922 engine hours. A lot?

[atlowers]

Total beginner. the yamaha 370sti on a 1989 fairline sprint has done 922 hours. Looks immaculate so is this a lot or not bad. just haven`t got a clue. help. I intend to get engine surveyed on whichever boa i buy. but it helps to know

 

[Aardee]

60-odd hours a year sounds fair enough...

 

[trev]

922 hours over sixteen years is nothing - provided the engine has been correctly serviced and has supporting history.
Leisure boat engines tend to be lightly used so far as hours are concerned, but some sports boat engines get a bit of a thrashing.
Very wise to go with the survey.

 

[Greg2]

Look for another fairly recent post on this topic. Hours are rarely an issue but maintenance is. Get the oil analysed if in doubt - cheap and could save you a packet.

 

[Its_Only_Money]

1989 Sprint would have most likley had a petrol V6 or V8 fitted so: the engine isn´t 16 years old and 922hrs is low for a diesel - it has probably been used fairly frequently - which is good (much better than rotting away unused).

Ask the owner when it was installed, how old the engine is and how many hours it has put on since installation in the Sprint. That will give you a better picture.

 

[Magnum]

Absolutely nothing. We've done 100 hours since end of July.

Regular servicing is far more important.

 

[duncan]

wonder if it's an owner we know well on here (positive comment)............

 

[Its_Only_Money]

Oh I think so, a solitary sort of chap as far as I remember.....

 

[Solitaire]

I'm saying nothing - but then you know I service every 100 hours and that I use the boat well. -

 

[Solitaire]

And you know the boat (and me) better than most. As it happens, I was speaking to someone yesterday and my engine is good for at least 3000 hours B4 any major work MAY need doing. It's based on a Toyota bus engine - built like a brick outhouse and get serviced every 100 hours, as does the outdrive. Which usually means twice a year.

 

[ari]

I'd add a nought onto that personally.

To use your bus analogy, if a bus runs every day for 12 hours a day, then 3,000 hours will see it to nine months old. Can't imagine many buses needing major engine work in under a year. 10 years maybe, but probably not even then.

As I've said before, people querying whether one boat is better cos it's got 100 hours versus another with 300 hours (or even 1,000 hours) is a bit like someone preferring one car over another cos it's got 300 miles not 600. At these levels it really is irrelevent. How the boat has been maintained (and who by) is far more important.

 

[Its_Only_Money]

[ QUOTE ]
To use your bus analogy, if a bus runs every day for 12 hours a day, then 3,000 hours will see it to nine months old. Can't imagine many buses needing major engine work in under a year. 10 years maybe, but probably not even then.

[/ QUOTE ]

What you say doesn't take account of the duty cycle being different, at Solitaires cruising speed he is probably using 60% of the available output, and that torque output is required for all of that time, more to get over the hump and start planing. At a buses cruising speed it probably uses 15-20% of its output with a short burst of higher torque to pull away and a longer period of idle at each stop.

Consequently ANY engine will be worked harder in a boat than its car/bus/lorry equivalent, hence engine hour comparisons just can't be made on a like-for-like basis.

 

[Solitaire]

[ QUOTE ]
To use your bus analogy

[/ QUOTE ]

I didn't draw an analogy - simple stated that the engine is based on a Toyota bus engine!!

 

[Talbot]

Take the bus analogy further, it will spend a lot of time idling in jams and at the bus station etc, whereas a boat engine will normally be running under load (unless you run it just to charge the battery) A diesel engine has much less wear if it is running at a constant speed under some load, so should last longer if looked after than an engine in a bus.

The real clue is the "looked after" bit. A diesel engine needs clean oil to work properly, thus frequent changes of engine oil and filter are essential to its longevity.

 

[Solitaire]

That's why it's done religiously! Been there, done that, got the Tshirt /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[atlowers]

I guess 922hours is fine then.

 

[mercman]

If properly maintained i pulled one of these units apart to decoke the cylinder head and the internals were mint. This had done nearly 2000 hrs and regularly maintained. The hydra drive box is also one of the best in the market. My mate @ BBMS is the man to talk to on these. He the local know-it for Yamaha. Parts always in stock and good for a haggle.

 

[msimms]

>> If properly maintained <<

On a diesel is there much more to do than change the oil every 100 hours and the belts and fuel filter during winter layup? I guess tappets perhaps need adjusting once in a while as per manufacturer specs. Can't think of much more - am I missing something?

 

[Solitaire]

[ QUOTE ]
My mate @ BBMS is the man to talk to on these. He the local know-it for Yamaha. Parts always in stock and good for a haggle.

[/ QUOTE ]

You mean my mate Bill!! He fitted it and maintains it. It's also got his speacial leg cooling device fitted. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif Draws water up thru the leg and circualtes around upper gear box - keeps it all nice and cool.

 

[Solitaire]

[ QUOTE ]
during winter layup?

[/ QUOTE ]

Winter layup? What's that? No, I keep the boat running all year round. Winter is a great time for boating. Particularly in the Solent; all the "namby pambies" have gone home and taken their boats out 'cause its "to cold" so its a real joy to be out. You can get sunny, crisp days and mirror seas just as much as you can get "intersting" seas to play on. I have a saying, it's never the weather only the clothes you wear!

The ONLY reason I'm selling Solitaire is that I need to buy a rib to use both for pleasure and teaching. I love the boat and am very sad about having to move on, but needs must as the devil drives. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif