Replacement engine: Volvo or Yanmar? Common rail or mechanical?

[stormalong]

I also vote Beta. Mine is now 19 years old, about 4500 hours and other than rebuilding the water pump">raw water pump and replacing the injectors (both normal for an engine of this age and use) it has been flawless.

[joae]

Not sure why your D3-110 wont run. It is not uncommon for the injectors to go bad and that will make a hole in the piston quite fast. Have you had the injectors removed for service according to Volvo schedule?
But the fact that Volvo dont let anyone else but themself diagnose even the simplest electrical fault on theur engines disqualifies them in my opinion, at least for engines with electronic control (all CR engines I presume). Dont know if Yanmar is the same?

[tankersteve]

Originally Posted by DougR

Seems to be a little confusion here.....
The Beta engine in the same power range is a traditional diesel with a mechanical fuel pump, but it does not meet Tier 3 emission regulations. This means the engine cannot be legally installed in a vessel which will be brought back to the US unless there are no other readily available Tier 3 compliant engines in the market place which will fit the vessel.

As the OP is not in the USA, and will not likely be returning to the USA to have the work done, how would the EPA even know of the installation? I'm curious if there is a reporting requirement when replacing a Tier 3 diesel with a Tier 2 diesel, whether doing the work in the USA or not.

Tankersteve

[DougR]

Originally Posted by tankersteve

As the OP is not in the USA, and will not likely be returning to the USA to have the work done, how would the EPA even know of the installation? I'm curious if there is a reporting requirement when replacing a Tier 3 diesel with a Tier 2 diesel, whether doing the work in the USA or not.

Tankersteve

Typically the EPA doesn’t know what you bring into the country, but customs does.

Any engine imported into the country by an engine manufacturer or importer has a paper trail of emission certifications and these certs. are carefully reviewed when the engine clears customs. The importation and misapplication of non certified engines is frowned upon and can be subject to significant fines.

That said, for a repowered engine to be brought in by an individual with the engine in his boat would be a hit or miss proposition. Over the years I spent in the engine business there were numerous times when we were asked by customs to provide proof of Tier compliance and proof of engine manufacture date for various in-service engines. All compliant engines have emission certification labels on them which clearly state something like “ this engines complies with the requirements of EPA Tier III, etc.” and most customs offices are well aware of these requirements. Whether you could sneak by or not might depend on the kind of day the individual was having.....
You pay your money and take your chances.

[jt11791]

The Beta 105 is longer, wider, and 140% of the weight of a Yanmar 4JH110.

[roryboy]

Originally Posted by jt11791

The Beta 105 is longer, wider, and 140% of the weight of a Yanmar 4JH110.

Looked at the specs. The Beta is a 3.77 liter engine making 105 hp @2600 the Yanmar 4JH110 is a 2 liter engine making 110 hp @ 3200

Let that sink in a minute.

[Antares]

Consider your drivetrain. Traditional shaft or sail drive? Use existing or replace all with new? Beta for service simplicity, Yanmar for better service than Volvo. If you need the easiest install a matching Volvo engine would be the route.

[tkeithlu]

Il1333, no one raised the problems of replacing with a different engine, so I will. A new (different) engine will have its hoses, exhaust, wiring, cables, and engine mounts in the wrong places. That can lead to installation nightmares. In addition, the new engine may not fit in the existing engine compartment. Hanse didn't waste any space on engine accessiblity - they used all space available for pretty things that sell boats at boat shows. Thay may even have chosen the engine and then designed the compartment.

My personal preference is definitely on the side of the mechanical - electronically controlled engines put on the spot repairs out of the reach of me and thee. But, do explore the problems of installation before choosing your next engine. Good luck with it.

[ohdrinkboy]

Also consider how long you are going to keep the boat. If short term - I would definitely go back to Volvo if it is the cheapest option. You will likely not have many repairs in the short run.

[Cheechako]

I vote non common rail.
No one is checking your engine if you return to the US.

[Slacktime]

Don't buy a Volvo Penta. Super engineered designs that are hard to repair and lack longevity. Support requires a computer doctor with proprietary software. Parts cost their weight in gold. I had a D6 fail that caused an engine bay fire and totaled the boat.

