Volvo IPS Pods - Worth It?

[sgharford]

There have been allot of cool new boats hauled at my marina this year. Latest one is an 88' 100% carbon fiber Delta motor yacht that only weighs 50 tons and cruises at 30 knots. We were joking last night it was the future "Exodus" (name of my boat), I told him I needed a few years of depreciation to happen first Anyway, reason most of these cool new yachts are coming in is service on their Volvo IPS pods. My neighbor has a Azimut 55 with 3 pods and 2 of them are currently in need of service - every season there is something with at least 1 of them. Apparently not many marina's willing to work on them and have to wait on Volvo specialist to come in and do the work. So I'm curious what you guys are seeing and hearing about Volvo IPS Pods reliability and overall owner satisfaction?

[oscarvan]

As compared to an Allison M20 with a straight shaft out the back door?

[sgharford]

Well yes, especially from the yacht owner who had traditional running gear and now own pods. Do the advantages of efficiency and maneuverability make it worth it based on reliability they have experienced with their own pods? For me, it would be compared to something I never have to think about - my 1976 Capitol transmission and shafts have required a total investment of about $50 in gore flax, $50 in oil and about 6 hours total labor in past 13 years/800 hours of use.

[jmooney]

I know someone who has a 42 Sabre , I think that Sabre boats are great , but I would only want straight shafts and normal transmissions. His boat has IPS drives . He has already replaced one with just under a thousand hours. He mentioned about $10, 000 for the repair. The reason that he stated is that the exhaust runs through the lower unit without being in separate tubing , the steering is electric and it is located in the same area. He claims that the exhaust hastened the demise of the steering actuator. He told me that he was selling the boat before the other unit needed attention. I can’t verify any of this , but I know simple is better , especially for people like us who have older boats.

[Pascal]

I m not a big fan. They have benefits especially for inexperienced new owners due to ease of handling and are more economical. However I don’t believe the extra initial cost and maintenance are offset by fuel savings.

Service has to be done by Volvo. A friend of mine has them on a 50 footer and the boat was stuck for 3 weeks in the Carolinas on the way back up and one drive failed.

If you rarely venture far from your home area it may not be an issue but I can’t imagine the costs of flying a mech and parts to the Bahamas ...

[motoryacht lover]

Supposedly the later generations are better/more reliable. From what I hear owners love the performance, space, and dockside handling. But I think the evidence is in that they require frequent service and their seals are vulnerable to fishing line and just plain fail leading to water intrusion which ruins the oil and thus the pod. If you could dry stack the boat and stay stateside then maybe but I wouldn’t want to venture to the Bahamas in a pod boat where service is problematic. Would be interested to hear what the markets think on older pod boats value relative to their straight shaft sistership.

[SeaEric]

This "due diligence" info was suggested as of 2017:

IPS Generation A - First model - Roughly 2005-2007 - Need Steering Seals updated - Need
Full Flow Gear Oil Kits Installed

IPS Generation B - Second Revision - Change to Pressure Relief Valve- Roughly 2006-2008
- Need Steering Seals updated - Need Full Flow Gear Oil Kits Installed

IPS Generation C - Third Revision - Addition of Vertical Shaft Oil Pump- Roughly 2007-2010
- Some Need Steering Seals updated - All Need Full Flow Gear Oil Kits Installed

IPS Generation D - Fourth Revision - Addition of Full Flow Cooling - Addition of Reluctor
Wheel for Slip Clutches and DPS - Roughly 2010-2012- No Major Updates required - Just
check Service Bulletins

IPS Generation E - Fifth Revision - External Styling and Updates - Roughly 2012-2015 - No
Major Updates required - Just check Service Bulletins

IPS Generation E - Sixth and Current Revision - External Styling Updates - Roughly 2014-
Current - No Major Updates required - Just check Service Bulletins

IPS Full Flow Cooling Kits - Reverses the gear oil direction through the drive allowing all the
oil to travel through the gear oil cooler. Older models only allowed the bypass oil to cool and
they overheated and burned the clutches. Rough estimate = $2500 per unit. If they have a
black cylindrical manifold on the port side of the upper drive they have the updates.No
manifold = no updates.

IPS Steering Seal Updates - The older seals had inferior springs that would corrode
prematurely- Some time during revision C the springs were changed to a better material.
Rough estimate to replace = $10k per unit. Only way to tell if they have had the updates is
through receipts.

Please keep in mind that the engines, drives, and EVC (Electronic Vessel Control) systems
are very complex and the components can be surprisingly expensive. You should have
these systems checked prior to purchase by a certified Volvo IPS technician. Have the tech also
run the serial numbers through Volvo as well.

[oscarvan]

Eric I read that twice, and have changed my "no" to a "hell no".

That said, my dear old dad had the drives on his 48' Sabre, and in the 5 years he owned the boat didn't have any issues.... (500 hours +/-) And the yacht club breathed a sigh of relief when he got them as his docking maneuvers seized to be an "all hands on A dock" event......

[Pascal]

Somebody mentioned a triple IPS mutt 55. Can you imagine engine access with 3 engines in a 55? And mutts aren’t exactly wide beam boats ...

[SeaEric]

We sold a 52 ft-ish Cruisers Express with triple IPS in it. The new owners keep the boat in Baltimore Harbor and do a fair amout of slow booze cruising. In that scenario you can apparently run the center engine alone for a very economical slow trawl. As always, YMMV.