Replacement for Volvo Penta 2003

[ditchcrawler]

I have a 1984 2003 engine that was rebuilt completely in 1999/2000.In 1999 the cylinder head was removed,the valveseats machined,valves lapped in and rebuilt including injectors reconditioned,fuel pump rebuilt.This cost £909. In 2000 the engine was taken out and the engine was rebuilt with engine rebored and oversized pistons fitted,new main bearing kit,big end,cam bushes,oil pump,etc,new engine mounts,engine resprayed and refitted.This lot cost £2526.I have all the invoices from the previous owner.In 2005 the gearbox splines were done and including a service this was £619.This was good news for me when I bought the boat as the engineer said that I have an engine that will last many years yet.It does go to show how much you can spend though and for the cost ten years ago it would probably been better to have had a new engine.As others have said you may need a new propshaft and propellor etc as the 2003 is a left hand drive.

 

[olam]

2003t

I have a 2003t in my boat,1989 rebuilt in 2001 by last owner.Only problem since then
was a corroded oil cooler.
Not the quietest engine but always starts and if its ever not happy then always
because of lack of care from me.
I have got a full spare just in case.

 

[Tranona]

I have a 2003t in my boat,1989 rebuilt in 2001 by last owner.Only problem since then
was a corroded oil cooler.
Not the quietest engine but always starts and if its ever not happy then always
because of lack of care from me.
I have got a full spare just in case.

The corroded oil cooler is one of the weak points. It is hidden and can rupture leading to loss of oil and a rod poking out of the side which is what happened to Bajansailor's engine - not a pretty sight.

Like the idea of keeping a spare engine - real confidence booster!

 

[Bajansailor]

Re corroded / blocked up oil coolers, Olam you were lucky - this is what ours looked like afterwards :

I think that salt water had been quietly dripping on it for a while...... but I would have thought that the bodies of these ally oil coolers should have been made of a material that is resistant to salt water?

The oil cooler can be found lurking behind the heat exchanger - pretty much out of sight and hence out of mind - I talked to a YBW Forumite who had a 2003T for some years, and he admitted that he never knew that there was an oil cooler in there........

Here is a photo of our 2003T before it blew up :

I had painted it white as an incentive to keep it clean, and to easily see any oil leaks.

And afterwards :

The strange thing was that there was no obvious oil leak from the oil cooler, even in its advanced corroded state as shown in the photos above.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Really? My 2003T is 20 years old, has never been reconditioned, and works fine. In the 15 years I've owned it, I've only had one "breakdown", when the external oil supply pipe to the turbo corroded and leaked. Otherwise, I just change the oil and filters. I've yet to have any issues with the cooling system.

Same with me, My 2003T is 1991 vintage, has never missed a beat. It has however been regularly serviced, fed clean diesel, Oil changed every 100 hours, and never overheated. Even the Turbo still has all its paint on. Many Turbos die because people fail to bleed the turbo after changing the cooling water in the engine.

It did 600 hours last year with 5 oil changes.

Its all about never letting anything go wrong in the first place........ I wish!

 

[Chris_Robb]

One wonders why nobody followed their "lead" into small turbo diesels if it was such a good idea. The one duff one cancels out your one good one if you want the debate at that level! 7 years is nothing - Yanmars have models in continuous production for over 20 years and Volvo normal life cycle is at least 15.

The basic point remains. If you have an engine that works, keep it running as long as possible. When it reaches the end of its life, you can either take the risk of rebuilding it (but all the ancilliaries will still be old) or replace it with new. Buying another old engine - particulalry one that has fundamental faults is not sensible.

In relation to the value of a modernish 35 footer, the difference in cost between patching up an old setup and fitting new is less than 10% to get another 25-30 years of life.

I believe that Volvos dropping of the manufacture of the 2003T was related to a corporate decision not to build small engines any more - hence these were succeeded by engines of Perkins origin painted Green. I stand to be corrected.

However I will be taking a closer regular look at the inaccessible Oil cooler!

 

[mattnj]

Many Turbos die because people fail to bleed the turbo after changing the cooling water in the engine.

er....how do i do that

 

[Chris_Robb]

er....how do i do that

Bleeding the Turbo. On the top of the Turbo is a small metal bung - undo and let air bleed out. Tighten when water flows.

 

[Tranona]

I believe that Volvos dropping of the manufacture of the 2003T was related to a corporate decision not to build small engines any more - hence these were succeeded by engines of Perkins origin painted Green. I stand to be corrected.

However I will be taking a closer regular look at the inaccessible Oil cooler!

Yes, you are right - the decision was to get out of custom small diesels, partly because they had no market for the engines elsewhere and partly because the series was less than successful. The 2003T came about because of pressure from customers who wanted more power as the market for 35-40ft yachts was growing. The alternatives were to add an extra cylinder or try turbocharging. Given the decision to get out of engine manufacturing, the former was not on, so the "quick fix" of a turbo was used.

As I said at the beginning, nobody has followed that route since and the next range had a 4 cylinder variant for that power output.

