Info please - blown motor

[Fishmatics]

Hi

Background:

After 6 months of searching I finally found the boat and motor that I was looking for, the problem is that after only putting on 3 hours since purchasing the boat the motor is blown.

The motor is a 4 stroke long shaft Yamaha 115hp 2001 with 272 hours.

I bought the boat from a dealer in NSW. As I reside in QLD, I could not get to check out the motor myself so a paid motor mechanic to do a motor inspection and do a service at the same time. The motor was given a clean bill of health.

I have used the boat twice, both times the motor laboured to get going. The second time after about an hour cruising around the motor would start and then cut out as soon as I gave her some juice. This happened about 8 times till eventually the motor did not turn over any more. Thank Heavens I was close to the boat ramp as I had my 4 and 10 year sons with me and could get back with no harm done.
.
I have just been quoted 10k to replace the power head - SHOCK!

Any recommendations as the best way to proceed? Do I have any recourse against the boat dealer, the mechanic or the previous seller? I have sent the oil away to be tested.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Do I need to take this on the chin, cut my losses and move on?

Regards Andrew

[pubgolf]

Thats a big one to take on the chin.
Tony Carroll would struggle taking that on the chin.
I unfortunantly have no usefull advice on where you stand but all i can say is i hope it works out well for you.



Rod

[TimiBoy]

No fun.

How long ago did you buy it? Did they tell you of any warranty? In any case, there is a thing called Implied Warranty - you have a right to expect the thing to operate well.

Do you know what the cause of the fault was? You need to know that.

I would be in touch with the Dealer. They may want to help, they may not. At the very least I'd expect them to help out by charging the parts/labour at wholesale. Be nice when you approach them, the attitude test is the first thing you have to pass.

Cheers and good luck,

Tim

[Fishmatics]

Thanks Timiboy, bought the boat 3 weeks ago.

[Argle]

As others have said start with the dealer - nicely I would think that it would at least have the 3 month BIA warranty which I think is a 50/50 type arrangement?? Better than nothing I suppose but if you ask nicely you might do better?? Hope it works out thats a real b@stard of a thing to have happen to a new boat buyer especially as you had the checks done to try and avoid this very situation

Cheers
Scott

[trueblue]

if warranty fails, it would be cheaper to buy a working second hand motor

[Noelm]

I guess first thing that needs to be discovered is, what happened to the Motor? blown up can be a heap of things, if it is found to be faulty in some way, then the dealer should indeed help, if it was (say) a bag over the water intake, then you might be on your own, but a respectful approach is needed for sure first off, how old is the Motor?

[Noelm]

OH, I just saw the year model, so probably not much help from Yamaha to be had.

[ozscott]

You will have to start by getting a mechanic to tell you why it blew and go from there. It may be for example that the dealer you bought it off had just re-built it and put it together improperly....there may be a host of reasons. Short of there being any negligence or causative misstatement (or withholding information) about the motor and its history its just a case of bad luck matey...its always a risk with second hand gear. You did the right thing and had it checked out but it may just be a manufacturing fault for example or the engine may have laboured its whole life and had undetectable big end wear that caused a rod to let go...on the other hand it may have had major big end noise and piston slap that ought to have put a reasonably competent mechanic on notice that the engine was nearing end of life (if a rod let go because of that wear and tear) and if that or similar ought to have been detected (reasonably) then you may have an action against the mechanic who did the inspection for you....

Post back and I will see if I can suggest anything.

Cheers

PS. I am not giving you legal advice here matey, just some general assistance. Be aware also that there are limitation periods and time periods that must be complied with in NSW and QLD if you intend taking action....miss those and you have no action save for rare circumstances that I wont go into here.

PPS. There may be a basic stat warranty in NSW for second hand boats like there is up here for cars...I dont know.

PPPS. It may have been something like a sensor problem causing the engine to run too lean...who knows...you really need a good yam mech to review it

[TimiBoy]

3 weeks you've had it? and racked up a whole 3 hours?

Seems to me the donk wasn't fit for purpose. I'd get it checked out what was the cause before you ask the boat yard.

The reason folks buy second hand boats from yards is party for "protection". You at least deserve some!

Keep us all posted on your progress,

Cheers,

tim

[TimiBoy]

if it was (say) a bag over the water intake, then you might be on your own,

Mine's covered for that under insurance. Was this boat insured?

Cheers,

Tim

[cormorant]

I have just been quoted 10k to replace the power head - SHOCK!

Hi what did the people who quoted a new powerhead say the failure was.

Sounds like there was no oil in the motor and it siezed? Was there any smoke or warning sirens

On your mechanical report did it have compression test results , computer printout , leakdown test and oil test sent to lab? Was it tank run with a test prop on it to prove it was making full power?

Something is not right and I would be getting all my records concerning the purchase together and resolving what failure was and possible causes be it sand, bag, no oil, cam belt, chain hole in piston etc.

You do need to make contact at somem time with the dealer and describe the problem and possible causes and see what he says . He may be very good about it or not. Keep a record of all contact with everyone in a diary in case it gets legal later on which s probably.

Should only be a couple of hunderd bucks to pull motor down to find cause if it is not externally obvious and have photos taken and a report written up by a mechanic.

Claim may well be against mechanic who last serviced the motor.

Ethanol fuel or bad fuel can also kill a motor so it may be worth having tested so grab a sample from tank in a glass jar and send off t refinery.

Fuel water oil or a physical metal failure in the motor ? Any other ideas of how a motor dies in 3 hours?

Hope you get a reasonable and fair result depending on what the cause is.

[the gecko]

After the friendly phone call to the dealer, Id put it in writing and fax your concerns thru as a backup. Id also be asking for a written response from the dealer.

I agree that you have to tread softly and pass the attitude test. Keep in mind, people will tell you anyhting on the phone, but its different in writing.

[White Pointer]

3 weeks you've had it? and racked up a whole 3 hours?

Seems to me the donk wasn't fit for purpose. I'd get it checked out what was the cause before you ask the boat yard.

The reason folks buy second hand boats from yards is party for "protection". You at least deserve some!

Keep us all posted on your progress,

Cheers,

tim

G'day,

Agree!

You have two claims. One against the dealer for selling defective goods that were not fit for purpose and another against the mechanic who checked it and said it was OK. Apart from the commercial rip off, they have both endangered your life and the lives of your passengers.

I would also suggest that if the power head was good for 3 hours the rest won't be far behind. Before you spend any money on the engine (or replacing it) get the boat checked over thoroughly and the trailer as well.

I suggest that you contact the NSW equivalent of our QLD Office of Fair Trading as well as NSW Maritime and tell them what has happened. They will not necessarily act on this but they will record it and if your negotiations with the seller turn sour you may be able/willing to help.

Keep us posted.

Regards,

White Pointer

[captain rednut]

hi andrew you need to get a yamaha diagnostic reading of your motor from a yamaha mechanic they plug in to your motor to verify the engine hours and also it will tell you all of the total history, rpm ,temps, faults and so on. where in brisbane are you? cheers jim