What would your recommendation be on repowering a 1988 Volvo 2003 28hp in a J-boat J/37? Boat weighs in at 13,500lbs plus gear and has a Maxpro. The engine is center boat under the lift up main cabin table, so access is good. This is not a saildrive.
Hello Paul, You can use either the Beta 28 or the Beta 30 to good effect. These engines have the same dimensions and are available on the same mount centers as the 2003. The diameter of your Max Prop (2 blade or 3?) will determine which transmission ratio will work best for you. Does your boat have the 7 degree down angle transmission? Stanley
Thanks for the info that you supplied. Now that I have the rest of the info I would go with the Beta 30 with 2.45:1 TMC60A. This combination will give you the best performance. I recommend having your Max Prop modified to a 16 or 17" diameter as the pitch on 18" diameter is to fine to be efficient. Speak to Fred at PYI to get this arranged.
The Beta 28 and Beta 30 are dimensionally the same. The 28 is built as a 1001cc version whereas the 30 has 1123cc.
Other than drilling a few new holes for the flex mounts and changing the shaft coupling (we provide a new one with the engine), you should not have any installation issues.
That is interesting what you say about the Maxprop diameter. It was on the boat when I bought it, but I'm pretty sure it was what PYI said to put on. If I have to chnage the blades out it will probably be better to reduce replace all with new. PYI is proud of their Maxprop parts and re-works. If I stuck with the 18in prop, how much of an issue do you think it would be?
It looks like the throttle control and alternator are on the opposite sides of my current engine, so that will take some re-routing and possibly extending.
The Beta 30 has differant characteristics to the 2003 Volvo and the transmissions have differant ratios. My prop calc program has come up with what should be the most efficient propeller for the vessel. If you contact PYI, I think that they will make the same recommendation as me. The flat blades of the Max Prop react differently to the water than the curved blades on a fixed prop and they have a sweet spot where they are most efficient (this varies from one diameter to another). PYI currently charge $300 to cut down the blades and this is not unreasonable (new blades will be about $1500).
Moving a flexible control cable from one side of the engine compartment to the other should not be an issue. The engine is completely wired up and tested at the factory before shipping so the only wiring that you should have to do is plug the panel harness to the engine harness and connect up the battery cables. You will obviously find other issues during your repower and most will be easy to work around with a little thought. It is possible that you may need new throttle and gearshift cables but these are quite cheap. Your engine control at the helm should be in good condition so re-use it.
One thing to make note of when you place your order is the length of panel harness that is needed to get from the engine to the panel position. I always prefer to have this harness in one piece instead of a plug together connection in the middle. This avoids a potential electrical corrosion issue after a few years service.
