Yanmar leg in penta leg trough hull place

[elias]

Hi to all,
We are thinking the possibility to go electric . One of the many concerns is if the bell marine 25KW sailmaster motor , equipped with yanmar sd25 leg can fit on the hole of the current penta . Any ideas ?

[symphony2]

While it uses the Yanmar leg it does not seem to use the Yanmar mounts and diaphragm so I guess you will have to remove all the Volvo beds and glass over the existing hole then create a hole and structure to take the new motor and drive.

Have you actually worked through what is involved to get such an installation up to a level where it both functions and produces something with a reasonable range before recharging. Where are you going to store the enormous battery bank required to give anything more than a few hours low speed running before you need to plug into a mains charger?

Look forward to watching you struggle with the laws of physics which have so far prevented adoption of electric power on cruising boats, although Salona have perhaps got closest with their twin regenerating pod drive 46. In a different league technically from the drive you are looking at.

[elias]

It is an exciting but terrifying project and we are just in the phase of collecting data . The battery though isn’t so heavy . The d255 is 250kg with a full fuel tank 200kg , exhaust and controls 20kg , 2*140ah batteries + 1* 80ah + 1*75ah for engine start weighs 120kg, sum is 620kg . While electric motor 125kg, 19kwh battery 230kg, gen 11kw 344kg sums 700kg. 80kg heavier is the electric .
As we studied so far electric propulsion to match the power and range of our d255 is impossible and if it does to a descent level ( 30-35 NM range with a speed of 5 knots ) it will cost around 50.000 euros .
On the other hand , a charter boat spends around 100€ per week on diesel , 2000€per year . The last 5 years we have spend more than 12.000€ In the d2 55 through the local Volvo dealer. Thank God the engine never ever failed , and still takes the b44 hull at 8knots in 2000 rpm .
Let’s say that we have the chance to upgrade our engine through a funding to go greener . Shouldn’t explore the choice of going electric or just get a new greener Volvo or Yanmar ?

But we have to face it . In EU the last combustion engines will be at 2030. The marine sector is coming next .

[symphony2]

I find it difficult to understand how you can spend that amount on your engine. My last boat ran for 7 years charter work  and apart from a blown head gasket under warranty needed nothing except oil, filter and coolant changes in 3500 hours.

In a way you have already answered your own question - pure electric is simply impractical for a charter boat because of the poor energy density of batteries resulting in inadequate speed and range. What charterer is going to want a boat that has a range of 35 miles before needing several hours of shorepower. Adding a generator defeats the object of going electric. You can buy 4 new Volvos for the cost of a basic electric conversion!

Why are you worried about the future? There are currently no proposals to ban diesel for industrial use - which is where our marine engines come from. You have to believe in fairies to believe IC engines will suddenly cease to exist  (or even be on sale) in 2030.

There is little difference between the current D2 55 and your existing engine - model life cycles are typically 25-30 years. If your engine is as troublesome as your bills suggest, suggest you buy a new one and it will last the rest of the economic life of the boat.

[elias]

We spend that money cause of the fear of failure . Eg the leg gasket I could tell that was super healthy but Volvo says to be changed every 7years . We change the clutch every 3 years . Changed the coolant pump circulator just to be sure cause we saw some tiny look like scale deposit around it . Changed all the gaskets ( fuel pump gaskets , crankshaft gaskets etc ) cause they were leaking a little . Take out the cylinder cap for cleaning , alternator and ignition motor for check and service, new bearings inside the leg and some more … All done by official Volvo dealer so we can be sure and by the book .

To be honest , the idea of a fuel independent boat is fascinating but for charter ( in the charters we are always onboard as skippers ) is very difficult at the moment .
Still though imagine this , a charter boat equipped with more performance sails like furled battened main , laminated Genoa , furled spinnaker so it can take the most of any wind( and hydrogeneration while sailing ) , a clever and elegant as possible pv array around 400-500w ,a back up generator and an electric motor and battery to give a range of 40NM sounds like a fairy tail ( super expensive one !) but is not so impossible don’t you think ?

[symphony2]

The Salona 460 will suit you. Has all the characteristics you are looking for - at a price of course. Worth watching this, although you may find the presenters a bit annoying!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpAnGJpcnQU

[elias]

I can’t even for 1’ , but it needs a whole thread discuss why… anyway through my search I contacted already Salona. But the 46 is around 320.000 ready to sail … way off budget. Thanks for the suggestions . I keep that leg is another obstacle to that idea .

[symphony2]

Not a serious suggestion that you buy one - just illustrating that electric only starts to work when you have a big boat that can sail consistently at above 6 knots for meaningful regeneration and can operate in a way that fits within the speed/range available. I can see many locations in Croatia where this would work as they have many more marinas and arguably more consistent winds than in Greece but don't think it will ever become mainstream.

You seem to do very well running such an old boat commercially. I think you just have to accept that on a 17 year old boat, maintenance and replacement will be a major part of your budget. Against that the capital value of your boat is low - a new equivalent would be well north of 200k euros. However a new engine would probably cut your annual maintenance costs by up to 70%, paying for itself in 6 or 7 years.

Assessing these sorts of decisions was my bread and butter when I was working and my conclusions were almost always buy new and follow maintenance schedules to the letter. Apply to cars and boats equally if you buy them for their functionality rather than to boost ego! Of course you have to take a long term view (my last car did 15 years) and have the capital to begin with (or ability to borrow).