2002 Voyager with twin Yamaha 115hp / seems heavy in the stern

[Greg Wermuth]

I plan to repower my 2002 Voyager. I am thinking about getting one 250HP or 300HP instead of twin engines. The boat is fitted with the original twin Yamaha 115HP 4 stroke engines. I take great pains to slowly reduce speed and water still hits the engine cowlings. The boat seems to sit down by the stern. This happens whether or not the main and aux are full or empty. 1 engine weights less and reduces maintenance. Has anyone gone from twin to single? Did it affect the trim? Or is there something I'm missing and I should look for other issues??

 

[family affair]

I owned that hull for 10 years. Even with a single ox66 water would come up on the cowl. I think it was just a characteristic of the short running surface.
The boat had a tendency to run bow high unless the engines were trimmed down. I also added at least 100 lbs of ballast to the bow. I had contemplated putting twins on the boat, but was concerned about more weight out back.
If I were you, I'd stick with the twins. Manuvering that boat with wind in tight areas was very unnerving running a single. If you are due to repower, I'd look at Merc 115's. They are better in every way compared to the Yamahas and considerably lighter. Pricing wasn't bad either and they weren't hard to come by.

 

[Greg Wermuth]

Thanks for the quick response. If you had same issue with a single then I'll stick with twins. I'll put ballast in the bow too!