Looking at 1991 Catalina 30

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Bob

I am looking at a 1991 Catalina 30 which seems to be in excellent shape, very well maintained boat. Being new to a sailboat of this size with a desiel, I want to know if 925 hours on a boat this age would be considered a lot or is it a lot for a desiel in general? Naturally I would go through a surveyor if I made a offer to look for any problems. Also how hard is this boat to single hand if properly set up? Thanks for your help.
 
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Eric Ludin

Easy to single hand.

I can't comment with authority on the number of hours you can expect from the diesel...except to say that it isn't unusual for the M25 to last decades. Mine is 20 years old. I think the longevity depends entirely on the maintenance. If the rest of the boat is in good shape, I'd guess the engine was maintained as well. I single hand my C30 regularly. It is a very simple boat to handle so long as you have an autopilot and furling headsail. I must go onto the cabin top to raise the main. No problem. I simple put the boat on autopilot and head up there. I'll wear a harness if the water is rough. When docking, the boat is not so heavy that you can't hop off and grab her by the stancions to bring her to a stop. Good luck!
 
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Tom Behrendt

Engine hours

Bob, I have a 1991 Catalina 30 and the engine has about 800 hours. I would consider that number of hours to be typical. I think 925 hours are also in the average range. Should you go through with this purchase I think you will be very satisfied with your choice. Tom Behrendt
 
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dan

just meet a guy

on my trip who had an old Perkins with over 5,000 hrs on it. in some of the reading I have been doing if properly maintained they should run forever.(almost)
 
Feb 26, 2004
23,068
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
C30 Engine Hours

Bob Engine hours is usually about 100 per year. Yours sounds fine. Here's another reference. Stu
 
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Jack Walsh

C30 Engine Hours

I have an '84 C30 TRBS that has about 1080 hrs on it's M-25. Jack
 
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Tom

Engine hours not the issue

I would say that engine hours are not the issue here. How well the engine was maintained is! If the engine was well maintained 925 hours is a drop in the bucket as far as desiel engines go. In many respects desiel engines need to be run often for over 30 minutes at a time.
 
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Peter

Yeah, but how many hrs. B4 O/H?

A question that I thought the answers to this thread might go into is "How many hours should a diesel go before it's time to be thinking about an overhaul?". For example, when your car has run 125-150K (depending of course on whether it's a Buick, Yugo, Toyota, or Mercedes or whatever), even if it's running fine and causing no trouble, you begin to think that you should more closely watch compression, oil burning, etc., knowing that sometime in the near or not-so-near future, you're looking at some major work. What's the equivalent hours in a diesel to the expected 150K life in the car?
 
Feb 26, 2004
23,068
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Equivalent Hours to Auto

Peter The answer to your question What's the equivalent hours in a diesel to the expected 150K life in the car? is covered in the related link to my previous post. Stu
 
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larry w.

engine hours

Bob; It's not the hours that count, but how they're put there. If 900 of those hours are running at a light load for charging batteries, you may have a problem, but if its 900 hours of running with a good load, it's only a tiny fraction of what the engine can deliver. The best thing you can do for your engine is to use on a regular basis, and put a significant load on it. Running at idle at the dock for 20 minutes is worse than not running it all. If you can't get the boat out, run the engine at half throttle in gear at the dock for those twenty minutes, change the oil on a regular basis and you should get 10,000 hours easy.
 
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