hi another newby question if you don't mind, just wondering on the best to worst Diesel engines in your order of preference if it's possable, I spend a lot of time looking at the Yaghts for sale,and most of them have yenmar engines,a few have bukh engines (iv never heard of those) then the obvious perkins and Volvo, was wanting to know,which engines are better and more reliable,thanks for your info in advanced
Its really what the last owner and the previous owner has done more than any than anything rather than brand Bukhs a heavy motor designed for raw water cooling and was made for life boats original I think . Where as a Kubtu. Yanmar .which if looked after the same as any other brands would last just as long . The Kubota Yanmar and other brands much lighter and an be designed with fresh water cooling . Which means there motors can run a better cooling temp because there fresh water cooled. The Bukh some have fresh water cooling but most here in Australia are not and rely on a sea water cooling system which can only run at a lower operating temp.which it not so good for a diesel motor so these motors wont last as long.
But in saying that my old Bukh DV20 raw water cooled has been in my boat for 37 years and starts and runs well. and has never let me down .
Things like a regular services, filters and oil change and also another important thing is the engine anodes these should be inspected regularly and replaced when needed in any brand.
Also parts prices and availability need to be considered
When you buy a second hand boat as long as the motor starts and has been serviced regularly and given love by the previous owner there all should be fine.
As Cisco says B.O.A.T. = bring .on .another .thousand.
A yachts motor is only one of the thing you need to look at when buying a second hand boat its the whole package look carefully and even ask in here for opinions ( don't ask me ) Im no expert . Cisco and Ramona are always looking at value buying and some others as well in here
thanks for the info hg02,appreciate all the help iv had on this site,I need it believe me,iv brought and sold power boats for over 30years,but buying a yaght there is so much more to it,Iv worked out if I make the wrong decision on a boat it could cost my some serious $$,The fresh water cooling setup would be the go by the sounds of it,is the cost much to setup,I think it would be worth it,I'm thinking the engine is the most important bloody thing on a boat at this stage becase there so dear to buy,it's abit of a worry while buying a yaght,the right engine setup and running temps would go along way to there life span
But I did get some piece of mind when I talked to the nrma about insuring a Yaght,the motor would be covered with the insurance,if it blew up,which I thought was pretty good,but they did say only if the intakes get something sucked up to block the water intake,also the sails would be covered,and the insurance was surprisingly cheap on a 100k boat,but I only pulled that figure out of my -ss,I don't think I'll be spending that much on a boat,
Thanks again for the info appreciated
david
In a pefect world and money was no odject
Id buy a fresh water cooled engine
My boat needs around 20 hp
As far as choice goes a 3 clylinder
Is much smoother running
My biikh is a 2 clylinder so it idles rougher
Yes a perfect world would be nice hg,was also wanting to know mate do these raw water intake engines need to be flushed after use with fresh water,I'm guessing they should be or they wouldn't last very long just sitting there doing nothing,the maintenance on these Yaghts is something that I need to learn and know,so iv got a lot of dumb questions but they can wait,I'll just sort one thing out at a time
just one more thing you said anodes need to be inspected and changed,can i do this myself,I could change the filters and oil noworries but these engines look pretty hard to get at,access looks pretty tricky on some boats,I'm also guessing they would be a pain to work on
thanks again for your valued info
Usally an anode us fitted to the head or block and not to bad to get to
When i bought my old boat i had to machine the diameter down so i could fit a new anode
I cleaned out the anode hole now so a new one fits
You have to remember all sea going motors use sea water to cool a fresh water cooled motof has a heat exchange which will also need cleaning just like a seS water cooled motor
Lately there is some air cooled marine engines
Coning out of china not sure how long they would last but just the same Duetz engines
You are asking a complex question here. My boat is about the same age as HG's and I have the single
cylinder version of his engine, 10 hp Bukh. The thing is you can't kill 'em, mine's still going strong.
One problem with raw water cooled engines is a tendency to gunk up with salt after a few years, both
HG and I have descaled our engines successfully and I for one will have no trouble doing it again if needed.
