1980 E30+ Universal Atomic diesel engine problem

[Vida]

Hello all - this is the first time I am posting here. I changed the oil in my E30+ last January. I've been sailing nearly every week, with no problems. Yesterday, I had motored out for about 1/2 hour when I heard a rattling noise in the engine compartment. I immediately shut off the engine and went below to check. The oil filter was loose and all the oil was in the engine bilge. I spooned it all back into a container, tightened the filter, and replaced the oil with approx. 3 quarts of new 10w30 oil that I had on board. I then tried to start the engine. It turned over for about 30 seconds, but there was no compression and it died. I repeated this 3 times with no luck. So I sailed back to port and to my dock. The following day, I replaced the old filter with a new one. I hand-cranked the engine, and then tried to start it. It almost caught, but no luck. I tried this about six times and then gave up. Has anyone had a similar experience? Any suggestions on what to do next are welcome - thank you!
- Dave

 

[Loren Beach]

Just so we are all on the same oily page, you are describing the spin-on filter on the engine, right?
While you had no apparent (initial problem) symptoms of air in the fuel lines/filter, it sounds like that could be the problem now. Bleed the fuel system and try 'er again.
IMHO, and being no mechanic, the fact that the engine turns over readily would seem to show that it did not run out of lubricant long enough to start to seize a piston.
Curiosity: did your low-oil-pressure alarm go off when this was happening?
And, is the coolant system full and was it functioning OK/per usual?

 

[Vida]

Hi Loren,
Yes, it is the spin-off filter.
Re air in the fuel lines/filter - that's a great idea, it never occurred to me that the problem might affect the fuel line. I will try that tomorrow.
No, unfortunately, there is no low-oil-pressure alarm that I am aware of, but I did install a temperature alarm sender when I first got the boat. That alarm did not go off.
The coolant system was full and functioning well, but before I tried to start the engine this morning, I checked the raw water intake hose between the thru-hull and the raw water pump, and it was hard. I unclipped the hose and drained it.
Your points about the fuel system and the cooling system make sense to me - I will check those tomorrow and will also check the thermostat.
Thanks for the quick reply - I greatly appreciate your help.
- Dave

 

[Vida]

Hi all, here’s an update on my engine situation. Apologies for the length of this post, but I want to include all the details in case someone has any suggestions about where to go from here.
As I mentioned initially, about a week ago, while motoring out, my oil filter somehow came loose and dumped all the oil into the engine bilge. After replacing the oil and tightening the filter, the engine wouldn’t turn over. I was able to get back to the marina under sail.
After my last post, I bled the fuel system as Loren had suggested. I replaced all of the oil and put on a new, beer-can sized Wix filter. I pulled out the raw water impeller and the impeller shaft, and then loosened the v-belt and took it off. I got the biggest plumber’s wrench that I have, and tried to crank it by hand, but still had resistance. I turned it anti-clockwise for two turns, and then tried again. I repeated this several times, and finally got it to turn clockwise past the resistance. I then turned on the ignition, and it engaged for 5-10 seconds and then “clunked” again. I put a few shots of Blaster and some squirts of liquid wrench into the crankcase, then left it overnight.
When I came back the next day, I tried again to turn it by hand with the big wrench, but it wouldn’t turn. I backed it off anti-clockwise for a number of turns, then went on deck and tried the ignition and wow, boom – it turned over!
I let it run for a few seconds and then turned it off. I went below and turned it clockwise by hand, and it broke free from the resistance. I then turned it on and let it run for a full minute. However, I heard a noise in the engine and immediately turned it off.
I reconnected the impeller, raw water pump and the v-belt, and tightened everything up. I started the engine and it started right up, no black or white smoke coming from the exhaust, and the water was running freely. I put it into gear and let it run for a few minutes, but something was definitely clattering around in the engine.
So the engine is running but something is wrong. I’m not sure what to try next. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
- Dave

 

[Jerry VB]

So the engine is running but something is wrong. I’m not sure what to try next. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

All indications are that your engine is damaged internally and needs to be rebuilt or replaced. :-(

Your diesel is probably the Universal 5416. According to SailNet, the Kubota block is Z751. The block ID should be molded into the side of the block opposite of the injectors.

You should be able to find a used replacement from a Kubota tractor (google the block ID, check eBay, ask your local Kubota dealer for leads). If you are a little bit handy, you can pull your current engine, move the marinization parts (raw water pump, alternator, brackets, transmission adapter, etc) from the current engine to the replacement, and reinstall it.

 

[Christian Williams]

I had motored out for about 1/2 hour when I heard a rattling noise in the engine compartment. I immediately shut off the engine

If you have a temperature gauge, what was the reading when you shut the engine down after the oil loss?

 

[peaman]

Starved of oil, bearings will fail. You definitely need to go into the engine to find what, exactly has failed, and fix or replace. Running the engine could result in a bigger failure in short order, which could render your engine un-rebuildable, and thus worthless other than for parts.

 

[Vida]

The engine (which is the original Universal Atomic 5416) was just above half-throttle when it first happened. The temperature was the first thing I checked. I have a temperature alarm that is working (I tested it) and it did not go off. It is set to 160 degrees.
Someone at my dock suggested a compression test, which he is going to help me with at the weekend.

 

[Alan Gomes]

The engine (which is the original Universal Atomic 5416) was just above half-throttle when it first happened. The temperature was the first thing I checked. I have a temperature alarm that is working (I tested it) and it did not go off. It is set to 160 degrees.
Someone at my dock suggested a compression test, which he is going to help me with at the weekend.

I think you are probably wasting your time with a compression test. What Jerry told you in post #5 is the unfortunate reality here.

I'd also follow peaman's advice in post #7 and stop running it if you want to maintain as good a chance as possible of rebuilding it.

 

[Christian Williams]

Time for a diesel mechanic. Too early for doomsday.