Thread: Engine Life
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Old 02-13-2012, 12:56 PM   #2
psneeld
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City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,149
Engine Life

Quote:
Tony B wrote:
I am still actively trying to sell my sailboat and get a trawler. Hopefully, soon it will sell.

Buying a 2nd hand boat doesn't always afford the luxury of what type of engine you get with it. having said that, here is my question:

Many motor yachts have twin gas engines in the 250 to 350HP range.

Many mid-1980's boats have around 1200 to 1500 hours on them. Assuming they were exposed to an average amount of maintenance, are these engines still considered young or are the ready to die? Everything has an expected life span, so what is it for gas engines?

Thanks in advance.
Approaching 4000 hours/10 years*or so (maybe way more)*on the assistance towing boat 454 cu in engine*I run....beat the crap out of it all year....including runnning it at least 10 hours a season with the high temp alarm buzzing and towing or pulling a boat off a sandbar. Engine oil changes every 200 hours or after a day of running it well overtemp.* Once ran it at full throttle for 2 hrs at 1000 rpm less than rated rpm cause I was pulling a barge against a 5 knot current, at night*in the middle of a Nor'easter.* The alternative was being dragged backwards over the breaking bar (for a lot of the time I WAS being drug backwards!)

No telling how long they may last these days...but babying engines seems to kill them sooner...


-- Edited by psneeld on Monday 13th of February 2012 02:58:32 PM
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