As a replacement in my boat I would consider a 14HP Beta twin. It's Kubota based, fresh water cooled and
cheap, $8000. If it's a great boat with a crook engine, buy it and change the engine. It'll last you for the
rest of your life.
Select to expand quotesamsturdy said...
You are asking a complex question here. My boat is about the same age as HG's and I have the single
cylinder version of his engine, 10 hp Bukh. The thing is you can't kill 'em, mine's still going strong.
One problem with raw water cooled engines is a tendency to gunk up with salt after a few years, both
HG and I have descaled our engines successfully and I for one will have no trouble doing it again if needed.
As a replacement in my boat I would consider a 14HP Beta twin. It's Kubota based, fresh water cooled and
cheap, $8000. If it's a great boat with a crook engine, buy it and change the engine. It'll last you for the
rest of your life.
Select to expand quoteMarlin1 said..
hi another newby question if you don't mind, just wondering on the best to worst Diesel engines in your order of preference if it's possable, I spend a lot of time looking at the Yaghts for sale,and most of them have yenmar engines,a few have bukh engines (iv never heard of those) then the obvious perkins and Volvo, was wanting to know,which engines are better and more reliable,thanks for your info in advanced
Avoid Yanmar YSE 8's and YSE 12's. The vertical Yanmars are fine. I prefer real marine engines with the large flywheel on the front, Some Volvos and Buhk. Converted tractor engines like Kubota are fine too.
Select to expand quoteHG02 said..
Usally an anode us fitted to the head or block and not to bad to get to
When i bought my old boat i had to machine the diameter down so i could fit a new anode
I cleaned out the anode hole now so a new one fits
You have to remember all sea going motors use sea water to cool a fresh water cooled motof has a heat exchange which will also need cleaning just like a seS water cooled motor
Lately there is some air cooled marine engines
Coning out of china not sure how long they would last but just the same Duetz engines
About anodes, my new Yanmar F/W (3YM20) does not have any anodes and heat exchanger cassing is made of aluminium, tubes are copper. For longer periods betwen runs I do inject ? (Do not have name on hand). This product is New Zeland made and according to specks attaches itself to every surface inside cooling system and protects. Engine run is 60Hrs and I treated it 3 times so far, so Im in no position to coment on results.
Select to expand quoteRamona said..Marlin1 said..
hi another newby question if you don't mind, just wondering on the best to worst Diesel engines in your order of preference if it's possable, I spend a lot of time looking at the Yaghts for sale,and most of them have yenmar engines,a few have bukh engines (iv never heard of those) then the obvious perkins and Volvo, was wanting to know,which engines are better and more reliable,thanks for your info in advanced
Avoid Yanmar YSE 8's and YSE 12's. The vertical Yanmars are fine. I prefer real marine engines with the large flywheel on the front, Some Volvos and Buhk. Converted tractor engines like Kubota are fine too.
Why dont you like the Yanmars? Cooling system? Built light?
Select to expand quoteYara said..Ramona said..Marlin1 said..
hi another newby question if you don't mind, just wondering on the best to worst Diesel engines in your order of preference if it's possable, I spend a lot of time looking at the Yaghts for sale,and most of them have yenmar engines,a few have bukh engines (iv never heard of those) then the obvious perkins and Volvo, was wanting to know,which engines are better and more reliable,thanks for your info in advanced
Avoid Yanmar YSE 8's and YSE 12's. The vertical Yanmars are fine. I prefer real marine engines with the large flywheel on the front, Some Volvos and Buhk. Converted tractor engines like Kubota are fine too.
Why dont you like the Yanmars? Cooling system? Built light?
Just the horizontal Yanmars, the vertical ones are fine. The horizontal ones are hard to get parts for now and they suffer from blowby past the rings. Lot of early '70s production boats had these motors and they certainly bring the prices down.
Mine is a Kabota /Diecon 25hp three cylinder not a bad engine replaced the engine mounts recently. 
