New Engine Selection

[Tranona]

Slowtrack - thanks for that link. Pretty scary stories of MDI failures there. I did read that some of the issues may be mitigated by relocating the MDI off of the engine. That wouldn't, however explain some of the many MDI failures detailed in the link.

My local Beta dealer is pulling together a quote as we speak.

Reality check here! Note that the thread is 4 years old, and right in the period when the units were giving problems (2015/6), mainly located in the states (but also Australia at the time as well) and made worse by there being a shortage of the units which P*****d people off because there were not enough for replacements. There was nowhere near the same level of failures here - at least judging by the then very vocal forums like this one.

Remember there had been 10 years of full production preceding the onset of failures and 4 years since. This is not to say they did not happen, but just to put the issue into perspective and there is no reason why a new 2022 engine should not be as good and reliable as you would expect.

 

[Slowtack]

The problems only started when they switched the MDI from relays to solid state and my 3 faulty units all date from 2016 onwards.
So far so good with my box no. 4 but it has not had many hours in service. ......hopefully the issues have been addressed now but the advice I received from the VP agent does not inspire confidence in the product.
As I stated, the mechanical product is not at issue and it is surprising that VP have allowed an otherwise quality product to be undermined by repeat failures of the control boxes across a range of engine sizes.
The matter of user confidence remains an issue for customers who experienced repeat failures and depend on these engines performing reliably when needed.

 

[Tranona]

The problems only started when they switched the MDI from relays to solid state and my 3 faulty units all date from 2016 onwards.
So far so good with my box no. 4 but it has not had many hours in service. ......hopefully the issues have been addressed now but the advice I received from the VP agent does not inspire confidence in the product.
As I stated, the mechanical product is not at issue and it is surprising that VP have allowed an otherwise quality product to be undermined by repeat failures of the control boxes across a range of engine sizes.
The matter of user confidence remains an issue for customers who experienced repeat failures and depend on these engines performing reliably when needed.

The fact remains that the number of failures seems to be extremely small in relation to the number of units sold and while I can appreciate those that have suffered failures may lack confidence there is still the silent majority that are very satisfied with their engines.

 

[pandos]

Has the OP made any attempt to have the gearbox bits sorted by a non marine gearbox specialist.

My friend had his Volvo gearbox repaired by a workshop that deals in car van and machinery gearboxes at non marine costs.

In the past I had gearboxes in diggers and dumpers sorted by machine shops that could obtain suitable gears which just needed to be bored and have key ways cut...

 

[Concerto]

Returning to the comment about electric power, my brother recently berthed alongside an Arcadia in Fox's marina. It was only 2 years old and the owner had specified it to be an all electric boat. Well charging the batteries proved to be a big problem and it was there for a diesel generator to be fitted for battery charging.

 

[Slowtack]

The fact remains that the number of failures seems to be extremely small in relation to the number of units sold and while I can appreciate those that have suffered failures may lack confidence there is still the silent majority that are very satisfied with their engines.

Believe what you wish and I hope you are right.
I am merely relating my experience and that of others that I have seen.
A silent majority is of course impossible to quantify.

 

[Tranona]

A silent majority is of course impossible to quantify.

That is why it tends to get ignored and the tiny minority drive the narrative. Your own experience and the others you have seen is a tiny number and is in no way indicative of the tens of thousands of these engines in service.

It is not just about faults on engines, but on many other issues, particularly on these forums where the comparatively rare is touted as the norm. It is not a question of "belief" but of statistics. The vast majority of D1 and 2 series engines do not have problems with the MDI and give fine service. Unfortunately not only does nobody count them, but they do not post on forums about their complete satisfaction with their engines. Same with Volvo dealers - they only see and comment on the problems not on the mass of customers who do not have problems.

In the wider society you see the same , for example the letter writers to the press who complain that they cannot book their booster jabs, ignoring the fact that anywhere between 350k and 500k have no problems every day! This is not to dismiss the problems they experience, nor ignore ways of resolving them, just putting it into perspective.

 

[Slowtack]

Not forgetting the silent majority claims of Nixon, Trump and Carrie Lam!
However, in the interest of fairness and clarity, if my present MDI is still functioning properly this time next year I will be very happy to confirm same on here.

 

[SailingEd]

Slowtrack - thanks for that link. Pretty scary stories of MDI failures there. I did read that some of the issues may be mitigated by relocating the MDI off of the engine. That wouldn't, however explain some of the many MDI failures detailed in the link.

My local Beta dealer is pulling together a quote as we speak.

just to add my 2 cents on volvo penta and the MDI fiasco

i had a D1-20 with the MDI failure (the previous owner re-engined it 6 months before i bought it), all it did was it prevented the stop/start button at the helm from operating it was hardly a hardship to pull the yellow lever inside to stop the engine, or quickly put 12v on the starter solenoid thus completely bypassing the MDI, the engine don't even need the MDI to run if your in a pinch, unplug it and fire the solenoid and voila.. engine running.

i entered my serial number on the website and the MDI was replaced under warranty / recall anyway with zero cost to me, if anything i learnt more about the engine because it failed, and like i say it will happily run without it so there was really no need for people to panic.

so over all my opinion is its a simple solid economical & reliable engine.

I have no experience with beta so i have no comparison, but like i say i had the VP for 6 years of simple sailing, and i had the upmost confidence it would start 1st time without even putting any throttle on it, thats more than i can say about some cars i've owned in the past!

if your buying new you can usually haggle a 5 year warranty anyway.

my new boat has a VP too so it obviously didnt bother me that much.

 

[SailingEd]

Returning to the comment about electric power, my brother recently berthed alongside an Arcadia in Fox's marina. It was only 2 years old and the owner had specified it to be an all electric boat. Well charging the batteries proved to be a big problem and it was there for a diesel generator to be fitted for battery charging.

the BMW i3 REX has a similar set up, albeit with a petrol generator, its not a terrible idea as you would need a much smaller engine to generate the electric required to make those passages where you really need the engine and cant do it on electric alone. the rest can be done with some careful charging solutions and battery only, and maybe would cut your fossil fuel usage overall.

in comparison the bmw is a 170bhp car with a 0.6l petrol generator not to be confused with an engine as its not connected to the drive train.

but charging a 33kw battery from a 3pin plug is a good 12 hour affair, and it certainly will test your electrical wiring and certainly the marinas wiring which often trips if you put the heater and the kettle on together!

and again the expense... electric motor + batteries AND an engine/generator... (and its no normal generator btw, these things are usually 22kw generators! not your average 3kw peak screwfix special)

but like i say if you have a sail boat you already have those big flappy white things to use, you know, to avoid using diesel anyway, and the iron lump is there for auxiliary use anyway, much like a generator would be used!