[Carl1956]

My experience with Beta.
I bought 2 engines from Beta 50HP, A total refit on my boat which took longer than I thought. So the engines did not started for over a year.
So, when it came to start them , one engine would not fire. After some time I found that the mechanical lift pump did not work. To take it off I had to remove the cooling drain valve , drain the cooling liquid.

Dismantling the pump I found that the lever did not line up with the excenter , just needed a bid of bending . Put the pump and the drain valve back. I thought I test first if the pump works and if the engine fires up before filling the cooling liquid back in.

Primed the engine,.. engine, brand new , 0 hours, started and it went strait away to full speed. I could not stop it, so I closed the valve at the fuel tank. It still needed over 40 seconds till it finally stopped. I was in tears.. no cooling liquid in the brand new engine.
The cause: the diesel had solidified and the injection pump got stuck on full speed.
The engines should have been sold with " calibration fluid ".
Answer from Beta Marine , UK : Not our problem , warranty is only one year.
So I had to take the injection pump to diesel engine shop to get it cleaned and adjusted .

Not the end yet about Beta:
After 900 hours the damper plate , between the flywheel and gearbox blow up.

I contacted R&D in the UK for specifications of their damper plates.: offset to the alignment of the gearbox/ bellhousing max: 0.2mm.
The bellhousing , where the gearbox comes in, was over 0.5mm off to the flywheel.
Contacted Beta Marine in Sydney, they referred me to Uk, UK said contact Sydney. After several emails.. I got an answer... the usual one , " you are out of warranty. "
My opinion; The Kubota engine is really good, but Beta Marina absolutely sucks, I would stay away. buy a Nanni engine Kubota,

[glenn.225]

Always Always have a chicken board, that is a board to slam over the air intake of any diesel engine that you are starting for the first time or have done any fuel pump, governor or throttle work on.
Run aways happen sometimes for the stupidest reasons. And the quickest way to shut them down is cut off all air (oxygen) . Cutting off fuel will not shut them down as they will burn their own oil.
I've seen a couple of exploded blocks.

[DeValency]

Sounds like a relatively new engine you want to scrape here.

Any diesel will die if poorly maintained over the years. I have a 30 years old Volvo Penta TMD31B - 100HP in a pristine shape, never missed a beat. From the ease of replacement, I would go with the same VP you have, it is also a better choice imho. But again, make sure it is maintained well. Changing oil is not the only maintenance task on any Diesel engine.

I think Volvo also has the D2 series, all mechanical at the power range you’re looking for. These are fantastic engines that run for 10-20K hours with a minimal maintenance.

Originally Posted by IL1333

I find myself in the Caribbean and our Volvo D3-110 has given up the ghost and needs replaced. 2 of 3 cylinders are dead.

This is a common rail, ECU engine. 110hp. It has been a great engine until now but I’ve never been comfortable with the technology…. Having to have a Volvo tech plug the vodia laptop in to diagnose anything. Other than changing the oil, I’m helpless to trouble shoot any problems with it.


My options are to replace it with the same thing…. A wonderfully smooth and technological marvel…… or switch to a Yanmar… which also offers a common rail option……… But, I am very much attracted to the Yanmar mechanical injection choice for its simplicity! It is something that I can fix myself I think!

What am I missing? What else should I consider?

At the end of the day, I’m hoping to get a motor that is super popular, easy to get parts and service and will run for years and years on any sludgy fuel that is dispensed in remote locations….

Thoughts??

[Dieseldude]

If you like being at the mercy of factory service with their specialized scan tools and factory training, then the common rail engine is fine. But common rail is much more susceptible to dirty fuel and water in fuel. Personally, I prefer the simplicity of mechanical injection. The beauty of diesel was that they only require electricity to turn the starter and to run gauges and alarms. Other than that, there were no electrical and electronic issues. But modern computerized engines can become an expensive can of worms to repair. The argument is always given that the electronics are very reliable, and problems are few. But when you do get a problem it can mean a shut down and a huge expense. If stuck thousands of miles in the middle of nowhere, factory service is a difficult proposition.



The weakness of a central control system is that it is central control. When it fails, it is often a complete failure. Mechanical injection engines do not have this vulnerability. Before deciding on mechanical injection though, what is allowable by emissions rules must be checked. If your build date is before a certain date, you have no issue. Newer hulls my be limited to a lower emission electronically controlled engine.