I'm getting a new turbo, more power?

I had a crack in the exhaust side, the fins had been hitting and scarred the shaft. I asked what would cause this he said, poor maintenance or shutting down after ahard run with out letting it cool. Or maybe just old, the motor was said to have 850 hours on it when I got it a year ago, and i may have put 100 hours in it, he said that was pretty low hours for this to go out. So maybe just a bad turbo? But he said this new turbo is more powerful and if i would like we could tweak the fuel pump and put out another 20 or 30 hp. had anyone tried this with a Ad41? any thoughts or experiences good or bad. Thanks Erik

How did you know it was bad to begin with? How did you know it was cracked? Did you see the crack? My 2004 Blackman has 2300 hours on it and I have never touched the turbo its self. Replaced the elbow and turbo gaskets at 1500 hours. What maintenance is he talking about? Thanks Joe

I took the boat down to the marina to run it and get the oil hot for a oil change, I only could hit 2000 rpms, no power turned around and back at the dock my compressor fins wouldn't spin. I took the turbo to a shop and they diagnosed the problem I went to the shop on monday and visualized the crack and could see where the fins had been rubbing, as well as the shaft was starting to groove. He said poor maintenance (oil changes) typically leads to this, dirty oil getting between the shaft and bushings. E.,

Hey Erik:

I go overboard when it comes to oil changes, probably 50 hours or so. I too replaced the elbow and the filter on a regular basis. What other maintenance is required?


Mike

Erik,

Considering that you have so few hours, is the engine still under warranty? If not probably no big deal getting trhe additional work to squeeze out some more HP. If you don't mind me asking, what did te new turbo set you back $?

Mine seems to be fine, but, just in case, I' d like to know how bad it might hurt my wallet.

Thanks,
Scott

well the motor is a 92' so I'm guessing the warranty is out, $1300 and this is a upgraded turbo 30% more power they say, especially at lower rpm range, I gave the mechanic the numbers off of the fuel pump and he is getting me the tweaks to boost the h.p. to 230 or so, he hasn't got back to me yet.

Hey Mike,
basically oil changes is all that is required to keep the turbo happy he said, that being said, dirty oil is the "normal" cause, but also shutting a hot engine off after a hard run and not allowing the turbo to cool can cause issues as well ie cracks , hot bearings, blah blah blah. He couldn't tell me what caused it just the normal things that cause it, did this engine have more hours than you were led to believe when you got it? That may be a possibility with the outdrive last year and the turbo now? Anyway I just feel real proud as an american to be doing my part for the economic recovery, have the rest of you been doing your part, oh yeah this is a boat owners web site stupid question. Erik

Hey Erik:

I bought the boat through Steve Blackman, he was and currently is a boat broker and sells used Blackmans. This is the information I recieved when I bought it. It was also addressed when I had the boat surveyed, I think I gave you a copy? I think I may have the contact information for the original owner. I could PM you his info if needed.

Mike

Hey Dirty E!

That engine on the Patron had exactly the hours that were on the tach. Period………That engine ran at idle after every “hot” stop almost without exception and had more oil changes that any diesel engine I own. Not as many as Mikes 50 hour changes but at the 100 hour number. Delo all the time. That hour number includes my personal F350 and a fleet of company Cummins powered trucks, trolling at 5.9 by the way does not constitute a hot stop.


As for your American contribution, I’m glad as an American your behind us, but Volvo Penta is a Swedish company. As a person of Swedish extraction hurrah, hurrah. Mike PM sent!

I think I had my turbo rebuilt twice during the 5500 hour lifespan; once @ 2700 and the other around 42-4400. Not being able to reach 4000 W.O.T and seeing a little black smoke tint rising above the boat wake on flat glassy days were the telltale signs. I would also grab the turbo vane and check for sideplay and freedom of spin each time I changed the air filter. I think I had the injection pump rebuilt 3 times and we went through the injectors 4 times,changed the elbow once, intercooler twice, and heat exchanger once, replaced raw water pump complete once, probably 8 or so impellers; replaced the recirculating pump once, alternator 4 or 5 times and 2 starters.

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Originally Posted by DOGHOUSE26

I think I had my turbo rebuilt twice during the 5500 hour lifespan; once @ 2700 and the other around 42-4400. Not being able to reach 4000 W.O.T and seeing a little black smoke tint rising above the boat wake on flat glassy days were the telltale signs. I would also grab the turbo vane and check for sideplay and freedom of spin each time I changed the air filter. I think I had the injection pump rebuilt 3 times and we went through the injectors 4 times,changed the elbow once, intercooler twice, and heat exchanger once, replaced raw water pump complete once, probably 8 or so impellers; replaced the recirculating pump once, alternator 4 or 5 times and 2 starters.

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Wow! That is a lot of hours .how many years did that take to rack up?

