prior boat, which is a Kubota block, and the Kubota ran great - so I would expect the Beta to be a good engine.

The Yanmar looks to be slightly better built than the Kubota, and has a wide parts availability, and I expect the Yanmar to be as good an engine as the Beta/Kubota.

- rob

[barboak]

Thanks for the info. We are in N. Florida right now and will ask about a remote oil filter kit. Today I will need to check out solutions for changing side of exhaust coming from manifold, isn't the Yanamr a different size of hose? As my installation is in the cabin sole and centerline I really need to be sure of engine mount locations.

[PamlicoTraveler]

beetle - Im curious what the reality of the cost to repower with the 4JH5E is? It's a tough number to estimate until you actually do it.

[HDC]

I replaced an old Yanmar with a Beta last year. I really appreciate the Beta's better access and (for me) smaller size.

[donradcliffe]

The factor that drove me to the Beta 50 to replace a 4108 was that Yanmar required redoing the exhaust system to 3" diameter, while Beta did not. I've got 3 years and 1000 hours on the Beta now, and the only part I've needed was an air filter housing.

[barboak]

The exhaust size is probably going to be an issue in the decision. Talking to Stanley at Beta it seems as if the engine mounts may work out better. I am a bit concerned about future access to parts for the Beta if something happened to the company.

[S/V Antares]

I recently replaced a Westerbeke 27 with the Beta 38. I also chose the PRM120 gear as it is much more robust than the ZF10 that was on the Wbeke. Apart from the exhaust manifold heat exchanger combo there are few "Beta" only parts that one would need. Waterpump is off the shelf, My exhaust riser is a frabricated unit anyone could make. Mounts and alt are off the shelf. I like the flat belt option beta offers. The beta package was several thousand & cheaper and fit like a dream.

[beetle]

Originally Posted by PamlicoTraveler

beetle - Im curious what the reality of the cost to repower with the 4JH5E is? It's a tough number to estimate until you actually do it.

So far I'm in $17,120 and there's perhaps another $1500 to go. This is all for parts, with the exception of $90 for an hour of consultation on the boat with a diesel repower specialist to design the exhaust system (well worth the $90!).

Of that $17k, there are several major pieces:
11,700 for bobtail engine, adapter plates to fit the Hurth 15 MIV transmission, and second engine instrument panel (the key panel mounts below, the button panel mounts in the cockpit)
3700 for MaxProp VP 3 blade propeller
495 for Ample Power 105 amp hot-rated alternator

I have done the work myself, I'm good with fiberglass and overall the changes have been extensive but minor. The work has involved: raising the engine bed rails 2", upsizing the exhaust from 2" to 3" (easy to do, just slow, as I'm consructing custom fiberglass exhaust bends from the Vernatube sold by Centek), adding a second waterlift muffler to handle the additional water volume in the larger exhaust hose, having a custom dry riser and injection elbow built by a local metal fabrication shop, building a custom exhaust exit/thru-hull (more Vernatube), and a lot of measuring twice and cutting once.

I have re-used essentially nothing from the original Perkins installation other than: racor fuel filter rig, transmission & hub, raw water intake filter, and fuel lines.

This has been a lot of fun, a great chance to redesign things a little, and apply crispy clean gel coat in the engine room.

- rob