Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

I have a 1977 Volvo Penta AQ130D 4 cyl motor on my deck boat. I have put alot of money in the boat getting the inside looking decent..

I fear that I may have sucked enough anti freeze into the block over the winter and the block may be cracked.. I started it up and it seems as though water may be spraying out of the block alothough I have not had a real good chance to find the source of the water.


I have been wanting to rebuild it or replace it because of low compression...

I have found a block failry cheap... What would I need besides new seals and piston rings to do the swap? I have never rebuilt a motor but am confident I can .. I was a machinist for years and can follow digrams and instructions...


Honestly I woudl rather just bolt up a replacement if I can afford it.. but is there that much to rebuilding one of these ? Any chance a bigger motor would bolt right up in place ? It is a tad under powered for my 19 foot deck boat !


Thanks!

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

Honestly I woudl rather just bolt up a replacement if I can afford it.. but is there that much to rebuilding one of these ? Any chance a bigger motor would bolt right up in place ?

Click to expand...

Ayuh,... There's ALOT more to rebuilding a motor than Just new seals, 'n rings...
The motor needs to go to a Machine Shop for cleaning, 'n machining,...
Once the block is brought back to Spec, it's reassembled with new pistons, 'n such to match the new specs...

Nope,... No bigger motors will work, without also changing out the outdrive, as well as the motor...

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

Bond-o said:

Ayuh,... There's ALOT more to rebuilding a motor than Just new seals, 'n rings...
The motor needs to go to a Machine Shop for cleaning, 'n machining,...
Once the block is brought back to Spec, it's reassembled with new pistons, 'n such to match the new specs...

Nope,... No bigger motors will work, without also changing out the outdrive, as well as the motor...

Click to expand...

I figured it would not be easy .. The block I found just says it needs honed and is standard bore.. Could I just re-use my original pistons and get the correct rings ?

Thanks!

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

It was really a mistake to try to winterize using anti-freeze. The proper way is to just drain the block from the two petcocks. On mine, I also pull the cover off of the raw water pump so the water can drain from the strainer.

It's possible that you got lucky and the freezing water pushed the cooling tubes out of the exhaust manifold or the oil cooler. Check for milky oil - that's your best indication of a cracked block in an area that goes into the inside of the engine. Otherwise, you'll need to very carefully go around the outside of the engine and check all of your fittings, the oil cooler, the exhaust manifold, thermostat housing, and all of the casting plugs.

As far as a rebuild, it's difficult to find replacement pistons but bearings, rings, and seals are available. Stellite exhaust valves are spendy but available as are hardened valve seats. IPD is one source for parts but google Volve B20 parts and you'll be able to find more info. There are enthuseasts who like those old engines. It's best to ask around at local machine shops to see if they can do the job and see what they charge. This engine is very close to the automotive Volvo B20 with some changes so the automotive version can be made to work. Another alternative is to find a working AQ131 or overhead valve volvo 4 cyliner of the same vintage. You'll need a new exhaust pipe but other than that, it's a pretty simple swap.

It's really best to find out for sure if the block is actually cracked first. Those cooling pipes are simply pushed into place and sealed with a square cut o-ring. You may have dodged a bullet if one of those was just pushed out of place.

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

The block I found just says it needs honed and is standard bore.. Could I just re-use my original pistons and get the correct rings ?

Click to expand...

Ayuh,... You said you've been a Machinist for How Long,..??

In the Machinist field, How often is Close enough, close enough,..??
A motor is a very close tolerance Machine...

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

Bond-O .. That shows my lack of knowledge on motors lol.. I just figured I could buy the correct piston ring to make up for the difference after honing .. Pirate Past !! Long time no talk.. How have you been ? You have helped me with alot ! I will check around it when it warms up again outside to see if I can find anything.. Is the AQ131 a dual carb setup ? What about the OHV what model do I look for ? WOuld you possibly know what years are compatible ?

Thanks !

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

Hi there big-b, ... There are a couple of things to check out before you make a decision. Since you're not sure yet if it's a cracked, head, block, or just a leak, it doesn't seem to make sense to buy anything yet. Once it warms up and you can check it out, run a compression test as well to get an idea of the health of the engine.