From 1995 to August of last year. And that was the second repower. The original Volvo package went from November 1987 until Spring 1995 with 4480 hours. A cracked oil pick up tube caused the motor to oil starve the upper end which led to the first repower.

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Originally Posted by Professor

Hey Dirty E!

That engine on the Patron had exactly the hours that were on the tach. Period………That engine ran at idle after every “hot” stop almost without exception and had more oil changes that any diesel engine I own. Not as many as Mikes 50 hour changes but at the 100 hour number. Delo all the time. That hour number includes my personal F350 and a fleet of company Cummins powered trucks, trolling at 5.9 by the way does not constitute a hot stop.


As for your American contribution, I’m glad as an American your behind us, but Volvo Penta is a Swedish company. As a person of Swedish extraction hurrah, hurrah. Mike PM sent!

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Uh professor, we are talking about the old Mac Attack, my boat, are you thinking we were talking about your boat? Hey Mike i dont think I need that info I was just curious if you ever questioned the hours, it really doesn't matter now, I'm just learning everyday what it takes to be a boat owner. No bad feelings its a used boat and only time and money from here on out. Erik

Hey Dirty E, sorry to hear of your turbo problems.

The same thing happen to mine a while ago. I think I got lucky and caught it right as rust was just beginning to touch the fins. A little WD or Aero Kroil and a careful cleaning along with replacement of the elbow salvaged mine.

I don't know if the exhaust elbow on the 41 is the same as on my 40 but if it is I would suspect that the elbow leaked raw water from where the inner stainless elbow is flared and "fastened" to the turbo or upstream end of the elbow. Those cast iron elbows generate a certain amount of rust over time and eventually the flakes of rust will start to block the flow of the raw water being pumped into the space between that inner stainless elbow and the cast iron one. If the flaired end of the inner stainless elbow does not seal with the cast iron end of the outer elbow the raw water can leak from between the two, exposing the exhaust side of the turbo to raw water (sea water). I suspect that as the rust flakes build up and the pressure increases in that area between the two, any leakage will be increased. I looked at the new Volvo elbow that I bought and decided to test the seal on that end and sure enough it leaked. I wound up asking a friend to braze that seam for me and I haven't had any trouble with it since. If your engine ever starts to run warmer than usual I would pull that thing and use a piece of coat hanger to work those rust flake out (great technique, courtesy of Mike). You don't want to know what I went through before I learned that one.

Hope the new turbo get you going.

Hey E,
Going to give my opinion on the fuel pump tweak you asked about. IMO, the 20-30 HP isn't worth the time/effort/$$ to make the fuel pump adjustment and potential engine stress. Honestly, how much faster do we need our Blackman's to go? Full disclosure: I'm happy to get to an efficient speed and cruise. If you find yourself racing home to beat pitch black, then the extra 1/2 to 1 nmph might be worth it.

Well I performed the tweaks from a injection shop, all it took was a torx bit and end Wrench, I gave the top screw(forget the name of it) located right on top of the injection pump a full turn(i may have this backwards I would have to look again) and then there is a low end screw on the back of the pump and it needed a quarter turn. It does pop up alot better when the turbo kicks in, and with a full load WOT 3900 rpm I hit 26-27 mph, cruise 3100 20-21 mph,flo meter was reading 7 gph. My load was 5 large men 3 of them pushing #300 ( i need a smaller crew) full bait tank. Erik

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Originally Posted by DirtyE

Well I performed the tweaks from a injection shop, all it took was a torx bit and end Wrench, I gave the top screw(forget the name of it) located right on top of the injection pump a full turn(i may have this backwards I would have to look again) and then there is a low end screw on the back of the pump and it needed a quarter turn. It does pop up alot better when the turbo kicks in, and with a full load WOT 3900 rpm I hit 26-27 mph, cruise 3100 20-21 mph,flo meter was reading 7 gph. My load was 5 large men 3 of them pushing #300 ( i need a smaller crew) full bait tank. Erik

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I read this old thread and been through this before on my 31A. If there was rust on the exhaust side, it had nothing to do with hot shut downs. A hot shut down starves the turbo bearings of oil under pressure while it's still spinning at a high speed. This damage to the bearings can easily be repaired.

If there was rust on the exhaust side it was either due to water dripping on the joint between the turbo and the exhaust elbow (i.e. my Blackman 20 with an engine box), or water backup due to a rusty corroded exhaust elbow. When the turbo vanes on the exhaust side chew into rust build-up on the housing, it's not repairable. If you tried to clean up the rust on the turbo housing, the clearance between the turbo vanes only increases and you cannot replace the metal on the housing. Thus loss of boost and loss of power. The neglect is in not replacing the exhaust elbow on regular basis. They should be inspected every two years, replaced at a max of five years.