GM Outboard, Game Changer?

[Christos]

Good Day folks,

Starting to be allot of speculation around these new massive outboards that launched at the Miami boat show? A company by the name of 7 marine is using a GM block to produce a 6.2L 557 hp V8. Pending is success (who knows) Will this force Yamaha to produce more powerful Yamaha’s and hence bigger outboard boats? It will be interesting to watch it unfold. Here is a video explaining the new outboards. :wow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU0RXc8gaqo

 

[Grog]

At what point is it loose it's effectiveness? Why not go to a jackshaft when you get to that point? The motors look impressive but there better be some massive airflow over the headders to keep the cowling from melting. Personally I'd rather have a Yami 350 with a blower which can easily give 500 HP, you just have to keep the lower unit from grenading.

 

[Heavy Duty]

Bet the weight of that thing will be Outrageous.

I’d be more interested in a good reliable, economical diesel engine. I really don’t care how fast I can get to the fishing hole as much as how much it is going to cost. I’d love to see 5 MPG while cruising at 28 – 30 knots. Right now at that speed I’m lucky to see 2 MPGs. You really don’t need a BIG diesel to get some serious HP and torque. My little VW 4 banger turns out 140 ponies and has 210 foot pounds of torque. I’m averaging about 48 MPG and the thing will scat. My little Kabota tractor (3 cyc) puts out 21 horses. My John Deere 930 has a 22 hp Yammar diesel and it pushs a 72” mower. I can cut grass near bout all season on 2 tanks (12 gallons) of diesel. It will easily do the work of a 30 hp gas engine and do it at less cost. Engine block weights are comparable to gas engines. Technology has come a long way with diesels and it surprises me no one is doing anything with it in the outboard world.

 

[CWOT]

Re: GM Outboard, Game Changer? How about a Diesel?

I would love to have one of the new German diesels for my next boat.
I recently drove the 2011 BMW X5 xDrive35d 3.0-liter twin turbo inline 6 engine. Wow what a sweet ride.
VW, Audi and Mercedes also have these new diesels.
The US and Japanese cars won’t be far behind as soon as they can clean up their emissions.
Maybe we’ll see these diesels with a marine offering soon?

 

[Heavy Duty]

I hear you. This little 2010 Golf I have is really amazing. The engine looks a lttle bigger then a Cox airplane engine :wow

Last year I watched the Le Mans 24 hour race. Both Peugeot and Audi were running 12 cyc TDIs in their prototypes. They ran rings around everything there. Audi finished 1, 2, 3, with there cars. Way cool to see that type of preformance out of a diesel.

 

[NJ-JOHN]

Whos on 1st?

Caller: Hi, do you service 7 marine engines?

receptionist: What?

Caller: Can you fix my 7 marine engines?

receptionist: Excuse me sir?

Caller: Do you have a mechanic that can service my 7 marine engines?

Receptionist: You have 7 marine engines?

Caller: Yes.

Receptionist: You want us to service 7 marine engines?

Caller: Yes

Receptionist: Where are the 7 marine engines?

Caller: On my Grady White

Receptionist: You have 7 marines engines on your grady white?

Caller: Yes :<><

 

[Fish Tank]

Technology has come a long way with diesels and it surprises me no one is doing anything with it in the outboard world.

Tohatsu and Yanmar did years ago. Don't know much about them though

 

[ahill]

Fageol had a diesel outboard in the late 1950's.
Pics of it in old Popular Boating magazine ads.
As I recall it was Huge compared to the gas ob's back then.
The gas ob's then were huge compared to today's on an hp basis.

 

[antaris]

Ahm.... Sorry, but I'll propose a totally different view to the usage of 557HP outboards.

Your country is currently involved in 3 oil-induced wars. Is is really necessary to have 2 x 557, or even a single 557HP engine to drag a couple of friends out to sea, in order to bring back a few kilos of fish? I seriously doubt this. Same goes for triple 350's.... 1050HP for a day's fishing? Who do you think you are? I believe it should be illegal, outside the racing world.

The world has come a long way from the "good'ol'days" of 1960's 6-litre Detroit motors. The Germans are squeezing out 160HP from 1,6 litre engines nowadays (VW TSi engines if I am not mistaken), and trying hard to cut down on emissions and consumption. Same goes for most European and Japanese manufacturers.

For god's sake, the planet is in peril, as is your boys in the known warzones. Please, we cannot be discussing wasting 100 gallons of fuel for a day of AMATEUR fishing... even though it's called "sports fishing" and however much I may like it personally.

Issues of safety and reliability - I understand (dual motors, etc). The need to go to your fishing hole at 60 MPH - NO, I do not get this. Go to the fish market and get your fish, if it means spending that much fuel.

Please, fellow Earthlings, do consider the environment when spending hours out at sea. That's why we do it in the first hand - because we LOVE the sea - therefore we love the environment.

 

[Grog]

For god's sake, the planet is in peril...[/b]

Really? One volcano dumps more pollutants in the air then humans have since the induatrial revolution. I'm not saying to dump whatever wherever but to think of your actions and reactions. Before they were saying Global Warming the when the data was found to be falsified and the average temp had fallen it changed to Climate Change. The big pushers are just setting themselves up to make billions off of carbon credits. Have you ever taken a cruise? Those ships get how many feet per gallon?

