Perkins

[ssullivan]

While I agree that Yanmars are better engines in a lot of ways, there is one feature of the Perkins that I ended up liking now that I bought a boat with Perkins in it:

Parts! Seems like the Perkins uses very common parts and is an extremely simple engine in general. I mean any truck/tractor shop in the middle of nowhere has the right parts. You don't have to search for marine parts.

This is just my experience, having owned a Yanmar and a Perkins.

[Alan Wheeler]

Yeah, if you can buy a part for anything for that matter, that doesn't come under the disguise of "Marine" you seem to pay a lot less. Strange that isn't it.

[irwinsailor]

At one time Perkins owned the Massey Furguson tractor line. Many tractor parts are the same as those used in marine engines.

[jibsail]

Even though Perkins does not make a small engine the new Volvo D2-55 has a Perkins block with a perkins nameplate on it.

[Euro Cruiser]

When I was planning to repower, I could not find a single engine mechanic in my area who recommended a Perkins engine. Not one. The reasons given were some funky engineering decisions, very low labor rate allowances for warranty repairs (so mechanics are reluctant to install since they are then stuck repairing faulty manufacturing for free...or worse), very limited regional supply of parts (I was told I needed to go 3 states north to find a good Perkins supplier, TransAtlantic Diesel) and only one authorized dealer (where I would buy my engine) within the entire 3-county Tampa Bay area (no pricing competition). I also notice they have very little presence in the regional boat shows. I don't offer this as 'absolute proof' that Perkins is not a good product; I will say it was unnerving to talk to journeyman mechanics who didn't hesitate to speak out on this issue, altho' they were far more balanced re: the pro's & con's of the other choices.

I think we need to recognize in a discussion like this that there can be large geographic differences in market share, distribution network and competitive pricing - manufacturing issues aside - between one part of the world (or even in a large country like the USA) from another. There's unlikely to be one answer, even within a single large country like the USA.

On an anecdotal level, I'll mention that we've seen a wide diversity of boats (and so, diesel engine installations) in the last 5 years of cruising. In some locales (e.g. the UK) I find Perkins products highly respected and widely used; a Brit really grinds his teeth these days to see so many Volvo's in Euro boats when he'd rather have a Perkins. In other geograhic areas (the Baltic) Perkins are sneered at and viewed as old fashioned...but of course that is the land of the Big Green Machine. But whichever direction the tide is swinging on local opinion of Perkins engines, IME they appear to be one of the more problematic engines as used in sailboats. Again, this is an anecdotal observation just based on what I've seen/heard. As one simple example, a friend is currently 1-2 days out of St. Lucia from the Cape Verdes while his Mom and I busily gather up spare parts so he can repair - for the 3rd time - his raw water pump's shaft & adapter plate. Why? Because unlike most engines, his water pump">raw water pump must be aligned when installed and the thinking of the gurus we've consulted is that he hasn't mastered that yet. TA Diesel even offered (and his Mom bought) a $100 'alignment tool' spec'd for his Jabsco pump when installing it on his engine. I find this a silly, unnecessary approach - most of us just bolt on our raw water pumps because they aren't driven off the accessory case- and once again, I'm left to wonder about Perkins products.

Don't mean to rain on anyone's parade, but rather just add to the overall mix of info & views.

Jack

[GordMay]

PERKINS Marine Engines:
Sabre Engines Ltd are appointed by Perkins to manage all aspects of the Perkins marine engine business. Management of sales and after sales support is undertaken through the Perkins worldwide distributor network.
Sabre Engines Ltd
Wimborne
Dorset
England
BH21 7PW
Tel: +44 (0)1202 893720
Fax: +44 (0)1202 851700
Website: www.perkins-sabre.com
Email (engines, parts, & general):
enginesales@sabre-engines.co.uk
partsales@sabre-engines.co.uk
post@sabre-engines.co.uk

[CSY Man]

IME they appear to be one of the more problematic engines as used in sailboats.

Wow, that is a different opinion indeed.

I have heard nothing but praise for the Perkins marine engines.

I have one myself, a 4-108 that is 27 years old, with no overhaul in the past that I am aware of.
The hours are probably around 6000 or so, and it runs like a champ.

Don't think you will see that with a Yanmar or a Volvo.

I know of a guy that runs a charter boat in St. Croix, he racked up 15,000 hours on his Perkins 4-108 and finally had it overhauled, not because there was anything wrong with the engine, it just made him nervous to have that many hours on it.

