Volvo penta md7b deceased

Still reckon any spare parts needed could add up to close on £1000 for this work.....I have an MD5b so I know the price's!!!! saying that I am still running mine after 28 years!! A good solid old thumper with little to go wrong if looked after and treated with respect.

paul.
 
Did somebody inform you that many parts like cylinder head etc. are no more available and if your lucky to find one you they would be at a redicules price.
Its no point to do an overhaul on such an old engine.
A chinese diesel (YANDONG) cost including a gearbox less than 2500 pounds and its a copy of a German Deutz engine. The same company produces Deutz Diesel engines for Leopard tanks which are used in some of the countries (ex British Colonies)......
 
I would not worry too much about skimming the head again as long as the valves and piston will not make contact. It is after all a diesel engine that works on compression. If they will contact, then you need to get a steel plate made up the same size/shape as your cylinder head gasket to restore the original clearances. This plate will have to be laser cut which maybe expensive. A whole engine rebuild kit is about £500 from volvo, but includes all the bearings, seals, etc. The first thing I did on my engine was get the head and block pressure tested to confirm their are no cracks. If all is well, then get it chemically cleaned to remove the rubbish. I rebuilt my engine (2001) in my shed over winter myself with the help of the Volvo shop manual. It all depends on your budget, and the type of sailing you do. Assuming no major faults a rebuild is much cheaper than a re-engine, but it will never have the performance/economy of a modern engine
 
I'm watching all the contributions with great interest as I have a VP MD7B, which touch wood is going fine.
It had valves, injectors and head decoke 2300hrs ago.

We all hear tales "the head gasket going"; What is the most likely cause. and what can one do to keep clear of the affliction?

Interested to hear of your progress and results. Good Luck
 
The most likely causes are:

- The one we are probably discussing in this thread, i.e. overheating due to coolant problems, leading to distortion and therefore poor contact at certain points.

- Head bolts coming loose. Modern engines usually have bolts with very fine thread pitch, enabling high loads to be applied with reduced risk of loosening. Older engines had far coarser threads and these loosened quite easily. I had an old horizontal 12 HP Yanmar whose head became so loose that the engine wouldn't run. The head bolt threads were very coarse and I had never checked them. The message is to check them occasionally with a torque wrench.
 
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