The steam turbines were plagued with problems from the time the ship first entered service and, despite being technically advanced and fuel-efficient in 1968, her consumption of 600 tons of fuel oil every twenty four hours was more than expected for such a ship by the 1980s. After seventeen years of service the availability of spare parts was becoming difficult due to the outdated design of the boilers and turbines and the constant use of the machinery which was mainly due to the deletion of the originally planned 4th boiler as a cost saving measure whilst on the drawing board by Cunard.