Your pattern of usage is fine for a turbo, because it is working all the time. They do not like the normal auxilliary regime of quick blast at the start of a trip then shutdown followed by another blast at the end of the day with lots of low power time and rarely reaching operating temperature.

In the context of the OPs question a 2003T is not a good choice. The power is not needed. The chances of finding a well looked after 25 year old engine for sale almost non-existent. The choice is £4-5k rebuild which should extend the life of the current engine, or around £7-8k for a much better modern engine in the owner's choice of colour.

 

[mattnj]

Re corroded / blocked up oil coolers, Olam you were lucky - this is what ours looked like afterwards :

I think that salt water had been quietly dripping on it for a while...... but I would have thought that the bodies of these ally oil coolers should have been made of a material that is resistant to salt water?

The oil cooler can be found lurking behind the heat exchanger - pretty much out of sight and hence out of mind - I talked to a YBW Forumite who had a 2003T for some years, and he admitted that he never knew that there was an oil cooler in there........

Here is a photo of our 2003T before it blew up :

I had painted it white as an incentive to keep it clean, and to easily see any oil leaks.

And afterwards :

The strange thing was that there was no obvious oil leak from the oil cooler, even in its advanced corroded state as shown in the photos above.

That failure is just down to neglect, that shouldnt have happened.....

 

[mattnj]

Bleeding the Turbo. On the top of the Turbo is a small metal bung - undo and let air bleed out. Tighten when water flows.

Thanks, lets hope i havent b*ggered mine already!??!?

 

[jonrarit]

As others have said you may need a new propshaft and propellor etc as the 2003 is a left hand drive.

In a similar vain I was thinking of replacing my 2002 (18hp) with a reconditioned 2003 (27hp). I was hoping it would be a straight swap (relatively) unless someone know's different.

Does the 2002 & 2003 both turn the same way? Any other major issues with this project idea?

Thanks in advance

JR

 

[aluijten]

2002 and 2003 are to some extent the same engine. The 2003 adds one extra cylinder. So from size point of view it's a little longer. The height and width are almost the same. So is the direction of turn.
On the internet you can download the workshop manual for the 200x family. This will give you a good idea on the work involved.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Re corroded / blocked up oil coolers, Olam you were lucky - this is what ours looked like afterwards :

I think that salt water had been quietly dripping on it for a while...... but I would have thought that the bodies of these ally oil coolers should have been made of a material that is resistant to salt water?

The oil cooler can be found lurking behind the heat exchanger - pretty much out of sight and hence out of mind - I talked to a YBW Forumite who had a 2003T for some years, and he admitted that he never knew that there was an oil cooler in there........

Here is a photo of our 2003T before it blew up :

I had painted it white as an incentive to keep it clean, and to easily see any oil leaks.

And afterwards :

The strange thing was that there was no obvious oil leak from the oil cooler, even in its advanced corroded state as shown in the photos above.

To resurrect an thread! I am finally in the process of getting all the cooling bits on the starboard side of the engine overhauled. This is being done in Yat Marine Marmaris by a Guy called Hasim Tan. He is sending WHats app photos as he goes.

I will endevour to get them off my phone and show them here when he has finished the job.

So far though the job is expanding - Engine mounts - they have had it - bloody expensive, and he has said the rubber diesel pipes need replacing.

Having got the heat exchanger off he thinks the oil cooler looks ok. but in the photos above the unseen side looks like the problem area so I have instructed him to take it off.

What a difference Whatapp make to overseeing a job 2,000 miles away!

 

[Chris_Robb]

To resurrect an thread! I am finally in the process of getting all the cooling bits on the starboard side of the engine overhauled. This is being done in Yat Marine Marmaris by a Guy called Hasim Tan. He is sending WHats app photos as he goes.

I will endevour to get them off my phone and show them here when he has finished the job.

So far though the job is expanding - Engine mounts - they have had it - bloody expensive, and he has said the rubber diesel pipes need replacing.

Having got the heat exchanger off he thinks the oil cooler looks ok. but in the photos above the unseen side looks like the problem area so I have instructed him to take it off.

What a difference Whatapp make to overseeing a job 2,000 miles away!

Photos of the Heat exchanger in various stages of repair






Ready for reassembly


And the reassembled job - looks like he is doing a good job


And the Oil cooler - its really hidden away, no wonder they get overlooked. Looks ok on outside but.... He is removing it as we speak - another exiting installment to follow (for my wallet that is)

 

[Chris_Robb]

More Photos.
The Oil cooler - for 26 years if total neglect its not bad! Always wash through seawater side with fresh when leaving the boat for a month or more.
The oil connection pipes - one is badly corroded.

Main body of oil cooler is almost perfect - just needs cleaning









Whilst this was all being removed I asked them to check the exhaust elbow - though by asking them to check the Exhaust Injection bend, they nearly removed the injectors for checking! lost in translation!
This was 80 percent blocked


And the exhaust hose was in a state - luckily I carry a spare lenght and they fitted it to replace it.