Pulling the engine

[Albesaurus]

This is more of an request for info and advice as opposed to a question of if i should do it or not.

I bought my 2003 28 engine box with Yanmar 315 this past spring. I had a full summer of trouble free use of her after changing oil, filters, belts and the raw water pump. The boat ran great all the way up to near 4000 RPMs. Never saw a temperature past 170.

I have an independent mechanic that i like and he says we should pull the engine and get it in my garage. Strip all the coolers off it and address some rust areas. His reasoning is that the boat is 18 years old and we know nothing about its history. ( previous owner past away suddenly) he says that labor is much more time consuming when your working out in the cold, in tight quarters. Also the bilge needs a cleaning and paint job.

As a Yanmar certified mechanic. He says that my 6lp stp is a great engine that can take alot of abuse as long as the the coolers do there job and keep the engine cool at its higher RPM’s as compared to other comparable engine brands. So pulling the engine to allow for a faster strip down is the most cost effective way to get the engine back to what it was 18 years ago.

I do like the idea of getting into the bilge to clean it and address other parts that are otherwise hard to get to with the engine in place. The engine also needs its 1000 hour timing belt and Valve adjustment.

So whats your advice on this project? Overkill for boat than ran great all summer? What else would you do with the engine out and accessible?

There is also an issue of valve seals. According to Mack Boring my engine falls into the range of the class action lawsuit of faulty valve seals. My Mechanic says he is not aware that the LP engines of this year is part of the lawsuit but says that would also be easier to address out of the boat.

A local wrecker will charge $150 to pull the engine and get in my pickup. Mechanic says a day to strip the engine, a day to service the coolers and a day to install them back in. Plus another day to disconnect the engine coming out and going back in. This sounds extremely reasonable... even if it required another full day we are talking about 5k in labor.... be even said i can save a days labor by stripping the engine myself.

What do you think..

Nick

[WillieC]

Items to address if you go for it:

Engine mounts and alignment
Shaft seal
Cutleass bearing (new spelling I just invented)
Shaft/prop condition, refacing of coupling prior to alignment
Rudder seals/bearings
Sound attenuation
Any hard to access through hulls
Hoses, clamps, belts/belt alignment
Water pumps, alternator service/upgrade
Grounding points, starter cables, control cables
Wiring harness, all electrical connections

I did all this and more to my A25. I am sure there is more for an A28.
It really is nice to have the engine out, for all this ancillary stuff. I'll leave the mechanic to come up with his list. Add a skosh more time to the schedule. And keep your checkbook handy.

And check the insurance or consider the cost of dropping the engine through the boat. I know that is a bit of catastrophizing, but just the same...

[Norseman]

Yeah, I would pull the engine based on the above, great idea.

[RobS]

Yes, pull it. Add a good inspection of the oil pan to the list. And the oil core plug on the engine block behind the seawater pump. The pan and the plug are known to rust depending on the environment they are subjected to. I brought mine own for the winter once.

[WillieC]

Don't need no stinkin' crane...

IMG_0595.JPG

[catalina_mike]

Do it change the timing belt etc... start off fresh with a clean painted bilge.

[Maye Marie]

I would not pull the engine. Its like opening up Pandora's box. Were do you start and end. Needed maintenance can be done without pulling the engine. Get some experience with the boat and save pulling the engine for when you need to. Mine is a 2002 with two thousand hours and I am not there yet. The to do list above is routine maintenance. Some checked and looked at every year and some every few years. I have gone through most of the list doing my own work. I will do my second timing belt just after I splash the boat. It is pretty easy to get to most of it. Coolers timing belt and valves are a hell of a lot easier than pulling the engine. Not to mention the risk factor what you will break taking it apart and putting it back together. Your mechanics discomfort will be a lot less than your discomfort when you break down on the water. Then you find out oops! I missed that in the complexity of putting all back together.

[Mike Monte]

I have a 2001 28TE.
Last February I had my engine pulled by my marina ($2100 to remove and $2100 to reinstall plus cutlass bearing) and my mechanic picked it up.
While out I had the cutlass bearing replaced.
My mechanic changed the oil pan (the main reason why I needed to pull the engine - it was rusting-through), all of the senders, put a new cooling manifold, repainted, new engine mounts, etc.
$7100 for his work.
My total ($11,300) was a hard pill to swallow but the engine ran really cool and I had zero issues all season.
I should be set for the next several seasons.

[Albesaurus]

Update.... we never did pull the engine. The mechanic i mentioned that i “liked” turned out to be a big talker that wouldn’t commit to a start date. Just liked to tell stories if all the engines he strips down and service’s in his garage. I have rust and corrosion issues from a leaking anode and a now replaced leaking raw water pump. Its not something i can do now so close to launch but it will for sure be next winters project.

Thanks Mike for the numbers. Did they also pull all the coolers off and service them? Who’s your mechanic? I will need to hire a guy.

Nick

[Mike Monte]

Roger did the coolers, everything......engine came back like new.
Sherman Marine Services
Brockton, MA 02301
508-400-6311
From what I understand, he only works on Yanmar 6LP's.
(He's the go-to guy for work on 6LP's in SE MA.)