Fischer Panda 8 mini 7Kw gen set

[Pincoya]

My gen set has failed & according to the workshop, mostly as a result of poor design causing corrosion and blockages.

This is what I received from the workshop after removing the gen set from the boat:

First: the engine mounting bolt underneath where the salt water had been leaking tore out of its rubber bush, so one new rubber engine mount needed.

Second: the exhaust mixing elbow upon inspection: the flange was found to be cracked, and it was near enough impossible to remove the mixing elbow due to water that had got between the mounting studs and the elbow. One stud sheared off – but the other 3 came out ok. Consequently you need a new exhaust mixing elbow. Poor, poor design. Suggest one made here in stainless instead of cast aluminum.

Third: The cooling block on the side of the motor: not had a chance to inspect the threads yet but presume they all need thread inserts. The block is actually in good condition but when I got it off I found the lower hose connection to be completely blocked with salt. Looking into the ports where the block goes there is a lot of salt build up. If you agree I will remove the motor end plate to be able to see the condition of the cooling spaces inside.

When the engine is stopped, raw water sits inside the cooling spaces on the motor. It cannot drain out. It is a very, very poor design. If this is my boat I would seriously think about replacing this genset.

Fourth: The heat exchanger: after cleaning up looks to be in good condition and just needs the internal parts cleaning up.

Overall: The generator has suffered badly from corrosion. All the pipe connections, ie hose barbs, into the electric motor cooling block, into the heat exchanger, into the exhaust manifold/header tank are not screwed in. They are epoxied into place. This is not very satisfactory. In the past I have had to try and re-epoxy some of these fittings in place with only limited success.

I do not want to start a campaign here for or against Fischer Panda and this gen set comes with my new (to me) boat so I have no personal experience. That is what I am looking for now.

Does anyone have any relevant experience with this model gen set failing they would be willing to share with me.

PM me if you would rather not post publicly. Like I said, it is information and experience I need not a war.

Paul

 

[Anonymous]

Is this the model with fresh water cooling or raw water cooling (is there a 'radiator' header tank with pressure cap?) . I am just a bit puzzled about the 'heat exchanger' comment. In my fresh water cooled FP the Kubota engine is cooled by fresh water while the alternator is cooled by raw. The alternator housing is actually the sacrificial anode and needs to be checked every couple of years. 'Corrosion' of that is perfectly normal, it's what's supposed to happen.

Some of the FPs are (were?) completely raw water cooled and there have been real problems....search back on ybw using google for the horror stories.

How old is yours and how many hours has it run?

 

[mocruising]

I also have a FP 8 with Kubota engine that is fresh water cooled with a heat exchanger. I have 2000 hrs up until now but have had few problems. Last year the engine kept shutting down due to the overheat sensor being tripped (Activated). All the cooling system was cleaned out both SW and FW and all the pipework plus heat exchanger cleaned the problem persisted but it turned out to be a faulty sensor.

I will replace the unit next year prior to setting off accross the pond. But what to replace it with. Any suggestions.

 

[jeremyshaw]

Unfortunately FP does have something of a poor rep. A friend has had three major rebuilds on his in the last 4 years. Cant' remember the first but the second was cracked cylinder head and right now he's had to pull it in Providencia to rebuild after bypass problems.

He recently wrote: " The
worn piston was pretty interesting looking. The top groove for
a piston ring had one side that could fit two rings in so there was quite a
bit of play in that ring as that piston slid up and down. This caused it to
spin fairly easily and thus allowed it to line up with the gaps on the other
rings on down the piston. When these lined up gasses could shoot out from
around the cylinder wall and not push the cylinder evenly I suppose. This
would cause the engine to have to work harder to keep running and often
would falter. The falters were probably playing havoc with my voltage and
capacitors I would assume. Then that would tell the voltage regulation to
increase and adjust and this would wear out that small motor. I hope I'm
done analyzing this beast.

Had a nice uneventful 2 hour run yesterday and so I'm gonna claim that the
rebuild was the answer to an underlying problem I've had in that genset for
at least two years, if not longer.

 

[Pincoya]

Thanks for the replies so far. I am quite surprised that there aren't more, given the number of people whom I encounter expressing negative views about Fischer Panda gen sets.

Instinctively I am leaning towards replacing the generator with a different manufacturer's product. Repairing what I have would seem to invite similar build up of saltwater induced blockages further down the line. The fact that these generators (apart from the engine) are technologically quite advanced and seem to be beyond many technicians in the field is also a motivating factor.

I find it quite strange that few owners of Fischer Panda gen sets speak publicly about them, apart from a few well known and very vociferous posters. For almost any other product I have a quick google search brings merits and demerits and lots of practical experience from other owners. With Fischer panda a simlar search brings almost exclusively manufacturer's or dealers material only.

Paul

 

[Anonymous]

Probably people are not watching today....there are loads of us here with FPs and many with bad experience. Fortunately, my experience so far is good. Fingers crossed. The FP engineering in mine -- cableforms to Mil standard, lovely precision engineered servos, worms, all in 316. The one thing that detractors always say -- corrosion. Terrible shame as the rest of the kit is great and motors don't come any better than Kubota.

 

[david_bagshaw]

dont know about fisher p,but the 3 cyl Kubota engine that is fitted to a similar sized Onan has been an excellent piece of kit. Air cooled a/c generator, perhaps these seawater cooled generators are a step too far. They are comact though.