MTU 16V2000 in frame

[Pascal]

Not in a Hatteras but since there are many Detroit fans here I figure i d post a few pics of the office starboard engine rebuild

Started on Tuesday.. they already have all the turbos, manifolds and all 16 heads off. Found traces of coolant leakage in four aft cylinders. Still minimal and didn’t get into the cylinder but only a matter of time according to the mechanics. Engine has 3800 hours. Reason for rebuild was oil sample showing fuel trace in the oil and main bearing wear. Port was rebuilt last year. 4000 hours is pretty normal on these… next they’re going to drop the pan, and pull the pistons/liners out.

[Pascal]

Cylinders and pistons

[madhatter1]

So each cylinder has its own head?

[Captain Ralph]

So each cylinder has its own head?

Oh yea...
That's a great reason I luv the newer models from most of the mfgs.
Later exhaust logs are starting to become multiple mini logs per side.

[cww]

The Miami guys really get it done on engine rebuilds, it's a whole different mindset down there. When I needed my engines rebuilt all the local companies in Jacksonville had 3-6 month wait lists, and that's if you could even get them to show up or call you back to begin with. I said screw it and got guys from down there and paid extra for travel. They had everything done in a month and a half. That's despite anything that could go wrong did go wrong (like turbo housings were too far out of spec so needed new turbos, some rotten exhaust components that there was a wait on parts, a ton of stuff like that).

If I'd used anybody local I might have been back on the water by Christmas if I was lucky.

[HahnR]

The Miami guys really get it done on engine rebuilds, it's a whole different mindset down there. When I needed my engines rebuilt all the local companies in Jacksonville had 3-6 month wait lists, and that's if you could even get them to show up or call you back to begin with. I said screw it and got guys from down there and paid extra for travel. They had everything done in a month and a half. That's despite anything that could go wrong did go wrong (like turbo housings were too far out of spec so needed new turbos, some rotten exhaust components that there was a wait on parts, a ton of stuff like that).

If I'd used anybody local I might have been back on the water by Christmas if I was lucky.

Better at least. It took 10 months to get our 8v92 overhauled in the most God forsaken place there is to get any work done on a boat - Savannah, Ga.

It ran 349 hours before it sh*t the bed, at least we got it home. Called up Interstate Power out of Milwaukee, took 2 1/2 weeks from the time they first wrenched on it until the sea trial for a complete overhaul including them rebuilding one of the heads in house. Even at that they apologized because they had to work on another job for 5 days they had previously committed to during that time.

My father-in-law asked me at the time what I thought of them, I told him I didn't think they knew what they were doing - the lead mechanic called me at 6:45 am one morning, he was already on the boat & had been working for a while LOL.

That was in 2019, maybe a totally different story now, I don't know. Just saying it doesn't have to take months & months if they have a work ethic.

[Pascal]

Getting any work done these days is hit or miss. The worst is when you have reliable people who become… well unreliable to put it mildly. I just went thru this with a fiberglass and paint guy who I had been using for 10 years on a number of projects on my own boat and boats I run. Maybe $60k of work in the last 1 years. He just botched a $4k job on my 53 and wouldn’t make it right. He lost me as well as two jobs with boats on my pier. When neighbors see horrendous orange peel… they run!

A friend of mine just got a $4k bill, 20 hours of labor for two guys to pull an after cooler on a small Cat engine on a Cabo. That’s more time that it took to pull the turbos, manifolds and heads on this V16!

Last year they did the port engine in 5 1/2 weeks. This time they had time to order the parts, some had to come from Germany and have them prepped incl painting the heads etc.

[madhatter1]

I have a qualified 2 stroke Detroit diesel mechanic. I wait my turn and then pay the price, no questions asked. They are fair and don’t rip me off. Now at $129 an hour. But RV dealership charges $165 an hour. Yeah, I get that they have acreage of land and big buildings to pay for but the tech is not the sharpest spoon in the drawer!😄

[q240z]

Holy smokes, that engine is HUGE! Individual heads is a brilliant innovation.

How's the access to the bottom end?

[Pascal]

Holy smokes, that engine is HUGE! Individual heads is a brilliant innovation.

How's the access to the bottom end?

It s ok. Enough space between engine and stringers to drop the pan and do
The bottom end