Volvos what percentage of boats are they in ,the reason

[Seastoke]

Hi all ,so the reasons we will be looking for another boat at some time ,and there seems constant problems on here with different Volvos is it because there are so many or are cummins ,yanmar,or cats better ,respect info for or against ,or do you buy boat and take what engines come with it ,all for shafts .thanks Roy

 

[Kawasaki]

'One for all and all for shafts'!
Cummins Cats for me but does depend on what you see
You see, it's a matter for you to see what boat to take to sea
Some will say go down the Sweedish route
A vegetable swmbo hates by the way
But like engines, it's a personal thing
I prefer carrots!
Speshily before a night nav excersice!
I think it is best to pick the boat that suits first
Particularly the Galley area
Cos your better half makes the best sarnies afloat
Which is most important
Cos if its a green un or a white one or a yellow one wot powers yer next Ship
And it/they pack up half way to somewhere
You will need that Sarnie Mate

 

[Heckler]

Hi all ,so the reasons we will be looking for another boat at some time ,and there seems constant problems on here with different Volvos is it because there are so many or are cummins ,yanmar,or cats better ,respect info for or against ,or do you buy boat and take what engines come with it ,all for shafts .thanks Roy

Would it be wrong to surmise that they are the largest number fitted so the percentage going wrong is the same but the numbers are bigger so more come to our attention?
Stu

 

[Bouba]

I was always lead to believe that Volvo's business model was sell the engines cheap and make it up on the parts and service. Cheap engines means cheap boats so boat manufacturers choose them. Is this true or urban legend?

 

[kashurst]

In the sub 45 market in Europe, Volvos dominate by miles. I was looking for 5 months and seldom came across a cat engine and really hard to find a cummins engined boat. If you go on US boaty web sites Cat seem to have their share of issues depending on the specific engine model. The US seem to rave about Yanmars but over here they seem to have a mixed reputation again depending on model. Cummins seem to be well regarded all over.

Overall I think all the engine manufacturers generally do well, The investment needed in development time and testing is huge so I tend to the view they know what they are doing. However they have all had one or two versions that can have issues. Most though, as long as they are looked after and not thrashed at WOT all the time do OK. Sometimes the builder installation doesn't help though, exhaust design, over propped, bad access , bad maintenance etc.

I started out looking for a pair of 63Ps in something that floats, couldn't find anything that wasn't very tired. Ended up with a pair of KAMD 300s instead. I know they can have issues but I decided in the end that Volvo made an enormous number of them in quite a variety of different boats so decided to go with them as the rest of the boat was very good. Fingers crossed so far.

 

[oldgit]

If you are the sort to actually use your boat, stuff is going to break at some point, wether by age or mishap. .
So its spares availability all the way.
Want to go boating , you will pay, if unwillingly, just as long as you can actually get the replacement parts you need.

 

[Bigplumbs]

Want to go boating , you will pay,

I think Fairline, Princess and SS should use that line in their next set of sales brochures and as a tag line on their website. Sort of honest marketing

 

[benchmark]

I was always lead to believe that Volvo's business model was sell the engines cheap and make it up on the parts and service. Cheap engines means cheap boats so boat manufacturers choose them. Is this true or urban legend?

Quite a few share that opinion here. Even though we are the closest neighbours to sweden , volvos are still the most irritating boat engines to service or buy parts. Certified volvo penta mechanics are not enough to go round , cost a fortune and you can not even OBD diagnose a volvo penta yourself as volvo wont sell diagnosis software to the public unlike Cummins, Nanni or CAT.
They are good engines but in the long run are a pain to service/repair.

 

[BruceK]

You sure you want shafts again Roy? With legs you can go to ground much better

 

[oldgit]

Sort of honest marketing

H,mm, Yes,when we see the fuel consumption figures, C02, NOX and particulate output in large letters on the sales brouchures . ?

 

[essexboy]

I was told some time ago that Volvo supplied engines, but only invoiced the dealer on boat launch, thus saving the boatbuilder tying up a large sum of his money.

 

[KevB]

Just done a crude keyword search on YBW's boats for sale by engine manufacturer name and the results are....

Volvo = 600
Cummins = 85
Yanmar = 269
Caterpillar = 100

If that's anything to go by Volvo outnumber all others put together.

 

[scottie]

Just done a crude keyword search on YBW's boats for sale by engine manufacturer name and the results are....

Volvo = 600 10-900?hp
Cummins = 85. 200?hp up
Yanmar = 269. 10- 300? Hp as seen in European pleasure craft but biggest range and total hp sold
Caterpillar = 100 250hp? Up

If that's anything to go by Volvo outnumber all others put together.

 

[Seastoke]

it would be nice to here from peeps with different engines than Volvo or say what Volvo engine you have and comment on such ,ie how many times have you had to call a Volvo engineer ,for electronics etc

 

[julians]

I have a volvo d4, 11 years old, ive not had any problems that have meant i couldnt use the boat,but ive had some stuff fail or wear out (in my opinion) prematurely. Heres a list of things i can remember right now from the last 3 years.

- steering rams on outdrive
- belt tensioners worn out
- cooler end caps corroded


Absolutely no issues with electronics though.

 

[Portofino]

it would be nice to here from peeps with different engines than Volvo or say what Volvo engine you have and comment on such ,ie how many times have you had to call a Volvo engineer ,for electronics etc

A significant % of posts are about Volvo woes ,or which a lot of electro twackery .
Jury s still out with me cos of the maths .Not that I can,t do them btw .just the disproportionate amount of VP stuff out there skewing any rational conclusion (s) .
As an ex Vp owner doing by the book and deep pockets my Kad 300 DPG ,s were fine over 9 years of ownership .
Buy I have been ridiculed on here posting the amount I spent on maintenance by authorised VP dealers .
How ever I would have another not put off .
Last 3 or so seasons i have been running MAN 2876 --700 ,s ---- no issues what so ever ,and the maintence is all DIY ER able , they seem in a different leugue ( German think there cars ?). Engineering wise .

It's a difficult post to get a handle on ,in the sence one can soon metaphorically end up comparing apples and pears and realising , that VP ( excluding the d12 and d9 / 480" ) are aiming at out drive mkt

But they also have dipped there toe into the bigger stuff with IPS -well IPS is IMHO a chocolate tea pot in terms of reliability .I,ll qualify that ---- over time --- you can define that your selves ! The time part!

I liked and enjoyed my VP , KAD 300 ,s they never let me down . happy punter here .
Ok I had a belt snap once -- livened up the day -no biggie as one engine alternator temp pack up ,

The only observation anecdotally not statistically significant, in the sence 1 of 1 ( vp /MAN ) is that the bolt on bits like the fuel pipes , turbos , risers , alternator position , charge air coolers , and other stuff with the VP engine was poor quality compares to the MAN .
Without tip top on the ball maintenance these ancillarys could be a show stopper .
How ever believe the "oily bits" stuff like bearings , con rods , gear drive s are equal to German MAN /MTU

 

[ChrisJBSC]

No wonder there are more problems with Volvo than any other engine - there are so many more of them about! BUT I havent seen that Volvo have a larger percentage of bad issues.