Yanmar 4JH3-TE vs Beta Marine 60

[rostyvyg]

So, our 4800 hours Yanmar 4JH3-TE burns oil. It's been religiously burning 1 qt per 30 hours for the last 2 years. It smokes a bit on startup, starts at a quarter turn, has no power loss and fuel consumption is within normal numbers. We are thinking of having it rebuilt or replaced with Beta Marine diesel. I like the naturally aspirated Beta 60, though. Would the loss of 15hp be critical? The boat is an Island Packet 420.

[skipperpete]

Not as easy to answer as it might appear, a lot depends on the actual OVERALL condition of your Yanmar. If its just a case of buying a set of rings, a gasket set and doing a valve grind I’d say go for that option but if you have a heat exchanger in questionable condition, an end of life mixer elbow 4 tired engine mounts and a less than excellent turbo on an engine with a sunburnt instrument panel thats lived a hard life, the Betamarine 60 might be the way to go. This way you get new engine mounts, new instrument panel, new gearbox and a warranty that Betamarine honors ( unless you or the installer does something stupid , no oil, hydrolock or damaging overheat being the most common). As to the lost 15hp, it would be useful if you calculated what hp you currently use from your Yanmar by either reviewing fuel consumption or noting your average cruising rpm, you might be surprised by how low your power usage actually is.