I am looking at an 1989 Peterborough Constellation 19.5' Cuddy with a 185 hp
4.3 L Merc I/O as my first used boat. Seems well maintained and in great
condition. If I decide to go with this boat, I will certainly have a
mechanic at the local marina do an inspection - however my question is, with
726 hours on the engine, is that a lot?? And how many hours from now on
average can I expect to need some major repairs/maintenance. Carburator and
outdrive are new.

I'd say that if the mechanic is ... competent, experienced, takes the time,
and is honest ... he can tell you pretty much what to expect from the
engine. For example, a look at the spark plugs, the oil, a compression test,
and a good ear ... will tell a lot about the engine condition. And a visual
for say oil leaks will tell if some regasketing (e.g intake manifold gasket)
is required. My opinion, an engine if not abused will last a long long time.


"JG Wall" wrote in message
...
I am looking at an 1989 Peterborough Constellation 19.5' Cuddy with a 185
hp
4.3 L Merc I/O as my first used boat. Seems well maintained and in great
condition. If I decide to go with this boat, I will certainly have a
mechanic at the local marina do an inspection - however my question is,
with
726 hours on the engine, is that a lot?? And how many hours from now on
average can I expect to need some major repairs/maintenance. Carburator
and
outdrive are new.

"JG Wall" wrote in message
...
I am looking at an 1989 Peterborough Constellation 19.5' Cuddy with a 185
hp
4.3 L Merc I/O as my first used boat. Seems well maintained and in great
condition. If I decide to go with this boat, I will certainly have a
mechanic at the local marina do an inspection - however my question is,
with
726 hours on the engine, is that a lot?? And how many hours from now on
average can I expect to need some major repairs/maintenance. Carburator
and
outdrive are new.


One thing broken and not immediatly evident on my first boat was the
charging system. The altenator was not puting out any voltage. It was
not immediatly noticable because the battery in the boat had a full charge
(probably from a home charger). A good mechanic might check that
anyway.

I wonder if there is any rough rule of thumb where X hours on a
boat engine could be considered like some number of miles
on a car. Obviously miles or hours only tell a small part of the story
because a car/boat may have different levels of quality to begin
with and may be used, abused, or maintained differently.

My general advise - go for a trial, have a boat person & mechanic
look at it and try to chat with the seller long enough to get a feel
for their level of honestly & give them a change to speak for a while
where any little problems might spill out of them.

Good Luck.

On Sat, 08 May 2004 20:32:13 +0000, JG Wall wrote:

I am looking at an 1989 Peterborough Constellation 19.5' Cuddy with a 185 hp 4.3
L Merc I/O as my first used boat. Seems well maintained and in great condition.
If I decide to go with this boat, I will certainly have a mechanic at the local
marina do an inspection - however my question is, with 726 hours on the engine,
is that a lot?? And how many hours from now on average can I expect to need some
major repairs/maintenance. Carburator and outdrive are new.

Under 800 is not a lot of hrs for that engine. We have the same (non-marinized)
engine in our van, and with 225,000Kms, barely broken in.

Have the compression checked, look for water in oil, blue or white smoke when
running, etc. If this checks out, all should be well. At most you may have to
replace manifolds, etc., especially if it's "raw-water cooled".

Sounds like a sweet boat!

Lloyd Sumpter
"Far Cove" Catalina 36