Learn the top reasons to repower, and five things you can now not have considered about a ship repower.outboard motor covers
Repowering your boat ranks right up there with buying a new boat. for lots, myself blanketed, repowering is an exciting time in which a ship that fits me perfectly will become even better. That’s particularly proper nowadays due to the fact new engines supply more blessings than older ones. 

                           
simply what do you get whilst you repower? absolutely, increased reliability is one component. however how else will you gain? must you sell or alternate up to a brand new boat rather?
Having just repowered my 23 Regulator with a brand new 250 hp Mercury FourStroke outboard, I’ll gift these troubles and greater from a fresh, first-man or woman outboard owner’s attitude. we've got sterndrive and inboard repower testimonies inside the hopper, but many of the motives why practice right here.
The Candidate
a boat that suits your fashion and desires makes an amazing repower candidate. many times as lifestyles adjustments happen, including a wedding, children leaving the residence, or a brand new profession, our boating desires alternate. earlier than you repower, make sure your cutting-edge boat still suits the manner you boat. now and again, buying a new or every other boat (which you may repower) would possibly make greater feel for you. My middle-console still fulfills my wishes, which encompass about 80 percent coastal fishing and 20 percentage tubing, beaching and otherwise day cruising. So, appraise your boating desires clearly.
If it does fit you, and also you need to repower, ensure that it's far structurally sound. you could or won't be certified to evaluate this yourself, and a marine surveyor—or at the least a knowledgeable and trusted pal or supplier—should be introduced in to render an opinion before you proceed with a repower. extra legit dealers, which includes Hampton Watercraft and Marine, which achieved my repower job, will no longer continue until they deem the boat structurally sound. a few regions of key concern are the transom and the stringers. My 1997 Regulator, with its fiberglass grillage machine and composite transom, wanted no structural work. In any occasion, the want for structural maintenance does no longer remove a boat from repower contention, however it needs to be ascertained so that maintenance may be factored into the whole fee of the activity. a brand new transom is probably a $four,000 activity, as an example.
except structural work, your candidate boat should be assessed for the suitability of its systems. the new Mercury V-8 FourStroke I repowered with requires batteries rated at 800 cold-cranking amps, and that required me to improve to a new pair of Optima Blue top series batteries (about $700). I also hooked up new battery cables. additionally, I elected to keep my boat’s existing hydraulic guidance device—electricity steerage is exquisite, and a advantage I’ll talk further along—due to the fact I wasn’t inclined to give up the gap required for the steerage pump and motor, given the confined area for such systems aboard my older, reduce-transom boat. the selection to upgrade guidance or to preserve existing steerage provides those repowering their boats with an choice to save each area and money. as an instance, unmarried-engine power guidance prices about $1,two hundred in foremost elements, plus set up; a dual setup starts offevolved at $1,600 or so, plus installation. And if you are going with twins—or triples, quads or quints—recognize that joystick docking and maneuvering is a feature you may remember while repowering your boat.
