Well - I've put it off for as long as I can, but the old Volvo MD17D has finally given up. I guess 32 years of service is as much as you can expect out of a raw water cooled engine. I'm not even going to investigate how the water is getting into the oil; it could be a costly exercise; the time has come to move on.

I have heard that the new Volvo D2-40 has issues with the heat exchanger and "black box" (and the usual cost of parts) so I'm looking elsewhere.

So - I am considering one of two Kubota based diesels - either the Beta 38 or the Nanni 38hp. I'm leaning towards the Nanni as it gets its 38 hp at 3000rpm whereas that model of Beta revs to 3600 for some reason.

Anybody have personal experience on any of these two?
Or had experience with Becker Marine - the Adelaide agent for Nanni?