CAT 3116 - 300hp comments?

tico said:
Without wishing to hijack an earlier thread, any comments on these? esp in a 38" flybridge
Any horror stories?
TIA
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Oh yes , French built engine , they had soft engine block issue , some done under warranty . Complex valve train requires dealer only tools to set up valves and injection timing as there a unit injector, coolers on the small side .
Problems with header tank that corrodes out giving overheat issues, bad design Johnson pump, bad design intercooler .


Plenty on here about them .
 
Is there ever any good news when someone on here asks about an engine ? Worry’s me now as to what option to go for next.
 
Boat2016 said:
Is there ever any good news when someone on here asks about an engine ? Worry’s me now as to what option to go for next.
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About 15 Years ago a boat owners wife asked me what were the best engines made and what should they buy next , I’m still thinking of an answer .
 
thanks Paul !! glad I read this post !!! - mine are 350 hp and I'll be listening foe every little noise now !!
 
volvopaul said:
About 15 Years ago a boat owners wife asked me what were the best engines made and what should they buy next , I’m still thinking of an answer .
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For me there's no such thing as a bad engine but there's plenty of manufacturers/dealers who provide bad support (or none at all)
 
Ok all the boats I have been looking at had twin Tamd72 and I have been put off with good advise to do so.

Now I am spuriously looking to buy a single engine 1999 caterpillar 3116 tad so what do I look for in a sea(lake) trIl?

Thanks
 
volvopaul said:
About 15 Years ago a boat owners wife asked me what were the best engines made and what should they buy next , I’m still thinking of an answer .
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I think the KAD4x series are good engines. It's everything that's bolted to it that lets it down(turbos, superchargers, coolers and of course outdrives)! If you could find a KAMD4x that's had all the ancillaries replaced it should be a reliable for at least a year or two!
 
mainshiptom said:
Ok all the boats I have been looking at had twin Tamd72 and I have been put off with good advise to do so.

Now I am spuriously looking to buy a single engine 1999 caterpillar 3116 tad so what do I look for in a sea(lake) trIl?

Thanks
Click to expand...

There was a soft block issue which in most cases I’m told was sorted under warranty by Caterpillar , not sure if it was because it’s a French built engine , there must have been some issue in the casting process.

The coolers give trouble with corrosion , there is a plate in the header tank that diverts coolant evenly over the stack tubes which corrodes , this then allows the engine to overhear . Over the years I’ve worked on many , the sea water pumps are Sherwood which leak eventually, the intercoolers block causing the engine to under perform , special tools are required to set valve lash and unit injectors , I’m told only the dealer can do this . What I do find is that they are a cleaner burning engine in some cases , I’ve not seen many boats with soot on the transom , caterpillar only sell them in matched pairs after they have been dynoed at the factory , they leave in pairs witching 1hp of each other .
 
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volvopaul said:
There was a soft block issue which in most cases I’m told was sorted under warranty by Caterpillar , not sure if it was because it’s a French built engine , there must have been some issue in the casting process.

The coolers give trouble with corrosion , there is a plate in the header tank that diverts coolant evenly over the stack tubes which corrodes , this then allows the engine to overhear . Over the years I’ve worked on many , the sea water pumps are Sherwood which leak eventually, the intercoolers block causing the engine to under perform , special tools are required to set valve lash and unit injectors , I’m told only the dealer can do this . What I do find is that they are a cleaner burning engine in some cases , I’ve not seen many boats with soot on the transom , caterpillar only sell them in matched pairs after they have been dynoed at the factory , they leave in pairs witching 1hp of each other .
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as you know Paul mine are 1999 engines, is it safe to assume any soft block issues would have made themselves apparent by now even on a 260 hour use ?
 
timv said:
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as you know Paul mine are 1999 engines, is it safe to assume any soft block issues would have made themselves apparent by now even on a 260 hour use ?
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Yes your ok mate , it was a problem that showed up relatively after birth shall we say .
 
Boat2016 said:
So very unlikely to be an issue this far in ? Perhaps worrying about nothing if boat is coming up for 20 years old ?
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No crystal ball unfortunately so no it can happen at any time . Cat dealt with it in the early days . I doubt they would give good will on a 20 year old engine .
 
volvopaul said:
No crystal ball unfortunately so no it can happen at any time . Cat dealt with it in the early days . I doubt they would give good will on a 20 year old engine .
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So would hope the ‘good will’ has already been given which would be highly likely on dealer maintained engines, if you’ve bypassed the dealer network I guess it could easily be missed.
 
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