Oceanis 41, Yanmar SD50 saildrive slipping in forward
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Sorry to hear about the sail drive slipping. Mine is 12 months old now. Half of my electronics have went out. I finally resolved my sailvac head issues now I'm replacing electronics which are not covered under warranty because it was an electrical event that caused the problems. I bought a new boat so I wouldn't have to work on it all the time. Just venting.
Not sure what caused it. Beneteau days it was lightning or a power surge. I traced a short to the control panel. Battery, water and fuel monitor. What's weird is the chart plotter works but the depth meter and wind display turn on but font register. The VHF works but the speaker is out and the same on the stereo. Had to replace the propane solenoid and the timer relay for the shower sump pump. No 110 volt damage at all and all the rest of the 12 volt still works but blew out stern nav light. Don't make sense. On the plus side, I know a lot more about the electrics than I did before. Oh well. Life goes on.
I had residual EMI from a lighting strike a distances way from my boat. Same result - selective electronics were knocked out. In my case a GPS antenna and a couple of instruments. Everything else worked fine.
Interesting. I wonder why the electro magnetic induction only hits certain electronics. Could it be that boats have become more complicated and the electronics more fragile? I'm trying to figure out how to keep this from happening again.
Insurance should cover the repairs especially if it was lightning induced. There is no normal evidence of a lightning strike and EMF induction is Hard to prove. So at present, I'm having lots of fun.
I wonder if they can match up a Volvo Z drive to the Yanmar. Wouldn't that be cool. I didn't realize owning a new boat could be do much work.
Thanks for the info. I just bought a new O41 so am very interested in experiences of other O41 owners.
Hey Skipp. Welcome to the club. I haven't done a head count but there is a few of us O41 owners in here. It's a new model so there were a few teething problems but all in all I am happy with mine. Had her a year now.
We are in the market for a new boat and I am starting to wonder if Beneteau is the right brand. We will start looking elsewhere.
We've had 4 Beneteaus over the past 25 years and have been very satisfied. Every production boat is going to have some startup problems along with some initial production defects. The most important part of the equation is the dealer. Ours took care of every single issue - no questions asked.
At the same time we have new Tartans, Hunters and Catalina's. All have had initial glitches - the most expensive boat a new Tartan 4400 had a page long list of issues immediately upon commissioning - a month later a fire in the bow from a short from the factory installed bow thruster battery.
Lessons - pick a boat that meets your needs and one you like (hopefully not the manufacturer's newest model). Check on the boat through user groups, lastly and equally important check out the dealer.
Beneteaus are okay. Most of the trouble I've had is mostly bad luck and Mother Nature. Except for the sailvac. When I was looking, I wanted the most boat for the money. The bennies filled the bill. I would have preferred a Catalina but they were too high in my opinion. Heck, I wanted a Leopard 40 so I settled for the boat I call Compromise. Most of the new production boats out there are good boats. It just is a matter of what you want. It always a Compromise. ;-)
Although I don't own the same boat, I do own a Beneteau. I have read this thread with interest. It seems to me that some of the blame for the boats' problems is misplaced. I would submit that a number of the issues are supplier related and not necessarily the builder's fault. An example of that is the sail drive problem. The electronics are another concern. If lightning is involved, they are definitely vulnerable. That may turn out to be exacerbated by a design issue and/or insufficient protection. After all, a mast can be a Significant lightning rod.
I know that I have mentioned it in another thread, but a mass produced boat is not built like a mass produced automobile, Its still pretty much of a one of a kind product. The work force building them is certainly not made up of master technicians for the most part. Subsequently things get out of the factory that should not.
Without a doubt, the builder is concerned because these issues impact it's reputation in the marketplace, and as the cliche goes, a dissatisfied customer will tell six of his friends, while a satisfied customer doesn't always say much. The dealer gets into the picture as a bad guy because he gets the heat for commissioning issues. some of those are real problems, others are quick fixes that some owners simply don't have the skills, ability, or patience to fix.
It would be interesting to get some direct feedback from Beneteau and the dealer organization in this forum regarding how they respond to these concerns...
The fact remains that boats are not a low cost purchase and the customer has every right to expect quality and reliability in return. Add to that the fact that in some cases lives might be dependent on those factors.
For the most part, discussions on this forum can be quite constructive, and if we can keep from shooting the messenger (and that does not seem be be happening here), a lot can be gained.
I know that I have mentioned it in another thread, but a mass produced boat is not built like a mass produced automobile, Its still pretty much of a one of a kind product. The work force building them is certainly not made up of master technicians for the most part. Subsequently things get out of the factory that should not.
Without a doubt, the builder is concerned because these issues impact it's reputation in the marketplace, and as the cliche goes, a dissatisfied customer will tell six of his friends, while a satisfied customer doesn't always say much. The dealer gets into the picture as a bad guy because he gets the heat for commissioning issues. some of those are real problems, others are quick fixes that some owners simply don't have the skills, ability, or patience to fix.
It would be interesting to get some direct feedback from Beneteau and the dealer organization in this forum regarding how they respond to these concerns...
The fact remains that boats are not a low cost purchase and the customer has every right to expect quality and reliability in return. Add to that the fact that in some cases lives might be dependent on those factors.
For the most part, discussions on this forum can be quite constructive, and if we can keep from shooting the messenger (and that does not seem be be happening here), a lot can be gained.
I've owned airplanes for 25 years and even high quality new airplanes have teething issues initially and some instruments fail seemingly without cause. As DougM says, many times it is the supplier who delivers a faulty produce to the manufacturer. There is no substitute for a good dealer. One of my criteria for picking a boat was having a good dealer nearby. I'm fortunate that I'm near Annapolis and Annapolis Yacht Sales has a very good reputation for standing by their products - at least with those whom I have personally talked with. I'm friends with the salesman and he assured me that they will make sure I am happy with my boat and I know him to be good for his word.
I have an OC45 and was a bit depressed when I realized it had the SD50. I thought it had the SD60. Overall I'm starting to calm done and learn to enjoy my boat after the initial problems. My Simrad stuff is still very flakey. I've been losing GPS fix , on occasion the NSS12 reboots itself, and my Sonichub sometimes gives an error. My Autopilot is another issue.
I still have a list of things to be addressed by the dealer over the winter. Perhaps the most disturbing of the problems was a missing shaft key for the port helm wheel. I discovered it on my first long trip out when backing down and the wheel slipped. Arrrr.
I still have a list of things to be addressed by the dealer over the winter. Perhaps the most disturbing of the problems was a missing shaft key for the port helm wheel. I discovered it on my first long trip out when backing down and the wheel slipped. Arrrr.
Just curious about saildrives. We noticed it is on the new Beneteau 38. Are these are reliable as the traditional engine/prop shaft combinations? I was not aware of other mfg putting saildrives on their larger boats.
for those of you who have saildrives, are you happy with them>?
I am very happy with mine. I don't put it in reverse when sailing which I have been told can lead to problems with the clutch. Prop walk is almost non existent. On the con view it is made of aluminum so I have to keep close track of the anodes. I've had the boat over a year now and the saildrive is the least of my problems. Note: if you do put it in reverse while sailing, you will find it is very stiff to put back in neutral even when stopped. This could do some damage if you force it.
Thanks for the input, Captain Ron.
Just looked up Kemah and it looks like a nice place for sailing 12 months a year. No worries about winterizing!
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