The B20 is the engine you have now. It was used until the early 70's and some of the later versions were fuel injected. The 1974 Volvo 144 is a good place to look. Not much sense in going too far into it until you really know what you need to do. The AQ131 is a B23/B230 engine and was used up into the late 80's in different forms. Some of the earlier ones were the AQ120 and 125 but I'm really not too up to speed on those. Not sure about dual carbs on those either. Some of the earlier ones used the Stromberg/Zeneth side draft carbs. The regular downdraft carbs are very close to the Solex on the AQ130 with a few exceptions. They have a fitting for a fuel pump leakoff line, some have a restricter plate, and some use a different size idle jet. I've got some info on sources for carb parts but again, doesn't make much sense to go too much into it until you decide what to do. If you do decide to go that route, it makes more sense to find a boat engine than to try to locate all the parts to convert one.

I really think a machine shop is going to be your best bet to tell you what it'll cost to rebuild your existing - if that is what you need to do. Both of the engines are out of production so the costs are going to be elevated but they do show up on ebay occasionally. Unfortunately, most of the people selling them are pretty proud of their engines and have a hefty asking price. Stay away from the later DOHC versions. They are just too expensive to keep running. A replacement exhaust manifold will run you $1700.

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

if your cam is still good, junk yard that engine, mine has around 30-50 volvo b20 b23 and b230 blocks there... a full rebuild of that motor with machining is around 3 grand... already checked it out... thats with automotive parts also!!! if you did VP parts, youd be well over 5G's... find a used motor and change the cam... ive been told 90% of that motor is automotive... dont hold that to me but i was told by a guy who was in the VP biz...

the AQ131 series is a Sigle carb setup, i think you can run duals from a AQ145. but i would leave it single...

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

big_b said:

I have been wanting to rebuild it or replace it because of low compression...

Click to expand...

Guess I missed that part - sorry about that.

The cam, valve springs, and timing gears are different in the automotive version. Marine uses double valve springs and steel gears. My concern about just replacing the whole engine is that you may be looking at a rebuild anyway.

You can use the numbers Bruce came up with as a guide. A local shop will tell you one way or another. You then have to decide if you want a complete remanufactured engine with new everything or if you can reuse some parts like valve guides, oil pump, pistons, valves, etc. The shop will tell you what they recommend and what they will do.

Here's a link to a source for parts: http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-140/Engine/Engine-Mechanical/c-1-78-311-458/

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

I finally pulled the carb, cooling lines, and the exhaust manifold... I am kinda happy about what I found .. I found one of the freeze plugs popped out and laying below the engine .. So that is where the steam was coming from and why no water was getting to the exhaust on the outdrive... So I am going to go to the auto store for a replacement ..


Anything else I should look forwheil I have all that off ? I will be super excited if I can get by with a cheap repair (but I know better) I hope the motor was not damaged while I let it run for a few minutes looking for the smoke...


I guess I can just hope .. the temp gage only got up to about 200 but that was with little water flow ... My fingers are crossed I am not cracked anywhere !!!

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

Those are 45mm plugs in the block under the exhaust manifold and are bedded in with Permatex red (high temp) rtv. Double check the cooling lines on the inlet and outlet of the oil cooler. If it froze, those could have been pushed out and bent. They need to go into the sockets perfectly so you may need to play around with bending them back into their original shape. Bed those in with the red Permatex as well. Also check the cooling lines on top of the exhaust manifold - same type of seals as the oil cooler lines.

Maybe you got lucky = hope it works!

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

ok .. just fired it up after re-sealed and replacing the "freeze plug" Fired right up and no smoke .. but then I instantly noticed no water coming ou of exhaust .. the lines were cold up until the flapper and then nothing after ..

I checked my flapper and it was shredded ... ughhh .... lol I am ordering a new flapper and am hoping that I will have good water flow after that ...


Is the flapper the only part of the cooling that flows the water right ?

EDIT >>> Where in the world can I get the correct impeller for it ? I cannot find the Volvo Penta 897055 part number anywhere..



Thanks !

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

http://www.volvopentastore.com/Marine-Gasoline-Engines-for-AQ115A-AQ115B-AQ130-AQ130A-AQ130B-AQ130C-AQ130D-AQ165A-AQ170A-AQ170B-AQ170C-AQD21A-BB115A-BB115B-BB115C-BB165A-BB170A-BB170B-BB170C-MB20A-MB20B-MB20C-MD21A-7736850/dm/*******.604394570--**********.970508171--store_id.366--view_id.765086

Look at this link. It has all the Impeller kits available for whichever pump you have.

BTW, if your old impeller has lost its "Flappers", your going to want to backflush your cooling system after the water pump to try to remove any pieces you can.

Re: Volvo Penta AQ130D replacement or block swap ?

Here's the Sierra version: http://www.iboats.com/Water-Pump-Impeller-Kit-Sierra/dm/*******.024522178--**********.955944921--view_id.173299

NAPA also carries Sierra parts but they charge shipping if your part isn't in stock.