Hours on a Diesel

[Helimech]

I''m looking at a boat with a Westerbeke diesel that has 3200 hours on it. What would be considered an average life of an engine like this? I don''t know if this is high time or not.

[dman]

This is one of these questions that starts off with an answer"That depends" It is no problem for an engine like this to run double that in hours and it is quite possible that it is ready for a rebuild.If it has been well maintained(and properly used) that amount of hours is not great.Compression check..........And when you see other things neglected on a boat you can probably assume the engine has been neglected as well.Even looking at the exterior of an engine and seeing it with new looking filters and spare impellers,filters,manuals,and maintenance log all put away in some order will also give you some good clues to it`s upkeep.It is more about the owner than the engine that keeps these motors working and proper storage means a great deal since many engines spend a great deal of time not being used.One more thing also is that I do not trust hour gages,they can be easily tampered with or not working at all.

[DirtManly]

Hello Helimech,
3200 hours is the equivelant of 192,000 miles. One engine hour is based on 60 miles. Folks that are used to gas engines are usually horrified by that many miles, but for a well maintianed diesel that isn''t that much. I have had several diesels that have gone over 10,000 hours without a rebuild. The key here is doing the proper maintenance.
Ask the owner how often he srvices the engine. If they just uses it to get on and off the dock he should be servicing it about every fifty hours. If he tells you that he services it once a year, there is a good chance it will need an overhaul pretty quick with that many hours on it. Diesels are made to run all day and then some, not for short runs. They will do it, but need to be serviced more often because of it.
I look at like this;It costs around 20 buck to buy the stuff to service my engine. If I do that an extra three or four times a year it could never add up to more than a single rebuild costs.
Very best of luck to you
Dirt