It's not hard to dump 100 gallons of fuel in a day of fishing. If that's how someone chooses to spend their disposable income then so be it. If your worried about the use/price of crude, here's a big shocker for you. If there are no new supplies of crude and there probably will not be any at least until Mr. O is out, these suppliers have grown to expect a certain $ flow. If the world uses half of what we do now the price will drop but the price ber barrel will go up so they can maintain their same prifits.

There is no oil in Afghanistan, if anything the Taliban was getting close to nukes but that's another discussion.
Iraq is partially about oil, again another discussion.
Libya doesn't have enough oil to go to war over (but it did jack up the price thanks to the specualtors), there are much better targets, it's all political. I don't feel going in there is even worth a discussion.

 

[Salinity Now]

Ahm.... Sorry, but I'll propose a totally different view to the usage of 557HP outboards.

[/b]

While I do agree to part of your post, 60mph to fishing grounds, triple, quad etc engines being a bit overkill, and hell, I'll even say admit the "carbon footprint" of it all or just the sheer one sided consumption of people with WAYYYYY to much money is obserd these days. But to try and put it all on US mindset + the 1.33 war's we're really in (Afghanistan, yeah thats still happening....... Iraq is on its way out and will fall to pieces again on their own dime, but at a cost our of blood and prosperity........ Libya, thats just a saving face IMO, Administration to scared to do anything at first, tried to step in too late to save face and now is a stale mate) as the sole source for bringing down the world's safety and security and earths well being.....hell even I think thats alittle much.

I work for the Govt, I travel to many of the above mentioned places and surroundings doing the Govt's bidding in some fashion, I see it first hand the difference in world society's, but the funny thing is, the have and the have nots are just as abundant over there as they are here, albeit different scales, but same idea......(now I have completely lost touch of what the heck I was agreeing/disagreeing to!!)

Oh yeah, 500HP outboards......quads, etc......sounds cool and all, but Id rather see that R&D go to lighter weight, more economical 250HP outboards that I can repower with and get 5-7mpg on an 8k boat!!!!

 

[Salinity Now]

If there are no new supplies of crude and there probably will not be any at least until Mr. O is out, these suppliers have grown to expect a certain $ flow. If the world uses half of what we do now the price will drop but the price ber barrel will go up so they can maintain their same prifits.

Grog, VERY good point, I met a new colleague at work that had some good info; he works for largest underwater robotics company in the US (and possibly world??) we were talking about that exact topic he said its not a matter of IF but WHEN, seems lots of big oil companies are investing in design ideas for drill rigs, ROV's, underwater equipment etc that can work in the depths and swift currents of the Gulf Stream......AKA east coast.

Cant wait for that moratorium to be lifted...... Come on 2012!!!!

 

[ahill]

Why not do it the easy way and drill on shore, Anwar & Colorado oil sands?

 

[Grog]

Talk about derailed... anyway we don't have to drill in the mile deep water of the gulf, they're forced to.

The 600 HP outboards are for a small crowd that can dump 6 figures on an outboard and don't mind doing so. If they sell 50 I'd be amazed. I'd really like to see a pair of 200 - 250 HP motors that weigh under 500 pounds (each) and get 3 MPG while pushing our boats.

 

[antaris]

I'd really like to see a pair of 200 - 250 HP motors that weigh under 500 pounds (each) and get 3 MPG while pushing our boats.

Exactly! Why not even more? 4MPG or 5? I know it sounds like fantasy, but I'm sure that if all this engineering spirit and energy went into this proposition.... well.... somthing would come out!

I am longing for the days of solar-powered props (be them outboard or inboard or whatever)... We laugh now, but I hope that one day in the future somebody will be laughing at us!

 

[G8R_DVM]

These motors are designed to reduce the amount of engines needed on larger boats, subsequently increasing efficiency by decreasing insensible power losses due to gearbox drag, cavitational interference between props and a net loss of engine weight. Fuel mileage is impacted by numerous factors but it boils down to weight to power ratio thus the percent of load on the engine at cruise. The more power a boat has the more efficiently it will be able to cruise, minimizing the load on the engines translating to better fuel mileage. I thoroughly understand this concept being the owner of a grossly underpowered boat IMO, friends of mine with similar weighted boats with triple motors get better fuel mileage than my twin 250's at cruise, granted this theory is invalidated at any speed over cruise. I see about 1 nautical mpg loaded in my Marlin I also have a 22 bay boat with a single Yamaha F250 that cruises at 5mpg. Obviously the initial cost of these new motors would never offset any fuel mileage gained with these bigger center consoles then again the age old saying "if you have to ask you can't afford it" might fit with these motors. The deciding factor between purchasing a Ferrari over a Lamborghini usually isn't fuel mileage. Not in any way saying these are economical motors but IMO if you drive conservatively always get the biggest motors the boat is rated for, a straining 200 is going to burn more fuel than a less strained 250 at the same speed on the same boat.