+971 50 767 9050 jacob@abradiesel.com Industrial Area 15, Sharjah, UAE
ISO 9001:2015 Certified Open 7 days · 07:00–20:00

Caterpillar (CAT) diesel engine repair and overhaul

CAT engines reach us from excavators, loaders, forklifts and crushers, from generator sets, and from marine propulsion and auxiliary installations. Heads, blocks, crankshafts and connecting rods are machined here, in our own machine shop behind Yerevan Steel Factory in Industrial Area 15, Sharjah.

We are an independent workshop, and that is the stronger position

We hold no brand dealership. We are not a Caterpillar dealer and nothing on this page should be read as claiming otherwise; the Caterpillar name appears here only to describe the equipment we repair. A dealer's incentive is to sell you a part. Ours is to measure whether you need one — and because the grinder, the borer and the surfacer are in this building, we can act on the measurement either way. Established 2011, with over 25 years of experience, ISO 9001:2015 certified.

What arrives here

CAT engine families we work on

Send the serial number plate with your enquiry and you will be told plainly whether your engine is a job we take, before it is moved anywhere.

C-series

  • C9, C12, C13, C15, C18, C32
  • The modern electronically controlled range — plant, trucks, gensets and marine auxiliaries
  • Electronic control means fault-code work sits alongside the mechanical job
  • A code names a circuit rather than a broken part, so the circuit is verified before a component is condemned

3400 series

  • 3406, 3408, 3412, 3416
  • The long-serving mechanical and early electronic V-engines still running a large share of gensets, pumps and marine installations in this region
  • Parts arrive slowly and expensively — exactly the situation where machining a component you already own beats ordering a new one

3126 and mid-range

  • Mid-range units in plant and commercial vehicles
  • Ordinary workshop work, machining included

Larger work

  • Taken on where it makes sense, with subcontract support where that helps the customer
  • Ask before you move anything — you will get a straight answer, including a no
All engine brands →

Scope

What we do on a CAT engine

  • Overhaul — strip, measure against CAT limits, machine, rebuild and test. See diesel engine overhaul.
  • Cylinder head work — heads stripped, valves and seats reconditioned, decks surfaced and pressure tested.
  • Block and crankshaft machining — crankshaft grinding, liner bore measurement and machining, line boring of main bearing bores, connecting rod reboring. The detail lives in the machine shop.
  • Fuel system — injectors and injection pumps stripped, tested and calibrated on our benches. See fuel systems and calibration.
  • Turbochargers — stripped, rebuilt and balanced in house.
  • Cooling — water pumps, oil coolers, aftercoolers and heat exchangers.
  • Starter motors and charging alternators — bench overhaul and testing.
  • Diagnostics — fault code reading, live data and mechanical testing on electronic C-series engines.

CAT-engined generator sets — alternator, control panel, load testing — are covered under generator repair, and the set-level view is on Caterpillar generator repair and service.

Where the work comes from

CAT engines in plant, and why the arithmetic is unforgiving

The largest single source of CAT work here is construction and industrial plant, working in dust and heat, on machines that earn only when they move.

01

Excavators and loaders

On earthworks and infrastructure, where a machine on the critical path holds up every trade behind it. See construction plant and site equipment.

02

Crushers and site gensets

Quarry and recycling plant on contract rates, where downtime comes straight out of margin with nowhere to pass it.

03

Where the machine stands

We work on plant across Sharjah and in the Dubai industrial belt, and take engines and components back to the Sharjah workshop when machining is needed.

04

Weeks against days

An out-of-round crankshaft on a 3412 that costs weeks to replace and days to grind is not a close decision when the machine is on a contract.

Repair or replace is a measurement — bring us the part

On a CAT engine the decision that costs real money is whether a major component is still within limits, and that is measurable rather than arguable. A crankshaft turns on ovality, hardness, bend and crack depth, and on how much material is left above Caterpillar's bottom permitted undersize. A block turns on liner bore wear, taper, ovality and main bearing bore alignment. A head turns on flatness, seat recession and cracks. Those readings are taken in the same building that would do the machining, which is why the first thing to ask us for is not a quote. Let us measure it: you get the numbers with the manufacturer's limits beside them, and the decision follows from the numbers. If the component is past recovery you will be told that, because a wrong repair on a 3400-series engine is more expensive than a right replacement.

Choosing a supplier

Independent specialist, or authorised dealer

A straight answer, without naming anyone. There are real trade-offs in both directions.

WarrantyInside manufacturer warranty, use the authorised network. Work outside it can affect cover, and no saving is worth losing a claim on a large engine. We will tell you this rather than take the job.
Parts provenanceThe authorised route supplies genuine parts through the manufacturer's own channel — traceable, and required by some fleet and marine procurement policies. If yours demands it, that is a reason to use the dealer.
Parts choiceWe are not tied to a channel: genuine, quality aftermarket, or a mix, with the quotation saying which is which. We claim no preferential access to anyone's supply chain.
Lead timeFor current C-series parts the authorised channel is usually well stocked. For 3400-series and older engines, parts availability is where projects stall.
Machining in houseThe real difference. Authorised networks are built around component replacement; our machine shop is built around bringing a component back into specification. A crankshaft already at final undersize gets replaced, and we will say so — but with us it is at least an option.
CostIndependent labour rates are generally lower and the repair-over-replace route reduces the parts bill. Weigh that against the warranty and parts-policy points above; they are real.
Tooling and technical dataDealers hold full factory tooling and current service literature by definition. Any independent workshop, ours included, holds what it has invested in. Ask before you commit — of us as well as anyone else.
What we never claimNo dealership, no authorised or approved status, no manufacturer training programme, no preferential parts access. Everything above is checkable, which is why it is written down.

Straight answers

Frequently asked questions

Are you a Caterpillar dealer or authorised service centre?

No. We hold no brand dealership. We are an independent workshop repairing and overhauling CAT engines, and we state that plainly because pretending otherwise would be dishonest and easy to check.

What experience do your technicians have with these engines?

Our technicians' experience is with these engines in service. We would rather say that than imply an accreditation we do not hold. What we do hold is over 25 years of experience with this class of engine and the machines to act on what we measure.

Do you use genuine CAT parts?

We quote genuine parts where you want them or your procurement requires them, and quality aftermarket where that is the better value, and we tell you which is which on the quote. We are not restricted to one supply channel and we do not claim preferential access to the manufacturer's.

Can you machine a CAT crankshaft or cylinder head?

Yes — that is done here, on our own machines, not subcontracted. Crankshaft grinding, head surfacing, boring, honing and line boring all happen behind Yerevan Steel Factory in Industrial Area 15.

Which CAT engines do you see most?

C-series units in plant and gensets, and 3400-series engines in gensets, pumps and marine installations.

Can you attend a machine on site in Dubai?

Yes. Diagnostics, top overhauls and component changes are done on site; machining comes back to Sharjah. See Dubai on-site coverage.

Get a CAT engine quoted

Engine model, serial number, application and symptom. Photograph the serial number plate — the prefix identifies the build and saves a round of questions.