I'm looking at a boat purchase. The boat has two large 200 KW 1400rpm
(cruising speed) diesels with 3000 hours on each. The problem I see is
that they have not been used at all for almost three years. The owner
claims the engines were turned manually, that he looked after them and
that they are just fine. The boat has been out of the water for about
half the time of engine disuse. What I've heard (but I'm no
professional) is that you need to run diesels for at least a number of
hours per week to keep them in good shape. So, is it still even worth
the expense of sending over an engine professional to check out these
engines, or should I forget about it? Your advice/insight is
appreciated!

G Q wrote:

So, is it still even worth the expense of sending over
an engine professional to check out these engines, ...?

Of course it is as long as the boat itself is worth your attention.

Rick

G Q wrote:

I'm looking at a boat purchase. The boat has two large 200 KW 1400rpm
(cruising speed) diesels with 3000 hours on each. The problem I see is
that they have not been used at all for almost three years.

That may or may not be a problem.

The owner
claims the engines were turned manually, that he looked after them and
that they are just fine.

OK, that's all to the good... but do you suspect that owner/seller may
tell a tiny fib just to get his hands on your money (and it seems likely
to be a large sum)?


The boat has been out of the water for about
half the time of engine disuse. What I've heard (but I'm no
professional) is that you need to run diesels for at least a number of
hours per week to keep them in good shape. So, is it still even worth
the expense of sending over an engine professional to check out these
engines, or should I forget about it? Your advice/insight is
appreciated!

The first step would be to see if the engines can be turned over, with
appropriate intermediate steps, and check how well they run. If the boat
is still out of the water, that could present some difficulty too.

If the engines can be turned over, then the next step short of getting an
engine survey is to get an oil analysis. Don't forget the transmissions
too.

But if you're proceeding seriously towards purchase, then YES get an
engine survey, ti is very much worth the money.

Fair Skies
Doug King

I'll second Doug's remarks with one question. He suggests an oil
analysis after the engines have been run. I would take the oil
samples first thing and send them off -- it's relatively cheap and
will tell you a number of things.

Also, it depends a lot on what the engines are. A common, relatively
modern engine (Cat 3406, for example) can be top end rebuilt for
roughly US$1,000 per cylinder. Spend more money and you can fix
almost anything that might be wrong. On the other hand, an old or
scarce engine may be expensive to rebuild because parts are scarce and
therefore pricey.

Also, look around the engine room. Is it neat? Well lighted? Clean?
Rusty? All of these things tell you something about the owner and his
attitude toward machinery. Look at the oil. Diesel engine oil goes
black very quickly after changing, so don't worry if it's black, but
if it looks like new, it probably is, which suggests that the owner
changed the oil after the last use. This is good and bad -- good
because it's the right thing to do. Bad because your oil analysis is
unlikely to tell you anything.

Jim Woodward
www.mvFintry.com

DSK wrote in message ...
G Q wrote:

I'm looking at a boat purchase. The boat has two large 200 KW 1400rpm
(cruising speed) diesels with 3000 hours on each. The problem I see is
that they have not been used at all for almost three years.

That may or may not be a problem.

The owner
claims the engines were turned manually, that he looked after them and
that they are just fine.

OK, that's all to the good... but do you suspect that owner/seller may
tell a tiny fib just to get his hands on your money (and it seems likely
to be a large sum)?


The boat has been out of the water for about
half the time of engine disuse. What I've heard (but I'm no
professional) is that you need to run diesels for at least a number of
hours per week to keep them in good shape. So, is it still even worth
the expense of sending over an engine professional to check out these
engines, or should I forget about it? Your advice/insight is
appreciated!

The first step would be to see if the engines can be turned over, with
appropriate intermediate steps, and check how well they run. If the boat
is still out of the water, that could present some difficulty too.

If the engines can be turned over, then the next step short of getting an
engine survey is to get an oil analysis. Don't forget the transmissions
too.

But if you're proceeding seriously towards purchase, then YES get an
engine survey, ti is very much worth the money.

Fair Skies
Doug King

(Jim Woodward) wrote in message . com...
I'll second Doug's remarks with one question. He suggests an oil
analysis after the engines have been run. I would take the oil
samples first thing and send them off -- it's relatively cheap and
will tell you a number of things.

Also, it depends a lot on what the engines are. A common, relatively
modern engine (Cat 3406, for example) can be top end rebuilt for
roughly US$1,000 per cylinder. Spend more money and you can fix
almost anything that might be wrong. On the other hand, an old or
scarce engine may be expensive to rebuild because parts are scarce and
therefore pricey.

Also, look around the engine room. Is it neat? Well lighted? Clean?
Rusty? All of these things tell you something about the owner and his
attitude toward machinery. Look at the oil. Diesel engine oil goes
black very quickly after changing, so don't worry if it's black, but
if it looks like new, it probably is, which suggests that the owner
changed the oil after the last use. This is good and bad -- good
because it's the right thing to do. Bad because your oil analysis is
unlikely to tell you anything.

Jim Woodward
www.mvFintry.com

DSK wrote in message ...
G Q wrote:

I'm looking at a boat purchase. The boat has two large 200 KW 1400rpm
(cruising speed) diesels with 3000 hours on each. The problem I see is
that they have not been used at all for almost three years.

That may or may not be a problem.

The owner
claims the engines were turned manually, that he looked after them and
that they are just fine.

OK, that's all to the good... but do you suspect that owner/seller may
tell a tiny fib just to get his hands on your money (and it seems likely
to be a large sum)?


The boat has been out of the water for about
half the time of engine disuse. What I've heard (but I'm no
professional) is that you need to run diesels for at least a number of
hours per week to keep them in good shape. So, is it still even worth
the expense of sending over an engine professional to check out these
engines, or should I forget about it? Your advice/insight is
appreciated!

The first step would be to see if the engines can be turned over, with
appropriate intermediate steps, and check how well they run. If the boat
is still out of the water, that could present some difficulty too.

If the engines can be turned over, then the next step short of getting an
engine survey is to get an oil analysis. Don't forget the transmissions
too.

But if you're proceeding seriously towards purchase, then YES get an
engine survey, ti is very much worth the money.

Fair Skies
Doug King



Thanks guys for the great info. Actually, Doug, I was just trying to
find out if an unused diesel that had not been used for three years
COULD still be any good at all. I'm not ready to take the seller's
word on it no matter what he claims.

Actually the engines are less than 10 years old. I guess I should hope
the oil hasn't been changed the day before I arrive...

As for the top-end rebuild, is that something that can typically
restore a diesel that was kept out of service in less than ideal
conditions? I suppose that could lead to more damage than that? Of
course even 1000/cylinder would still mean 12K in this case but then
the cost could be overseen.

Thanks again

G Q wrote:


Thanks guys for the great info. Actually, Doug, I was just trying to
find out if an unused diesel that had not been used for three years
COULD still be any good at all.

Oh sure.


Actually the engines are less than 10 years old. I guess I should hope
the oil hasn't been changed the day before I arrive...

If you take a cold oil sample and a hot oil sample, as Jim W suggests, then the results will reveal the oil change.
It's difficult (or impossible) to fool a good analysis tech.

Fair Skies, Doug King