sooner or later, you could should reconfigure your helm’s gauge array whilst you repower. Mercury—in addition to other engine-makers—gives virtual shows and gauges that fit fashionable gauge holes. (And you may choose analog gauges and controls to store on cost.) these offer exceptional capability, and are specifically desirable to tight helms or wherein much less time and rate to install are priorities. In my case, I opted to move from analog gauges to touchscreen multifunction shows, in the shape of Mercury’s VesselView presentations. This required a community backbone to be mounted in the boat, for one aspect. For some other, it necessitated fabricating a completely new helm panel, a undertaking I completed as a DIY challenge prior to handing over the boat to the installing supplier. A best, full-service provider will be capable of acting this venture as properly, and also you need to ask approximately it and to peer examples of their paintings before committing to the repower. Such jobs might be billed by the hour and for components and substances.The electricity
a new engine or engines can be your possibility to boom horsepower or to trade the wide variety of engines. in the first case, you cannot repower your boat with an engine or engines that exceed its rating. No legit supplier could ever do that, and no coverage organisation will write you coverage if you could get it finished. So, dispose of having the sector’s quickest Acme Waterbug 27 out of your repower wish list. outboard motor covers
My Regulator is rated for twins as much as 400 hp, even though i have been running it luckily with a unmarried 250 hp for many years. In figuring out to repower with a single 250, I considered the multiplied reliability of engines; the burden of the new engines and the effect of that weight on the boat’s self-bailing capability, as well as overall performance and economic system; the cost of proudly owning one versus two engines; and the cost of proudly owning a more effective single engine. For me, with my boat and my supposed use, the unmarried became the proper desire. i have run the boat with different engines and in each unmarried and twin configurations. I realize not every person is privileged with the get entry to to boats that I revel in, however if you are searching for out boaters at a nearby marina with similar boats, they will frequently be glad to take you out on a brief demo experience. an awesome dealer may additionally provide get right of entry to to inventory or purchaser boats for a sea trial, possibly after a deposit is laid down, earlier than you make your final decision.
In my case, the brand new outboard produces the same strength because the preceding boat, but weighs 90 pounds less and is a V-8 rather than a V-6. My boat is now a bit quicker and a bit extra good value, and there's another quarter-inch among the waterline and the scuppers.
My preference changed into proper for me. Your desire might also vary depending upon your instances. The factor is to weigh these elements due to the fact those decisions should be made thoughtfully if a repower is to achieve success—a success that means that it consists of you being satisfied in addition to all of the relaxation of the elements.
The blessings
most of the time, emblem-new power below manufacturing unit warranty delivers self belief and reliability, restoring fuller peace of thoughts to the boater. That’s remarkable. It’s additionally apparent. What other motives are there for repowering your boat? well, certainly I’d ought to also encompass pride in possession, the financial savings of now not shopping for a new boat, and the enhanced resale price on your boat. greater tangible examples of factors I directly benefited from after repowering follow.
My boat is three mph faster at huge-open throttle (43.2 vs. 40 mph) and supplies higher economy at cruising speed, burning 8 gph at 22 mph (three,500 rpm) and 13 gph at 30 mph (4,200 rpm). And boy, is it quiet. I imply, it’s not just 2 decibels quieter while cruising than previous engines I’ve owned in this boat, however it sounds better too, emitting a deep, throaty note that appeals to this infant of the muscle-automobile technology. every boating buddy I’ve had aboard has commented positively about the manner my new engine sounds. The maximum astute of them have additionally referred to the dearth of clunking while transferring, a end result of the FLO-Torq SSR HD prop hub. Mercury truly has a lab committed to a procedure that it calls NVH (noise vibration harshness). newer engines offer smoother moving, and a quieter, greater pleasant audible revel in while strolling.some different physical attributes that I don't forget beneficial consist of the capacity to check the engine oil with out putting off the cowl. Open the pinnacle cover provider Door—it pushes open like a gasoline door on a car or truck—and the dipstick and oil fill are proper there. This hatch additionally conceals a huge lever cope with that allows unlatching and removing the cowl one-exceeded. It comes off and is going returned on easily. as soon as off, you’ll find neat capabilities, like a protection time table decal you could experiment together with your cellphone and extra. The freshwater flush attachment is placed where it is straightforward to get admission to whether you trailer your boat or preserve it within the water. renovation is easier with a brand new engine.however maximum of all, a