Old Engine Removal

 When I purchased her Wing had a 7.5 HP Volvo Penta MD5A single-cylinder diesel engine.  These engines were produced from 1975 to 1978 and my guess is this engine is the original one installed in Wing when she was built 43 years ago.

The MD5A was a good engine for its day but by today's standards is heavy, loud, and low-powered.  I had the engine inspected before I bought Wing and the mechanic was unable to get it going: it would not make compression in the cylinder but rather was blowing compression out the exhaust and into the oil sump.  He figured it was most likely a stuck valve and fixing it would require some minor engine teardown and removal of the cylinder head.  Because these engines have not been manufactured since 1978 it is very difficult to find spare parts for them - even a new head gasket would probably be a challenge - and there was no guarantee that the engine could be made to work again if it was taken apart.  In short: Wing needs a new engine.  I knew this before I bought her so I knew what I was getting into.

The marina has a backhoe that we could use as a crane to lift the old engine out if we could get it close enough to Wing and earlier in September all of the other boats that live in the same storage shed as Wing were on the water.  It was a great opportunity to get the old engine out!

First I removed the alternator and starter motor, all of the fuel lines, the water cooling intake line, and the exhaust.  The exhaust hose was corroded onto the exhaust manifold and I had to saw through it to get it off.  Once done I needed to disconnect the drive shaft.  That was a bit of work because the coupling was rusted on to the gearbox:

Initially I was not sure how bad the situation was but it tuned out that a few blows with a chisel at the joint broke the coupling free.  The face of the coupling actually looks to be in good shape so I can re-use it with the new engine.

Once everything was disconnected I pulled the bolts from the engine logs and then my brother and I were able to ease the engine forward on to the cabin sole at the bottom of the companionway:

Once there the folks at Gold River Marina were able to get the backhoe in, lift the engine out, and put it on my truck.  The crew there really are very professional and efficient: the whole process only took ten minutes! Sadly I did not get any pictures of them lifting it out but this is the engine in the back of my truck when they were done:

I have given the old engine to one of my co-workers who loves old marine diesels.  He is hoping to get it up and running to power a wood chipper that he has.

Meanwhile the engine room in Wing is clear.

I need to give it a good cleaning, remove the rest of the old exhaust system, and get the space ready for the new engine.  More on that in a future post.