Volvo Engine Hours Display.

TSB240

TSB240

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Top result.....
Fitted a new display and knocked 560 hours off my total engine hours!

http://www.akspeedo.com/vdo-lcd-repair.php

One hour to fit and replace the add on hour meter that wasn't actually reading engine running hours but was reading when the engine switch was on.... Actual hours for nearly 20 year old boat is now 1580.. Fast delivery and a very happy customer.
Steve
 
TSB240 said:
Top result.....
Fitted a new display and knocked 560 hours off my total engine hours!

http://www.akspeedo.com/vdo-lcd-repair.php

One hour to fit and replace the add on hour meter that wasn't actually reading engine running hours but was reading when the engine switch was on.... Actual hours for nearly 20 year old boat is now 1580.. Fast delivery and a very happy customer.
Steve
Click to expand...

Why or how did the 560 hours get knocked off? The whole point of those new displays is that the existing engine hours are preserved. :)

Richard
 
Frayed Knot said:
Would you buy a second hand boat from this man? :D
Click to expand...

Are you interested or just a keel tapper?:sleeping:

In my defence I know I have left the boat in a rush with the panel switched on at least once for a week in my ownership. :encouragement:
 
RichardS said:
Why or how did the 560 hours get knocked off? The whole point of those new displays is that the existing engine hours are preserved. :)

Richard
Click to expand...

Engine hours actually recorded and retained internally in Volvo panel were 1580. A previous owner had fitted an additional hours timer clock wired to the illumination circuit for the panel. This was showing 2140 hours. QED.
 
And what's good with these original Volvo Penta tachos is that the hours only count up when the engine is actually running . They don't increase the hour count when the panel is powered on but engine not running.
 
Thanks for the reminder to the supplier link though. I replaced my display within the tachometer with an arduino nano and small oled display. It took more than an hour to get the software working but it does now display a nice Moody logo whilst booting :)
 
TSB240 said:
Are you interested or just a keel tapper?:sleeping:

In my defence I know I have left the boat in a rush with the panel switched on at least once for a week in my ownership. :encouragement:
Click to expand...
Just a quick facetious reply on the way to work (coffee time now)
I have the same problem so many thanks for the post & link - it just reminded me of the story of an Essex car dealer in court for “clocking” a car. Pleading not guilty on the grounds that he was 25,000 miles away in Kent at the time...
 
Great link thanks, a friend of mine has a dead display and has tried the airing cupboard trick to no avail.

What I don’t understand is how you’ve lost 560 engine hours when as you say the actual hours are stored.

Having an add-on clock for some reason reading the illumination time is just bizarre. Surely the panel is only switched on when you want the engine to run (except on the occasion when you left it on).

Totally confused and as as I will probably be the one that fits this I’d like to understand it.

Thanks
 
The main circuit board within the tachometer sends the actual recorded engine hours to the display in a format that just tells the dumb display which bars within the 8888.8 display to light up.
The internal tachometer hours only seem to count up once pulses from the alternator are seen. I guess the difference between engine running hours and switch panel turned on hours is quite small, but Volvo have done this the right way.

Adding after market display showing 'panel on' hours is close enough for most but would over read if you always go home and forget to power down the panel.
 
TSB240 said:
Engine hours actually recorded and retained internally in Volvo panel were 1580. A previous owner had fitted an additional hours timer clock wired to the illumination circuit for the panel. This was showing 2140 hours. QED.
Click to expand...

Just_sayin' said:
What I don’t understand is how you’ve lost 560 engine hours when as you say the actual hours are stored.
Click to expand...

I think I understand what happened to the 560 lost hours ... but it would seem to mean that the Volvo timer had stopped recording unless the previous owner spent many hours with the panel lights on but the engine not running. :confused:

Richard
 
On my boat, the panel also powers up an engine bay extractor fan so it's obvious that the panel is still switched on after stopping the engine. On some boats it might not be so obvious that the panel had been left on.

Also on a number of boats, the switch panel is mounted low down to one side with just a press button to power on.. what's to say a crew member hasn't knocked it on accidentally... noticed if you have an audible extractor fan but not always the case.
 
Just_sayin' said:
But what’s that got to do with an hour recording meter?
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If the after-market hour meter was connected through the panel lights and the panel lights are always on when the engine is running, then I can see the logic.

What is difficult to understand, as you have spotted, is why the panel lights would be left on for hundreds of hours when the engine is not running, unless, as Martin suggests, the light were left on by mistake or the same circuit is also powering something else. Could be a humidifier or something although it sounds unlikely. :confused:

Richard
 
But the panel lights are in principle warning lights, ok the fuel and tachometer might have a bulb each but WHY?

We are talking about the conventional Volvo ENGINE panel where you turn it on by pushing a button, the warning lights come on, the fuel gauge registers and then you either pre-heat or turn a key TO START THE ENGINE. The tacho display records the hours THE ENGINE IS RUNNING?

I’m losing my mind here :cool:
 
RichardS said:
Why or how did the 560 hours get knocked off? The whole point of those new displays is that the existing engine hours are preserved. :)

Richard
Click to expand...

unless you have the MDI unit and its replaced - then the hours are wiped, happened to my engine twice ?!? which i suppose means you cant trust the hours on any MDI engine??
 
TSB240 said:
Top result....
Click to expand...

Hi Steve,

I noticed at haul-out a couple of weeks ago that my Yanmar panel hour meter is no longer displaying. The boat is now 6 years old. Engine hours is less than 300. The Volvo panel on my previous boat also failed at 6 years. Seems incredibly common for both.

I’ve lodged the point with the selling dealer that this is typical of their poor after sales owner support. This is a common failure and Beneteau should be giving all sorts of 5hit to both Yanmar and Volvo to improve durability of the hour meter. I suspect that it will be water of the ducks back to them.

With that off my chest, I now have to decide what to do. I really don’t fancy taking the tacho apart so was thinking of installing a separate 2 inch round instrument at the side of the panel.

Next time we meet I’d love to hear more about your experience and recommendation.
 
davidjackson said:
Hi Steve,

I noticed at haul-out a couple of weeks ago that my Yanmar panel hour meter is no longer displaying. The boat is now 6 years old. Engine hours is less than 300. The Volvo panel on my previous boat also failed at 6 years. Seems incredibly common for both.

I’ve lodged the point with the selling dealer that this is typical of their poor after sales owner support. This is a common failure and Beneteau should be giving all sorts of 5hit to both Yanmar and Volvo to improve durability of the hour meter. I suspect that it will be water of the ducks back to them.

With that off my chest, I now have to decide what to do. I really don’t fancy taking the tacho apart so was thinking of installing a separate 2 inch round instrument at the side of the panel.

Next time we meet I’d love to hear more about your experience and recommendation.
Click to expand...

Hi Dave .

On my Volvo panel it was just a case of gaining rear access, undoing two thumb screws that clamp the VDO tacho unit, pulling it out unplugging and unbolting cables then remove tacho complete. Then just follow the video in the link to replace lcd display. If you can't gain rear access you have to unscrew entire front panel, break the mastic or silicone seal and pull forward to gain access to thumb screws. You might find that by taking yours out and getting it really dry in the airing cupboard over winter that it will come back to life without any further action. The main problem is usually damp/corrosion in either the PCB ribbon cable connector or a similar failure of the ribbon connection to the LCD display.

I do happen to have a second spare new replacement lcd display should this not work:encouragement:!


Steve
 
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