I also notice they have very little presence in the regional boat shows.

Perkins have a pretty good stand @ the Ft. Lauderdale boat show. Don't know about the other shows.

As for spare parts, well, no problem in my area, any diesel place can do the injectors and belts and filter etc can be had @ the local NAPA place pretty cheap.
For other parts, yeah we have Perkins dealers here, but I also have the web page for North Atlantic diesel marked in case I need somehting shipped.

All in all I have no problems with my Perkins, performance wise, parts wise or other wise.

Don't mean to rain on anyone's parade, but rather just add to the overall mix of info & views.

No rain on my parade, the sun is always shining here...

[irwinsailor]

It sounds like the older engines are better than what they make now.

[ssullivan]

Same here, CSY Man. Perkins 4-108, circa 1987. No overhaul, starts like a new engine and develops plenty of power. Only a couple thousand hours, but going strong.

EuroCruiser and I need to take it outside... ha ha ha just joking. We differ in many opinions.

[Alan Wheeler]

Aligning the pump is not as difficult as you have made it sound. No special tool required if you just take some care. A mode can be done on some engines with a rubber dive to take out any variances.
The big difference between Perkins and other more high performance engines like Yan mar and Volvo is, that the Perkins is NOT high performance. The result is a Perkins is cheaper parts wise and will last far longer and be far more reliable. High performance comes at a cost. The engine doesn't last as long. High performance is important in fast moving hulls, especially planning, where light weight high HP and high revs are essential. Yachts don't need the performance as such, but the advantage is they often are trying to shoehorn an engine in a tight space. So HP in a smaller footprint becomes essential. For those of us that space and weight is not an issue, then big heavey donks of engines with high longeveity and reliability, along with cheap parts are the benifits.
I would also say that representing an engine or not, based on labour rates, is more a result of greed from the representative than anything else. As an example, just rry and take a cover, any cover off a Volvo and see what things like gaskets will cost you. It's criminal as to what they ask for parts. And it shouldn't be. I would suggest that Perkins are more realistic as to what parts SHOULD be, not that they are cheap.

[micoverde]

this has probably been addressed ad nauseum but in the area of the west coast of the US Perkins parts are nearly everywhere.

In the NW Stewart's Marine (and Stewart himself, along with his wife) is a great resource for anything Perkins related.

Before crossing the Pacific I bounced up to LA for a couple days to renew my passport -- I was able to trackdown a major supply warehouse for Perkins parts there as well. I picked up a complete set of gaskets (upper/lower), spare injector and a few items for the fuel systems.

I've had a good experience with our 4.108 but she's been running hot since we've owned her (always around 210 F at 1600 RPMs). I've slowly worked my way through every possible item. I think the culprit is either the heat exchanger or perhaps the prop is pitched in correctly.

[CSY Man]

I've had a good experience with our 4.108 but she's been running hot since we've owned her (always around 210 F at 1600 RPMs). I've slowly worked my way through every possible item. I think the culprit is either the heat exchanger or perhaps the prop is pitched in correctly.

My 4-108 has been hot as well.

210 degrees over 2800 RPM

185 @ 2100 t0 2400.

A steady rise, slowly but surely over 2400.

Seems to be the nature of the beast.

[Alan Wheeler]

Have you checked the Temp gauge or sender isn't giving you duff gen.

[CSY Man]

Have you checked the Temp gauge or sender isn't giving you duff gen.

Sender, gauge and wire brand new and calibrated in boiling water....

[pete]

I do not have a boat, but have been a lurker on this board for quite a while...mainly to daydream (and keep up with the Bumfuzzle madness!). Anyway, I work for a company in New Jersey which was a Perkins distributor for a number of years (I am an engine salesman), but now is a Master Service Dealer. I just wanted to make the offer of a 20% discount off list on Perkins parts to anyone on this board....just ask for Pete and mention this site. Usually only resellers get this discount, end users pay list.

As others have mentioned, Perkins are installed a lot in new boats, but mainly overseas. Most here will now choose the CAT branded Perkins, even though they are the exact same engine. We used to sell a lot of one-off type of repowers for fishing vessels, but did not have have any large volume OEM accounts. There have been rumors that smaller Yanmar marine engines are not going to meet Tier 2 emissions, but I don't see how that could be possible...they are a very big company with money to invest in technology. Anyway, hope the discount can help someone out....

Pete

www.kraftpower.com
(800) 221-3284