Yanmar 3ym30

[Billesp]

Thank you

[BigBeakie]

As another 3YM30 owner, it would be appreciated if you could come back and let us know the cause when you get it sorted out. That
Thanks in advance.

[Billesp]

Hi BigBeakie
The Yanmar Agent has been very helpful. I’ve had two mechanics round four times. They’ve run the engine and search for leaks, but to no avail. I have been in contact with another Yanmar Agent in Palermo and he suggested taking it up there to have the water system. Pressure tested, but another likely cause could be the top to the coolant may be having a faulty spring on it so I’m going to fit a new one. The engine runs fine but we did plough through the meltemi. I’m going to continue on my journey and keep my eye on it.
It is still under warranty for another month, so if the problem re-occurs, it should show up in that time, and then it will be straight into the workshop.

[Roux]

Originally Posted by Billesp

This afternoon I had two mechanics from Yanmar around to check my engine. After an hour of running the engine at various speeds, they could not reproduce the problem that l had. They said for me to run the engine for two hours tonight and they will come back at 9 o’clock in the morning to check it over again. One thing I don’t understand is I topped up the coolant and engine oil as they were low two days ago and left it like that. I had also completely clean the bilge of any residual oil and coolant yet there is now oil and water in the bilges now. I will clean it once more and see how it is in the morning .
Thanks for all you replies.

You do know that when you pull the dipstick the first time it will not show oil and you have to insert and pull it again? Maybe you overfilled the oil?

[sinnerman]

Originally Posted by Billesp

First, let me say how pleased I am to be a part of your group. I do hope someone can help me.
After a passage from Greece, to Sicily I found I was low in coolant and oil, and there was oil and water in the bilge. At first, I thought the head gasket had gone, but there was no water in the engine. The oil was in the coolant.

Show my new friends I love you with bated breath and await your replies. Thank you in advance BillESB

You stated oil and WATER (not coolant) in the bilge.

You can have oil leak out of the engine into the bilge if you add too much oil - OR_ do not properly / completely seat the dip stick. Was there a lot of oil in the coolant or just some light oil residue?

If you have water in the oil it will turn the oil a milky color. It will not show up as water alone.

Per memory, I think (not sure) that the oil supply for the valve train on Yanmar's is via a tube running outside ot the engine to the head (i.e. not through the head gasket). Therefore if the head gasket is bad, no high pressure oil can force it's way into the coolant. Oil getting into the coolant would be via the gravity return of the oil draining back to the block; since the coolant system is pressurized the flow would be in the other direction (coolant to oil).

Unless you have something like a crack in the head or block (ouch).

A bad head gasket could still be the problem if I am wrong on the tube above.

Also, if the engine is a new install, did they retorque the head bolts after the engine's initial run in? (50 hours I think...). [Retorque engine bolts / readjust valve clearances..]

cheers.

[Icarus]

Originally Posted by Billesp

First, let me say how pleased I am to be a part of your group. I do hope someone can help me.

After a passage from Greece, to Sicily I found I was low in coolant and oil, and there was oil and water in the bilge. At first, I thought the head gasket had gone, but there was no water in the engine. The oil was in the coolant. I cannot get a mechanic for love nor money, so if anyone could enlighten me as to what to do, it looks like I will have to do it myself.

Show my new friends I love you with bated breath and await your replies. Thank you in advance BillESB

Oil and water in the bilge? Engine low on coolant and oil?
Head gasket blown.

[Billesp]

I would like to thank everyone who replied to this post.
The end result is that the engine was under guarantee from yanmar and they have been incredibly thorough in their response to the problem that I found. After three visits by two mechanics carrying out various tests on the engine. They said they couldn’t find any problem like leaks et cetera. So I have now run the engine for around 10 hours and there hasn’t been a problem. One of the things they said it could be a faulty cap on the coolant container on the engine which will be replaced

[skipperpete]

Hey thanks for reporting back, really good news that Yanmar took a thorough look into what the problem was, safe travels Billsp.