DON'T LOSE HOPE !
It's a 20/25 year old boat, and all the rest of 'em are as well. They all will have issues.
Which issues do you want ? We all agree we don't want the core issues to be a major factor. Any possible engine issues are fixed easily enough. I have not heard of very many J30 repowers, perhaps none. That yanmar is a great ol' smoker. Talk to your jet wrench buddy about a head gasket (was the cause an impeller that wasn't replaced? Best case scenario - EZ fix, or was it the infamous mixing elbow problem). Go thru the engine archives here and learn about all the issues that everyone has had with these engines. Your engine's the same as all the other ones. Do you have a YANMAR mechanic talking to you telling you about a repower? That's the only strange part to the story.
Torreson.com on lake michigan knows em inside and out & you can talk to those guys by phone to ease your mind. Get a second opinon on whatever the engine issues may be (those belts will be a fun DIY intro for ya). The cool thing is that after you learn about all the issues the engine can have, and do the work yourself (it's a truly simple machine), that gives you great peace of mind at sea. I ONCE had the engine konk out on me (in the slip) & I knew right away that my recent oil & filter change was the culprit as I did not seat the gasket correctly and it bled air. The fix was easy. I think you want to keep after this boat since it's solid. Also, consider the price. At $30k, it should be the queen of the fleet in perfect shape in every way with good sails too. Discount for all the engine work that it needs (& it doesn't have the "Zephyr-Benz Faget" voodoo sails? minus $3k) (oh it didnt win the BC NOODS? minus $1500 right there), but don't bail, just renogiate the price to reflect the engine issues, get the boat, then make it right. This seems like a good boat.
