Rebuilding Westerbeke W30, aka 4-91

[sanibel sailor]

I have the flywheel/BH/tranny mounted and she's sitting on the new mount. Waiting to install exhaust manifold and other accessories. Just been sitting in the shop, neglected, mostly due to gradually sliding down the priority list. I probably have another afternoon or evening or two left to go, just had my attention captured by other endeavors.

[Jeffmg]

Sorry to restart an old thread but did this ever get put into a boat? Did it run?
I had the head rebuilt on mine which got me another year of use but will need to be rebuilt now with compression issues.

Also the issue of getting it out of my Allied Seawind which was definitely not set up to pull an engine out or in.

Any thoughts on the process? Regrets?

I have an mg shop a couple towns over and a source for a set of pistons but I’m still hemming and hawing over a rebuild or just repower with a beta.

[kmacdonald]

I am sure you know the W30 has a British Leyland block. The engine was used in cars so parts are available at reasonable cost but the Weterbeke parts are crazy expensive if available at all. The aluminum exhaust manifold/heat exchanger is near impossible to remove without breaking due to corrosion of dissimilar metals. I have one I removed recently and am replacing with a Kubota D1105. I might rebuild the W30 depending how it comes apart. It ran OK but was hard to start if it wasn't hot out, and leaked a lot of oil. The decision to rebuild or buy new comes down to how long you expect to keep the boat. You don't get your money out of a new or rebuilt engine but a new engine can save you money vs repairing an old one if you keep the boat long enough. If you rebuild it yourself it may make sense but IMHO it never makes sense to pay someone to rebuild it for you. The price difference between new and rebuild isn't that great and there is a lot of risk in rebuilds. The W30 is a good engine though.

[sanibel sailor]

Many MGA parts fit. Not pistons or rods or rod bearings. Different head and head gasket.

Mine is almost ready to fire. Been so long, I need to figure out some oil priming technique.

[CS Cruiser]

Originally Posted by Jeffmg

Sorry to restart an old thread but did this ever get put into a boat? Did it run?
I had the head rebuilt on mine which got me another year of use but will need to be rebuilt now with compression issues.

Also the issue of getting it out of my Allied Seawind which was definitely not set up to pull an engine out or in.

Any thoughts on the process? Regrets?

I have an mg shop a couple towns over and a source for a set of pistons but I’m still hemming and hawing over a rebuild or just repower with a beta.

Jeff, how many hours do you have on your w30?

[Jeffmg]

Originally Posted by CS Cruiser

Jeff, how many hours do you have on your w30?

The previous owner divulged that when he bought the boat the hour counter on the tach did not work. They ran like that for a while and installed another one in the cabin which had close to 4000 hours.

In a nutshell, a lot of hours.

When I bought the boat I basically wrote the engine off, the westerbeke dealer in Marblehead will quote an outrageous sum for a rebuild stating that parts are impossible to come by and that repower is the only option.

Obviously this proves otherwise, from what I read in this thread I’m going to hold onto my little 4 cylinder and when some other more pressing projects finish up I’m going to pull mine and do the same thing.

The websites for both Northwoods and charnleys list all of the necessary parts in stock.

Until then I’ll put around with my sailpro on the back but hope to get my w30 running again

Jeff

[Jeffmg]

Originally Posted by sanibel sailor

Many MGA parts fit. Not pistons or rods or rod bearings. Different head and head gasket.

Mine is almost ready to fire. Been so long, I need to figure out some oil priming technique.

Did the pistons and bearings have to come from a dealer with bmc 1500 parts?
I got my last head gasket from ASAP supplies and it was correct

A remote oil filter kit with a drill pump plumbed in would be my solution. Run it until oil starts coming out of the rockers and fire it up.

Thanks for the detailed build pictures, super helpful. If you have any other pictures from the project please share

Jeff

[sanibel sailor]

Not sure the remote/drill pump will work to lube the main/rod bearings. They need to be pressurized. In a regular gas engine, you pull the distributor and run the oil pump with a drill thru the distributor drive. There is a drive here, but it also runs the fuel injection pump. Might just pull the injectors to decompress cylinders and turn it over by hand a bunch of times.

[sanibel sailor]

I got my pistons and rings as new old stock from somewhere in Malta on eBay. Lucky find. I think about $400 with shipping