Kad32 engine hours

[phild501]

Bit puzzled, my VP digital engine hours display has been mostly blank for nearly 2 years, however every few months or so the display flickers on for a short while. The thing is I’ve been keeping a manual record of useage and when it appears the display more or less matches my records. Does anyone know how it records time? Also would it be worth fixing/replacing? (appreciate that manual records could look a bit dodgy to a buyer in the future).

Thanks in advance.

 

[Moody]

Kad 32 engine hours

You have the same problem as many of us. These displays are notoriously unreliable, and I have been advised that even if you repair or replace they'll still go again.

The recording starts within the ECU as soon as you turn on the ignition, so even though the display is not working, it is sill recording, hence when it does show itself it matches what you expect to see.

In terms of the future a VP engineer can access the hours via his plug in box, so it doesn't matter if the display is not working.

My own solution was to buy a couple of digital Curtis meters from RS Components (about £15 each) and wire these into the ignition circuit. Having recorded the actual engine hours when I fitted these meters I now have an accurate and reliable method of monitoring hours for log, maintenance, and fuel consumption purposes

When I get round to it I could post some photos.

Neil

 

[jparham]

The unanimous fix recommended on this forum over the years for this is take them out and put them in the airing cupboard at home over winter.
KAD32s don't have ECUs. It is purely the display that 'ingresses humidity' and doesn't display.
Mine use to suffer from this in the winter, but since I put a de-humid on the boat over winter, they work all year round.
A fix could be to do the airing cupboard trick, then take them apart and seal the back of the display with clear silicon sealant (called conformal coating in the trade) but because mine fixed themselves, I didn't bother to explore taking them apart....