When you're voyaging as much as John and Amanda Swan Neal do every year, teaching sailors aboard their Hallberg Rassy 46, Mahina Tiare III, you need a dependable, fuel-efficient engine. What they decided to re-power, what model did they choose? Find out below and look in the upcoming issue of ON for a longer interview with this well-traveled pair of offshore sailors.
"We chose a smaller, lighter Volvo D2-75 (75 hp) to replace the 95 hp TMD31L that had 14,100 nearly flawless hours on it. As I’ve been planning on this repowering for several years, I interviewed mechanics, dealers and owners worldwide and came to the conclusion that the engines were very similar but the Volvo was slightly smoother and quieter and has far better parts availability, and just as important, far longer parts support. Yanmar has a better reputation for resolving warranty issues and a larger market share.
"The results are that we saved 272 pounds, the new engine runs at 2800 RPM WOT vs. 3850 so it is much quieter, has less vibration. It is also much cleaner with no visible smoke at any speed and appears to have better fuel efficiency. Our top speed went from 7.9 kts (8.3 when the engine was new) on the old engine to 8.67 on the new engine but that may be more a function of changing from a Max Prop to Flexofold prop. Although the Flexofold has a reputation for being tops in efficiency, we miss the Max Prop’s amazing stopping performance in reverse and unbeatable customer service."
