Yanmar Engine Life???

Rick D · Nov 1, 2020

To put yourself at rest, get a mechanical survey from a marine diesel mechanic. That is a good idea regardless. FWIW, the Yanmar on my 40.5 has 2800+ hours on it and I believe it's good for double or triple that. Good luck. (As to the "overpriced", that is the least expense you will encounter over the next 20 years

)

dlochner · Nov 1, 2020

Diesels run a very long time with routine maintenance. I have the smaller sibling to your engine, a 3JH2E that is 27 years old, still runs fine. The only repair has been to replace the fuel hoses, after 27 years they were failing.

Tally Ho · Nov 1, 2020

In my opinion “No”, but that is solely based on my 30-year old Yanmar 2GM20. the engine has about 1965 hours on the meter. I have only owned the boat for 6 years. The engine runs good, no smoke, no leaks, starts great, etc.

BUT, I can think of a few caveats:
1) Salt or fresh water Boat? I am in fresh water, so that could mean less “wear and tear” on other parts of the system (HX, exhaust, etc.)

2) Can you get maintenance records from the seller? That would indicate and show some proof that the engine was maintained properly.

3) If you could get a compression check, that may also help verify the integrity of the cylinders, rings, valves, etc.

Like you, I believe diesel truck engines will outlast the bodies, and I think marine diesels are not much different. But some of the support systems could fail, or of the engine wasn’t maintained (or overheated, or run with low oil, etc), those could shorten it’s life.

i thought aI read that 4,000 hours is not uncommon, so I am hoping my 2GM20F is only half way through its useful life....I hauled out yesterday and after changing the oil, I noticed I put about 25 hours on the motor over the course of the 2020 season! At that rate, I will be dead and gone before the boat needs to be repowered :huh:

Hopefully some diesel mechanics or experts will chime in.

Greg

capta · Nov 1, 2020

Our last genset engine was running fine at 18,000 hours plus, but we were having some trouble with little things like freeze plugs and as a charter boat we couldn't have a break down because of a $4.00 part.
2000 hours is a nearly new diesel, IMO. Do a compression test and send the oil out to a lab, and that should give you a good idea of what shape it is in.
But do remember, the more you use mechanical equipment, the happier it is.

smokey73 · Nov 1, 2020

If its been maintained, its barely broken in! Maintain it, run it and enjoy it.

If you're lucky it has the bronze exhaust elbow. I called HDI about a replacement SS elbow and they said to check to see if its bronze first, my 4JH2E does. They said the bronze lasts as long as the SS? Just going on their advice.

nightowle · Nov 1, 2020

Excellent advice above including the suggestion for oil analysis. If this engine was properly maintained with regular oil and filter changes, it's still a baby. These engines can run 9 or 10k hours without any sort of rebuild. But that's assuming you keep it well maintained. You don't say what year the engine and boat is, but I still think 2k hours is nuttin'

Benny17441 · Nov 1, 2020

A well maintained Yanmar turbo charged engine should be good for 10,000-15,000 hours.

smokey73 · Nov 1, 2020

Benny17441 said:
A well maintained Yanmar turbo charged engine should be good for 10,000-15,000 hours.

It's probably not a turbo charged Yanmar but the regular 50HP version. That being said, there is no reason a non-turbo version should not last just as long and there is no potential for turbo failure. The 50 HP is well suited for the size of the 40.5.

Mickstr · Nov 2, 2020

Tally Ho said:
In my opinion “No”, but that is solely based on my 30-year old Yanmar 2GM20. the engine has about 1965 hours on the meter. I have only owned the boat for 6 years. The engine runs good, no smoke, no leaks, starts great, etc.

BUT, I can think of a few caveats:
1) Salt or fresh water Boat? I am in fresh water, so that could mean less “wear and tear” on other parts of the system (HX, exhaust, etc.)

2) Can you get maintenance records from the seller? That would indicate and show some proof that the engine was maintained properly.

3) If you could get a compression check, that may also help verify the integrity of the cylinders, rings, valves, etc.

Like you, I believe diesel truck engines will outlast the bodies, and I think marine diesels are not much different. But some of the support systems could fail, or of the engine wasn’t maintained (or overheated, or run with low oil, etc), those could shorten it’s life.

i thought aI read that 4,000 hours is not uncommon, so I am hoping my 2GM20F is only half way through its useful life....I hauled out yesterday and after changing the oil, I noticed I put about 25 hours on the motor over the course of the 2020 season! At that rate, I will be dead and gone before the boat needs to be repowered

Hopefully some diesel mechanics or experts will chime in.

Greg

Greg, did your 322 come with the engine hour meter? Mine did not, and at this point I don't think it's worth adding one...

Mickey D

Benny17441 · Nov 2, 2020

smokey73 said:
That being said, there is no reason a non-turbo version should not last just as long and there is no potential for turbo failure.

The non-turbo version should last longer. Less heat, less stress.

Tally Ho · Nov 2, 2020

Mickstr said:
Greg, did your 322 come with the engine hour meter? Mine did not, and at this point I don't think it's worth adding one...

Mickey D

Mine has one mounted in the lazzerette. I guess I can’t vouch for if it was installed when new or added later...looks like a PO add.

I just started recording my hours each trip...mostly to calculate fuel usage. About 15 minutes out and 15 minutes back in...if I am lucky and the winds hold out...I think I put about 25 hours on it this year (motored back a few times from a few miles out).

Greg

Valiant1 · Nov 2, 2020

in 2001, I remember diesel guru Larry Berlin at Mack Boring in North Jersey, tell my new boat owner class that Yanmar diesels were designed for 10,000 hours. So 20 years later, my 4JH3E has 5707 hours. Along the way, I've replaced: water hoses & hose clamps, 5 exhaust elbows, 6 drive belts, coolant flushes, oil press sending unit, retorqued cylinder head bolts, adjusted valves and replacrd valve cover gaskets, cleaned Heat Exchanger, replaced fuel injection pipes, a dozen impellers and dozens of oil and fuel filters. She's still running strong but expect raw water and fresh water pumps will go sooner than later...

jssailem · Nov 3, 2020

@Andersonelli
I would not have any concern about an engine with only 2000hrs. It probably has not yet been broken in. It is like Grandmama's car that has been in the garage and only driven a couple of miles to church on Sunday.

I would be more concerned with the sails, the hull, the space in the boat, whether you like the lines. Do you feel the boat will be a good extension of you? Will the boat provide the vehicle to take you to the dreams you have? Will you have the money to keep the boat in a marina? Are you willing to spend the money being asked to have the dreams of boating that you envision?

The engine is just a means to go sailing. You can figure that out.

mermike · Nov 8, 2020

I installed an hour meter so I could keep track of maintenance intervals. The original hours will never be known and aren't needed anyway.

Mickstr said:
Greg, did your 322 come with the engine hour meter? Mine did not, and at this point I don't think it's worth adding one...

Terry Cox · Nov 8, 2020

Our 1991 4JH2-TE has a bit over 2,000 hours with very low maintenance. Strong, no smoke and smooth running. Should be good for another 8,000 plus hours of use. As one poster said, just broken in.