Cookie Consent by Free Privacy Policy website Preparing the Volvo Ocean Race engines for their toughest challenge
march 19, 2018 - Volvo Penta

Preparing the Volvo Ocean Race engines for their toughest challenge

A s one of the world’s toughest sporting events, the #volvooceanrace is a nine-month endurance contest that covers 45,000 nautical miles. Not only are the crews put to the ultimate test of man-versus-nature, but the Volvo Ocean 65 yachts also face an extreme challenge. As the next – and most difficult – leg of the race begins, from New Zealand to Brazil, Volvo Penta’s technical support engineer, Johannes Karlsson, has been giving the D2-75 engines a full service to ensure they can withstand any eventuality.

This is a very tough race, but the D2-75 has proven to be robust and reliable as expected,” says Karlsson. “The engine has done what it is supposed to do, even in extreme conditions.”

Harshest conditions of the race

Leg 7, from Auckland to Itajaí, is regarded as the most difficult and definitive section of the #volvooceanrace. As the longest leg, covering 7,600 nautical miles, the teams will face the harshest conditions as they cross the Southern Ocean near to Antarctica: storm-strength winds, huge waves of up to 7m, and icebergs are typical of this leg. In order to assist the teams in remaining safe, the race organizers have set an ‘Ice Exclusion Zone’ into which the teams should not sail, but the crews will certainly encounter bitterly cold temperatures, gales and formidable sea swells. As the most demanding stretch, it is the leg that the teams most want to win. And as such tough conditions can damage or even break the boats, the engine needs to be absolutely reliable in a life-or-death situation.

Robust engine for all eventualities

Each of the seven teams has a Volvo Penta D2-75 engine on their Volvo Ocean 65 vessel. As the heart of the #yacht, the engine provides onboard power for a sophisticated network of communications devices, as well as for heating – which is vital in the freezing temperatures of the Southern Ocean – and lighting, the safe-drinking ‘water-maker’, and the canting keel. It is also used for propulsion in an emergency, or to maneuver the #yacht in and out of harbors if there is no wind. As such, the D2-75 with Saildrive, needs to be able to work efficiently at all times.

Further information in the press release to download

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