Cost risk of older diesel engined boat?

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Koops

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I’m after a sports cruiser about 30’ long and twin diesels, something like a Fairline Targa 29. I’m recently retired and beyond the boat purchase cost and annual fees, I won’t have much money left over for big repairs. My budget means I’m looking at boats around year 2000. I’m nervous about engine repair cost. A few thousand would be ok but not say £20k. If engines have been properly maintained annually, what are the chances of expensive repairs being needed? A possibility is going for a single engine boat but I would like to goto Scilly Isles and Channel Islands, and I’m not sure thats a good idea.
 
If you're looking at T29's then it'll either be twin AD31's or KAD32's. The latter has a supercharger and some additional electronics. It's not unheard of for a supercharger to fail so you could be facing a £5k or so bill if it does.

The likelihood of a major engine failure requiring a rebuild is slim. I'd have thought you could pick up a second hand KAD32 for under £10k if a partial engine rebuild isn't feasible. Be warned though, a major issue in the channel Islands or Scillies will add additional cost and hassle.

A more likely issue is the failure of an outdrive. You should be able to get a recon drive for under £5k.

As well as regular costs, you also need to factor in new covers every 5-10 years and money for lots of other things that break on boats (pumps, water heaters, etc).

All of the above is a reason why I part own our Targa 34 in the Med. All costs are shared three ways.
 
I write the hours logged into the boat log on every trip, and the servicing work to engines always records the engine hours on the invoices. So your target boat might have a maintenance and usage record trail that you can piece together.

As Momac says, well used and properly maintained is the key. Also unless you intend only to use on rivers, I'd be wary of buying a boat that's spent its life on rivers or canals running at tickover. Plenty of people found out on their coastal delivery voyage that their recently purchased riverboat has never spent any time at all at higher cruising speeds.
 
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I keep a diary / log of all trips and a note of the hours at annual oil change . I record all lift outs and work done.
So anyone could see the general pattern of use and servicing.
I do keep my boat on the river and fast salty water trips are only a few times a year. One advantage of keeping a boat on fresh water is a general lack of corrosion.
 
Koops said:
Makes sense, but how to know unless an engine hours log has been kept?
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I think some sort of log is valuable when it comes to sell. I don't think every hour has to be logged.
Although I must admit I had very little that came with the only two boats I have owned.
 
I agree that a single engine is cheaper to run and repair.....I also agree that a single outboard is the best way to limit your outlay....because worse case scenario is you can replace the whole outboard with a second hand replacement....and the drive train is included free and the cost of removing the old engine and replacing it is minimal
 
Bouba said:
I agree that a single engine is cheaper to run and repair.....I also agree that a single outboard is the best way to limit your outlay....because worse case scenario is you can replace the whole outboard with a second hand replacement....and the drive train is included free and the cost of removing the old engine and replacing it is minimal
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£1/L vs £1.70/L is a big incentive for diesel engine though
 
Koops said:
I’m after a sports cruiser about 30’ long and twin diesels, something like a Fairline Targa 29. I’m recently retired and beyond the boat purchase cost and annual fees, I won’t have much money left over for big repairs. My budget means I’m looking at boats around year 2000. I’m nervous about engine repair cost. A few thousand would be ok but not say £20k. If engines have been properly maintained annually, what are the chances of expensive repairs being needed? A possibility is going for a single engine boat but I would like to goto Scilly Isles and Channel Islands, and I’m not sure thats a good idea.
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I know of a very nice 30 I can vouch the engines are good , drop me a pm
 
Koops said:
I’m after a sports cruiser about 30’ long and twin diesels, something like a Fairline Targa 29. I’m recently retired and beyond the boat purchase cost and annual fees, I won’t have much money left over for big repairs. My budget means I’m looking at boats around year 2000. I’m nervous about engine repair cost. A few thousand would be ok but not say £20k. If engines have been properly maintained annually, what are the chances of expensive repairs being needed? A possibility is going for a single engine boat but I would like to goto Scilly Isles and Channel Islands, and I’m not sure thats a good idea.
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Buy a newer single engine boat, something like a Bavaria S29 or Jeanneau Leader 805.

You more than halve your risk of expensive engine repairs (half because exactly half the components, plus a bit for it being a newer boat), you halve the engine servicing costs and you significantly reduce fuel costs (because you are only running one admittedly bigger engine, only dragging one outdrive through the water, are pushing less weight and chances are that on the same budget, you might get a much more modern and efficient D4 instead of an old KAD engine).

You might not want to go as far, but I bet you'll be boating for a whole lot longer.
 
I have a thirtyish footer that just about bankrupts me....and it’s single engine....an extra engine would send me over the edge. In France it also significantly increases your annual tax considerably
 
Bouba said:
I have a thirtyish footer that just about bankrupts me....and it’s single engine....an extra engine would send me over the edge. In France it also significantly increases your annual tax considerably
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Your Cummins dealer is also surely driving around in a brand new Ferrari
 
jakew009 said:
Your Cummins dealer is also surely driving around in a brand new Ferrari
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Absolutely....Cummins used to have reasonably priced spares....then they decided that they can increase their profits by following the Volvo business model
 
Look at the engine hours, then at the engine itself, and the boat in general.

If the boat has seen decent annual usage, the engine is clean and so is the engine space, all equipment is working and the wiring isn't a chaotic mess, plus a general absence or cable ties/duct tape.

this goes a long way indicating if the boat has been used and well cared for, or if previous owner was too lazy/cheap to properly fix or have fixed any issues.
that said, a good owner would have kept pretty much all receipts of service and maintenance for boat, equipment and engine.

Also, with your lack of budget, Ill also pile in saying a single engine would be preferred.
 
Just to combine information from other threads....if you are looking to save money by working on your boat yourself....make sure that you are in a yard that allows it
 
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