CAT C-18 Engine Life Expectancy?

The E-rated C18's are rated at 1015 MHP and have been for almost a decade they've been out and 1150 MHP in the recent acert version according to the owner's manual's I've read and all of the advertisement I've seen, as well as several posters above this have stated. Is there some reason your picking at apples or splitting hairs anyways? In fact I'll be running a set of the 1150's tommorow and the following day in a new boat with 5 journalists on board to Paradise and Harbour Island. 1001, 1015 would be a difference of what?

Needless to say the C18 is a great motor by all accounts and probably the best in it's class and hp rating. It is a sad day to see it being replaced with a new block.

Hi,

14 Hp if the same value was used to calculate it.

Why CAT uses a German std (MHP) to rate their engines is beyond me except to cause confusion and claim a big number very few would have any idea of.

Just so happens that I look at alot of ID tags on alot of different kinds of engines and I have never seen a 1015 hp c-18 engine, now if you look in the book you will see that 1015 hp is actually 1015 mhp which is metric but this is not printed on the ID tag on the engines but 1001 bhp is.

So if you want to quote a metric HP for a caterpillar engine in an American yacht feel free, I am not "uptight" about it and if you were to read my original post I was only advising that any potential buyer should check to see the engine hours are not different by 200 to 250 on that particular Lazarra as one 68 had to have a new engine and the head has been off the other engine a couple of times due to oil leaks.

Caterpillar are now requesting that before any warranty work is performed due to oil leaks a dye is put into the oil and the engine run. Then a picture is taken and sent to the head office for them to OK the work.

Is it a big deal to take 5 journalists on a trip. ?.

Depends on who the journalists are.

Hi,

I agree with above post but would like to suggest it is mostly like taking a shower with the pubic lice shampoo, no big deal at all unless your flaky ego needs an inflation

Further to my one on MHP - BSFC is how consumption is generally worked out, the use of a spurious value for an engine will quickly be determined by use of a strain gauge and flow meter during initial and subsequent sea trials.

CAT are not alone in these funny numbers, MTU used to be the all time classic in PtW claims.

I could careless about running a boat with journalists on board or any guests for that matter and prefer a straight delivery.......and could careless about an ego........

Besides the fact, the 1150hp versions run very good and very very smooth. They appear to run quieter than the 1015 version, however it's a slightly different boat (very similar) than the closest ones with the 1015hp I've run....... They used 80gph at 80% load.....the 1015's are closer to 73-75gph........ The 1150's seemed to have less valvetrain noise/engine noise at under 1000 rpms, and less exhaust and turbo noise at cruise.......just smoother in general.......

I am sure there may be a problematic C18 here or there in a very limited number.......but 2 on the same boat sounds VERY fishy.

Purely out of interest, why do you insist on quoting metric HP ratings when you are in America and the actual HP on the ID plate shows 1001 BHP which is an American standard.

Does the boat you run (or ran) have an ID plate that showed 1015 or the newer rating at 1150.

...and would you consider 2 C-32's letting go during the same short sea passage even more fishy even bearing in mind the problems that those engines had (have).

I quote them in the metric rating because that is how the manufacturer rates them, and advertises them.

No, the first 150 sets of C32's were known to have inherent problems and CAT rebuilt and remedied them. The C18's have been out for a very long time and are proven and not known to have any inherent issues, neither have the later C32's. The lack of any inherent issues in the motor then raises flags to have 2 on the same boat with issues.

Again just wondering if those boats you run have an ID plate on the Cat C-18 that states 1015 or 1150. What do you say when asked what size of Azimut you run or say a Princess. Did you look at the engines when you are on board or read the book.

I also understand that the C-18 was introduced in 2003 and the C-32 in 2004, not a big time difference and what was the inherent problem with the C-32's.

Did I mention that those 2 letting go were early models, I do not think so, in fact they are pretty new (last year). Maybe you are mixing up Heui's and ACERT'S.

I am going to work on a pair of brand new C-18's in the morning so it will be interesting to have a look at the ID plate, listen to the brokers, dealers, Captain & crew and I will ask the surveyors how they describe the HP. I do know the sales manager told me that they were 1000 HP so the plot thickens' .

PS. No journalists but three brokers & a photographer.

Tim Caruso is the guy for the job. Great surveryor and a gentleman.
Don't loose your time on amateurs. eloy !!! For a CAT engine survey call him ..!
(not affiliated to Tim on anyway, just another customer) here is info.
Marine Diesel Analysts Inc.
772-285-6770

regards from Miami, Eloy

Hi,

As the post above yours was made over 2 yrs ago I would hope the guy found what he was looking for by now.

There is another great CAT Guy who used to work at Pantropic with Tim he is called Gary Keppler, his company is On Site Diesel in Cooper City

I was recently told by the Caterpillar distributor that although the 3406, C-15 and C-18 share the same foot print and exterior dimensions they are not the same engine blocks. All new at the time.

Agree 100%.

Exchanged texts with Tim yesterday. He is booked out for weeks.

Charlie Smith.....from Smith and Wick in Palm Beach does a great survey. Keppler is a bit over the top, wants to do every 200 rpms for 10 minutes, in BOTH directions. Did a survey with him on a 38 knot (WOT) several years back 63' GT and went from FLL to Palm Beach and back........it was ridiculous......hull surveyor, buyers, brokers were all ticked off as it took forever and we got back to the dock after 5 pm.......

Tim requests the same sea trial data. Problem was your boat was too quick

Just in case you didn't notice, the post you quoted is dated 2011.
Anyway, my understanding is that the block indeed was the same for the 3406 and the C15, but not for the C18.

There is absolutely NO reason you need to do 10 full minutes at every 200 RPM's. But I could see that if you didn't have to do it for 10 minutes at each rpm point in BOTH directions, which he wasn't even recording the boat speed. 200 minutes of analyzing the engines running, considering it was a 2 year old boat and NO issues? That's almost 3.5 hours. Caterpillar doesn't even call for this for the initial engine startup seatrial for the engine, or for the seatrial to sell extended warranties. 5 minutes every 200 rpms is plenty sufficient, in ONE direction to see what you need to see. Then after we got to the dock and I was leaving the boat, I asked if he was leaving soon or he could lock the boat up. He mentioned he had another 4 hours on the boat. This boat was owned by the manufacturer, surveyed by one of the most acknowledged hull surveyors, the buyers, their Captain, and me and we ALL were annoyed with it.

As you know Tim does a cold engine inspection the day before sea trial. Brokers and owners ask, "what he is doing in the ER for so long". I have always thought the survey process gets hurried along, not all boats can be thoroughly surveyed and sea trialed in one day. Hull and engine surveyors doing a dockside inspection before haulout/sea trial day makes a lot of sense to provide time to cover everything.