repower costs

[sclendenin]

Unfortunately I just got back the survey lab report on the 18 hp Westerbeke in the 1995 CP27 I was in the process of buying. It was bad with "severe" levels of iron, aluminum and silicon in the oil. Several theories on why this may have happened but bottom line is that the damage does not heal itself.
So I am looking at repowering with a new engine before throwing in the towel and looking for another boat.
I am wondering what experience any of the members may have had with putting in a new engine. Which engine and what did the whole operation cost in round numbers?
Any thoughts much appreciated.

Regards,
Steve

[Tney88]

I still have the original Westerbeke in my 2004, but the neighboring (older) one down the dock has been repowered with a Yanmar.  I don't know the cost, but the owner did say that Gerry Hutchins made him a really good deal on the new engine, and had it drop shipped.

Terry Ney
SV Paradiso

[deisher6]

Hey Steve:
Still have the original Universal 12 in our 1986 C-27.  Just replaced the transmission, details on the C-27 portion of this blog.  I did some quick checking thinking about new transmission and engine at that time.  Beta Marine was around $8000 plus labor.  If you look back on the C-27 portion of the blog there is a member who installed a used engine himself about two years ago for much less.  I have recently heard scuttlebutt of two older boats that had new engines height bought for >$5000 just for the engines...boats were scrapped.

good luck
regards charlie

[hoddinr]

When I repowered my Catalina 27 in 1988 (?) I got a Yanmar YGM10 from Mastry Marine in St. Petersburg - it had a rebuilt block and a lot of new parts.  After getting its injectors shimmed properly it ran perfectly for as long as I owned it - 10 years.  I paid $1500 for it and gave my neighbor in the next slip another $1500 to do all the installation etc including putting in a fuel tank and shaft for another $1500.

How times have changed.

Ron

[Shawn]

When I looked at repowering my Sabre 28 the beta was the 'cheapest' at around $8000 for the engine (lower HP than the 18hp you have) and it would have easily run a couple of thousand in other hidden costs to get everything installed and hooked up. That would be doing most of the install myself. Figure $10k-$12k pretty easily, more if you are hiring someone to do it.

Skipped that, pulled the old engine ($350 for the yards crane), glassed over the prop tube hole and removed the strut, glassed in 1" fiberglass plates on the inside of the transom and put on an outboard last season. Was thrilled with that decision. Outboard drives the boat better than the inboard, is quieter, sails better (less drag and a few hundred pounds lighter), more storage inside the boat, less maintenance and is also *far* easier to work on.

Shawn

[brackish]

When I looked at repowering my Sabre 28 the beta was the 'cheapest' at around $8000 for the engine (lower HP than the 18hp you have) and it would have easily run a couple of thousand in other hidden costs to get everything installed and hooked up. That would be doing most of the install myself. Figure $10k-$12k pretty easily, more if you are hiring someone to do it.

Skipped that, pulled the old engine ($350 for the yards crane), glassed over the prop tube hole and removed the strut, glassed in 1" fiberglass plates on the inside of the transom and put on an outboard last season. Was thrilled with that decision. Outboard drives the boat better than the inboard, is quieter, sails better (less drag and a few hundred pounds lighter), more storage inside the boat, less maintenance and is also *far* easier to work on.

Shawn

Hey you had me when you first posted about this.  Seems like the best way to bring back an older boat with questionable inboard power.  I can't remember, did you do any weight redistribution with the project or is the Sabre stout enough to handle the added weight aft.

[Shawn]

She sat on her lines a touch down in the stern after I got her back in the water. Not terrible but noticeable if you were looking for it. I ended up putting my 38' 3/8 anchor chain up in the anchor locker (about 70 pounds) and that got her basically back on her lines. I think the stern might be slightly lower when loaded with people but it isn't a big difference. The old inboard was a little behind the center of floatation and that was about 400 pounds with the transmission. The prop shaft, prop, packing gland and strut were probably another 15 or 20 pounds, 20 gal. tank was at least 140 pounds full up (located under the steering pedestal) and I've probably pulled another 20 or 30 pounds of fuel hoses, exhaust hoses, water lift muffler, fuel filters and other various bits and pieces (spare parts) out. Shifter/throttle controls came off the pedestal but I still need to get the cables out of the boat. Might leave in the old wiring but am thinking about pulling it all out as it doesn't need to be there and would be cleaner with it gone.

So maybe 590 pounds out. Back in were the outboard at about 120, mount at 30ish, fiberglass plates maybe 10-15, 21 pounds of fuel and 70 pounds for the chain.

Shawn

[MHardy]

Steve,
The '95 isn't by chance Red Knot in Maryland, is it?

[AnchorJockey]

I'd like to know too if it is Red Knot.  I looked at that boat before buying my 89 in Toms River NJ.  I saw it the weekend of the Annapolis Boat Show.  Broker did not have much enthusiasm to show it, he sent me on my own to look at it.  I decided it was more of a project than I wanted to get her back in the water.

[philb Junkie19]

When I got tired dealing with the cranky gas engine on my old 27 ft Albin Vega I put a 7 1/2 outboard on back and was more than satisfied. I would have liked a new diesel but for the cost. The Vega is lighter than a compac or sabre, about 5400 lbs dry.  I guess part of it is how you use it. We see boats who seem to do all their upwind sailing under power. 

[relamb]

I have seen many old 27-30' sailboats in marinas and for-sale ads with outboards for repower.  In fact, one was a ComPac 27 that had a bracket mounted down low and used the dinghy outboard as temporary propulsion while the diesel was getting rebuilt.  They left the bracket on afterwards, just for an emergency backup.
I have no first hand experience, but I have considered mounting a bracket on mine just in case, because I have had several engine failures at inopportune times when I couldn't maneuver under sail.  Waiting on a drawbridge or navigating around Chicago's Navy Pier and sucking a plastic grocery bag into the cooling water intake, or having fuel issues at just the wrong time are a couple of examples.    I could have put on the dinghy outboard and gotten out of the way, instead of anchoring in a channel or waiting to drift out while I changed a water pump impeller.
I'm a do-it-yourself-er, so I'd probably do a diesel engine rebuild myself or put in a used one, but if the cost was too great I'd have no problem with an outboard as plan B.   I don't recall the design of the basic engine in mine (Kubota maybe?) but the basic engine block would be used in other things besides boats.  A friend got a replacement diesel engine for his boat out of a contractors old JLG lift he bought at auction.  Swapped the core/block and then just added or replaced the marine-specific components.  Wait, first he used the lift to trim his trees and fix his roof and gutters and paint the top of his house.  THEN he put the engine in his boat and scrapped the rest of the lift.