Inboard Diesels

[David Swingle]

Universal, Yanmar, Volvo, Perkins, Westerbeke? How do these guys stack up. Universal and Yanmar seem to have most of the marketshare. Any standouts in reliability or parts availability good or bad? DCS

 

[Richard A. Marble]

Vetus

Put a Vetus uses a Mitsubishi diesel. I have one. For price and quality you realy should check Vetus out.

 

[Debra B]

What fits in the space? other considerations

If you are replacing an engine, the same manufacturer's engine will probably fit in the space without having to change the mounting setup.If you are replacing an atomic 4, Universal or Yanmar has an engine that uses the same mount, same shaft, same propellor for easy replacement.

 

[Sid R Ballantyne]

Yanmar owner

I have a 15hp Yanmar diesel in my boat and I love it. Its 22 years old and runs beautifully. I have never had problems starting it even in cold weather and I have come to trust it to start and run whenever I choose to bring the sails down.

 

[Ed Ryan]

Practical Sailor

If you have access to past issues of Practical Sailor, in their Feb 1, 2002 issue they had a feature on diesel engines by interviewing diesel mechanics in a round table forum. They discussed Perkins, Westerbeke, Universal, Volvo and Yanmar and rated various aspects of operating and maintaining each. (I recall that this resulted in some additional comments from other mechanics and reps of other makes in future letters, although I don't recall the details.)

 

[Jerry Sapienza]

Diesel Choice

Yanmar. Smoother, quieter, smaller, lighter, designed for boats and not converted from a tractor. Plus, if you ever do have a problem when travelling there will always be a Yanmar certified mechanic and parts available. Try that with a Volvo or Vetus or Perkins. Parts all special order.Also, we have Yanmar 3GM30F in Beneteau, new this year. We had an slight oil leak from new and Yanmar (Mack Boring) came to the boat, analized the problem and solved it completly with only a phone call on my part. Great service.