brand new engine or engines are an opportunity to convey your boat into the digital age, and with that comes many benefits, from the aesthetic to the functional to the just simple cool. A NMEA 2000 (N2K, or Merc’s version, called SmartCraft) spine could be installed to your boat, growing a network into which the brand new engine(s), controls, gauges and presentations, as well as other device, including stereos, fish finders and plotters, and a bunch of onboard sensors, can all be added for easy tracking and control. for instance, i'm able to show a number of engine records onscreen or on any of the other monitors aboard that I’ve networked. i can mix this information with mapping, fish locating, autopilot and more, all relying upon my desire. need large tachs and gas information whilst running? Swipe the display. want stereo control? Swipe it once more. manipulate over tow profiles for watersports? just swipe and it seems. additionally, with the right accent plugged in, i will access those capabilities, in Mercury’s case, thru the VesselView cellular app. It turns my wi-fi device right into a backup gauge array and/or a 2d station. The machine affords signals for protection consisting of oil changes and fuel filters, and can display ship’s systems together with CO monitors, tanks and greater. moreover, the networked controls offer push-button beginning (so you can hide the key switch, if you want), and also decorate safety because the engine will now not begin—it cannot be hot-stressed like an older outboard—until the key fob is on board. So, repowering nets you more tracking and control of the whole lot, from fuel economic system to the CO detector within the ahead stateroom, plus gives several ranges of redundancy and provides a degree of safety.when strolling the boat, a networked, digital engine consisting of my Mercury 250 FourStroke gives a bunch of advantages. as an instance, there’s ActiveTrim, which mechanically trims the engines to fit the circumstance, primarily based upon GPS boat speed (aggressive systems use engine rpm). I’ve been strolling outboards for approximately forty five years, and i'm able to’t beat ActiveTrim. For 90 percent of my boating, it’s set it and neglect it—the machine trims the engines exactly as i would. As skilled boaters understand, proper trim is key to maximise fuel performance. ActiveTrim may be became on or off at will, and even though it really works exceptional out of the field, you can set the profile—the range of trim—and customize it to fit your boat.
virtual Throttle and Shift (DTS) is Mercury’s name for digital controls. but via any name, those provide some awesome differences in comparison to cable controls. virtual control handles pass at the contact of a finger, and the levers don’t fall again and throttle your engine down because of cable anxiety and boat movement. also, you may adjust rpm in excellent increments the usage of the digital show, which I discover top notch for trolling and truely dialing in a unique rpm for long cruises on open water. This works hand in hand with the Adaptive velocity manipulate my new outboard gives, a characteristic that keeps rpm even as load modifications. For me, meaning that while going for walks in a following sea offshore, the engine doesn’t abate and require me to accelerate at the returned of every wave. in case you cut tight turns or tow skiers, you’ll discover the identical component—the engine maintains rpm. So, let’s upload elevated and simpler boat manipulate to our listing of repower blessings.
My new engine’s alternator outputs a whopping eighty five amps max and 20 amps at idle, and the engine routinely bumps up the idle rpm if it senses low batteries. Couple functions as various as those with the others cited, and that’s as a minimum 17 motives to repower.
Oh, my new outboard also seems excellent, and it's far to be had in various shades, as are those from other engine-makers. experience loose to add in bragging rights as every other reason to repower.
supplier Does the installation
long gone are the days of purchasing outboards in a crate and having the dealer load them to your pickup. except you purchase used engines—which can be a good deal—the supplier may be putting in your engine. It’s the only manner to get a warranty, for one component. And nowadays’s outboards are one issue, albeit a massive one, of a total boat machine. go into a repower assignment with this in thoughts.
sell or alternate Your antique Engines
I in no way have a trouble selling used outboards. there is a prepared marketplace for them and, typically, you’ll get extra money for them in a non-public sale as opposed to buying and selling them in or having the supplier broker them for you. (example: I offered my 9-12 months-antique 250 for $5,000 remaining winter.) you could regularly get a higher charge on the new strength if you display up without a exchange-in motor and with a boat already derigged. if your buyer can returned his boat on a trailer proper next to yours, you may use an engine hoist/dolly to lift and circulate the outboards the few feet among boats. (See boatingmag.com/repower2020 for more info.)
Of route, your outboard dealer could be glad to both sell your engines for you or offer to take them in change towards the brand new sale. that is simpler and quicker, commonly, and there may be sales-tax benefits that apply to trades. test with your state for nearby ordinances.outboard motor covers