Originally i was going to refresh the bukh dv 20
Then when i found the dv 24 thought as this is bukhs current replacement for the dv20
And basically the same engine block it was a cheap update rather than altering engine mountings ect for some other brand which can be a big job the bukh dv24 will do me fine
Id love to find a second hand fresh water cooling system for it but i dought id find one
Appreciate all the info fellas and your patience,some very handy info and ideas, replacing the engine on a boat, I didnt really think of mite be an idea,
Hi Marlin,
The anode is a important piece of gear. If you ever employ a diver to clean your hull ( I do every month for our race season) they will check it for you and report back if it is getting low. A good friend had some weird electrical issues from a neighbouring boat in a marina and it ate the Bukh leg away in a couple of months, replacement cost was approx $3500.
This was an unusual case, but it happens,so always check your anode.
Thanks shaggy will do mate
time to get serious I sold my fishing boat on boat point today in 24 hrs, I got a very good price for it so im pretty happy atm, now to way up how much to spend on a yaght, it will take awhile before I get organized though, I'll be ringing up about a swing mooring on Friday thats the first step, then probley a few more dumb ass questions then I hoist The main haha,
back to the engines if you don't mind, iv been looking at quiet a few boats for sale,and on quiet a few adds they say the last survice cost big dollars, one boat was advertised as last survice costing 5k, hoping this is not a normal service cost, next time I'm up at the bay I'll have to check these things out at the marina, and also get quotes on other stuff, exciting time ahead I hope
thanks again
Some less common engines can be good as well as the Yanmars, Bukhs etc. MB has a Sole 20 hp 3 cyl donk, fresh water cooled. Some told me that Sole are only good for mooring blocks.
Mine is 1984, but with low hours. I rebuilt the head, starter, alternator and all the hoses and seals in 2005. It has now done hundreds of hours smoothly and reliably using about 1.5 litres/hour.
The alternator has just packed up, it is 31 years old, and the salt water pump is leaking so I need to install new seals.
I'm pleased with it.
Mate has a big single Sole in his shed. He is looking for a boat to go with it. Something like a Pompei 14 to 16 foot clinker open cutter.
Select to expand quoteMorningBird said..
Some less common engines can be good as well as the Yanmars, Bukhs etc. MB has a Sole 20 hp 3 cyl donk, fresh water cooled. Some told me that Sole are only good for mooring blocks.
Mine is 1984, but with low hours. I rebuilt the head, starter, alternator and all the hoses and seals in 2005. It has now done hundreds of hours smoothly and reliably using about 1.5 litres/hour.
The alternator has just packed up, it is 31 years old, and the salt water pump is leaking so I need to install new seals.
I'm pleased with it.
MB, there is a Top Hat currently going cheap with a non-working Sole diesel fitted. Where did you get your spare parts? Expensive?
Select to expand quoteYara said..MorningBird said..
Some less common engines can be good as well as the Yanmars, Bukhs etc. MB has a Sole 20 hp 3 cyl donk, fresh water cooled. Some told me that Sole are only good for mooring blocks.
Mine is 1984, but with low hours. I rebuilt the head, starter, alternator and all the hoses and seals in 2005. It has now done hundreds of hours smoothly and reliably using about 1.5 litres/hour.
The alternator has just packed up, it is 31 years old, and the salt water pump is leaking so I need to install new seals.
I'm pleased with it.
MB, there is a Top Hat currently going cheap with a non-working Sole diesel fitted. Where did you get your spare parts? Expensive?
Headland Engineering in Brookvale are the Sole distributors and have been very helpful. My engine is older but parts are still available. They have some 2nd hand bits they sell a bit cheaper to avoid you having new bits with a 30 year life on an engine that probably won't be around that long.
Mine wasn't going when I bought the boat, it had been idle for 5 or so years. I took it out, into the carport, rebuild the top end and check out the bottom end, pumps, seals, alternator and starter, heat exchanger pressure test, new mounts and have had 10 years great service from it.
