we just bought what we thought was our dream boat, a beautiful 04' searay 390 motoryacht in pristine condition and only 370 hrs. After a good sea trial and a clean bill of health from the surveyor we purchased the boat and set up our trip home from the sellers marina to ours a trip of about 150 miles or so. 4 hours into the trip we lost the starboard engine after a loud cough and a big puff of black smoke. The engines are cummins 8.3's w/480 hp.Has anyone had the same problem or heard of a similar case, we are heartbroken are trying to deal with the fact that no one wants to take responsibility are putting the repair solely on us. The mechanic said it swallowed a valve seat and probably damaged the cylinder and piston and maybe the rod. He also noted that engine maintenance appeared to be neglected with dirty air filters and rust on engine fuel filters.Any input would help Thanks
I think you are going to have to eat this one. But, You may want to consult with a lawyer. Unless there is a warranty, or some intentional fraud, usually sales contracts have legal language that protects the seller and broker from any mechanical defects after the closing. Im sorry that this happened to your new boat.
Agree. Unless the person doing your prepurchase inspection totally misrepresented the state and repair of the engines, its probably not worth the pain and suffering. Suggest: 1. Find a good mechanic who you plan to use going forward. Ask other boaties at your marina for their advice. 2. Get the guy to fix the motor, then check the other motor. Yes it will cost. 3. If he says it just looks like bad luck - have a few beers, curse your luck, think of others worse off, and write the cheque. 4. If he says the engine has not been maintained and the inspection missed it, get the evidence from your mechanic including the cost of putting it right. From here, I'll leave it to the US members to give their view on how to pursue the inspector. On a brighter note, don't feel too bad. You are not the first boat owner whose first repair bill was more than the cost of their first car. My first boat cost 50k and the first service bill on the engines was 5K. My first car cost $3k. It will be a good war story for dinner convesation. There will be good days to balance the not so good days. Warm calm nights under a bright sky, wine in hand...
Break Out Another Thousand (or in this case about 30). Welcome to the wonderful world of boats. The other posters are correct. This is on you. One of my clients had a very similar situation, except that the boat they purchased did have good maintenance. Everything indicated a knowledgeable owner, and everything clean as a whistle inside and out. A little over 200 hours on the '04 motors (Yanmars). 13 hours later, same thing. The only thing that I can point to with both of these boats, and it's a problem with most, is too few hours. Motors like and need to be run. When they sit they corrode. I like to see boats get at least 100 to 200 hours per year, and to move at least every 2 weeks during season to keep things lubricated. Boating is a continual learning experience, but it sounds like you jumped straight into college. Unfortunately your options are very limited. You'll most likely be spinning your wheels if you try to get someone else to pay. If you try to sell the boat without making the repairs you'll lose more than the rebuild will cost. Last piece of bad news is that your 2013 boating season if pretty much finished. You'll probably get the motor back about time for winter layup. Make sure that you use a reputable motor shop, and that the warranty starts at spring launch. Real sorry to hear about your distress and wish there were some positive things to advise, but there's just not. Good luck.
Sorry to hear about your bad luck. Unfortunately, when you buy a used boat, it is usually as is which is why you need to do full hull and mechanical surveys. Did you do both hull and engine survey or just hull? On a diesel boat, doing a full engine survey is critical Was the surveyor recommended by the broker or seller? If so, it s never a good idea as you should find your own to ensure there are no conflict of interest. That said, many mechanical failures can happen with no warning and may not be detectd at survey.
Pascal brought up a good point. It is a good thing to get a surveryor not connected to, or recommended by the seller or broker. I agree with NYCAP, its not a good thing for a boat or its power to sit unused. BTW, Boat US has a good surveyor referral service I have had very positive experience with the Boat US surveyor referral list.
Very sorry to hear this. Did you manage to get your boat to your home marina? That would certainly be a good thing. Where are you located? I'm not sure what engine access is like on those boats. Can the engine come out or will they make the repair in-hull? The good news is that the boat and engine are fairly new and fairly common. This bodes well for being able to find a critical thing you need ... great shop with great references and experience doing this type of repair. You are having the horrible introduction to your new boat (same thing happened to me). It is salvageable. Get it fixed. Learn as much as you can about proper maintenance of ALL of the systems of your boat. I use a spreadsheet where I keep track of all maintenance and make notes on maintenance intervals, part numbers, suppliers, vendors etc. 370 hours in 8-9 years is not much use. A critical question is ...what was the maintenance on those engines during that period? You may want to visit/join boatdiesel to begin the long process of learning as much as possible about your engines, what to look for, what to maintain. Some of these engines have installation specific issues (calling for regular recurring maintenance). The result of failing to do these things is sometimes ... dropped valves. You will need to make sure the maintenance issues are addressed on the other engine as well. If you are able to get the engine fixed this summer and be running by fall, that would be nice.
Cummins Engines You have a pair of the toughest diesels on the market. Symptoms you experienced can be nothing more than fuel starvation...clogged filter(s). With the very low hours on these engines, can be problematic. Fuel may require polishing due to age. Hopefully you have a qualified Cummins shop involved by now. Would expect the selling broker would assist in taking care of this. Post response with status and outcome.
Hi, The OP hasn't been on the Forum for over a month so hopefully he is out enjoying his boat and not just given up on yachting all together.
