Single engine on larger boat?

[DennisG01]

If you haven't seen this, yet... how 'bout a 600HP, 7.6L V12 outboard? No, I did not make a type there. V12! Fixed engine with articulating lower unit, dual props. Might have to reinforce your transom, though as it weighs almost 1,300lbs! But that's a lot of engine sitting in one location. Oh... two speed transmission, too!

Mercury Marine - A Worldwide Leader in Marine Propulsion | Mercury Marine

Manufacturers of outboard motors and MerCruiser inboard engines, with over 4000 dealers in the United States.

www.mercurymarine.com

 

[efx]

That thing is a monster! Very beautiful without a doubt. I sure hope it works out well for them, Mercury deserves it!

 

[family affair]

I doubt you will see this on a mass produced single application. If you need 600 hp, the boat is big enough to need at least 2 engines for close quarters operation. This is an engine for the 0.5%.
Regardless it is some great engineering. I've often said time and money can create a solution for many things. Looks like those who can afford 40' + boats no longer have to deal with the inconvenience of 4-5 outboards cluttering their transom!

 

[magicalbill]

It's rather remarkable if you go back to the 60's when we were puttering around in our Dad's 16 footer with a 50 HP Evinrude. (Anyone ever have the Evinrude "Cruise-A-Day" 6 gallon metal gas tanks? I'm showing my age here...)

The technological advances from then 'till now are mind-blowing if you really think about it.

I'll bet I'm not far off in estimating that two of those things will hit 100K with Joystick, digital throttles & rigging.

 

[DennisG01]

I still have some metal 6-gallon and 3-gallon tanks in use!

 

[SkunkBoat]

if they could figure out how to mount those giant outboards on an old fashioned flat full inboard transom and just raise the lower unit...so the motors are not 8 feet behind the boat...now that would be a game changer

 

[efx]

Look how the lower unit pivots without moving the engine. Very smart.

 

[Fishtales]

Thinking out loud... Seems to be an over engineered science project. Hopefully they learned a thing or two that can be applied up and down the line. Then again, who thought 350s would be the norm in the 70s...

 

[SkunkBoat]

funny, I did not see them on a boat...did I miss that?

Also, they look like 20" shafts...gear case starts at bottom of mounting bracket...

You would think they are made for NEW +40' boats

 

[UCPA111]

BEAST MODE! $75K + rigging. Not gonna work on my Seafarer...but the advancements in tech benefit the consumer. Looking forward to seeing more videos (saw some on their test boats today).

I imagine if your boat costs $900K+ the adder for 2-3 of these is just pocket change.

I am sure I'd get some YouTube hits if I rolled this on the Seafarer though....LOL!

 

[doug228]

Leg options are 20,25,30 and 35" long. There is a lot going on here, duo prop, 2 speed gearbox, pod style leg (45 degree turning...? Hoped for more).

Definately designed for big boats, would be nice to see some of the tech trickle down to smaller units...and pocket books. Weight can be compensated for in new builds, tricky for existing boats.

Will be interesting to see if yamaha stretches the output on the 425. Its already around 300lbs lighter than the merc...close the HP gap a bit. Throw a duo prop on it and continue to refine helmaster.

 

[Trout Poison]

Magicbill..... “cruise-a-day”.... LOL!!
grew up hearing that! “Grab that extra cruise-a-day, we may need it...”.
thanks for the trip down memory lane.

 

[blindmullet]

My brother worked for Intrepid and they used a lot of 7 Marine motors. This Merc has a little less HP but will fill that void in the market now that 7 Marine is gone.

 

[magicalbill]

Magicbill..... “cruise-a-day”.... LOL!!
grew up hearing that! “Grab that extra cruise-a-day, we may need it...”.
thanks for the trip down memory lane.

Trout:

Your most welcome; I don't focus on the technical aspects- my mind doesn't work that way. I immediately thought of the aforementioned gas tanks, the knob you pulled out to choke the Evinrude/Johnson before you started it; 50-1 oil mix...

If this keeps up Society tomorrow will make George Jetson and "his boy Elroy" look like cave dwellers.

It has now reached the point where you could by a house for what it will take to slap these Mercs on a CC.

 

[DennisG01]

Where I see these being used, at least in the beginning, is to replace triple engines. Where a boat may have had to use 3 engines, it can now use 2, with the added benefits of the shifting tranny and twin, counter-rotating props and most likely the same or better performance with increased fuel economy.

The added degress of swing/turning will help even more in docking maneuvers with the way that digitally controlled engines can swing independently with joysticks. I looked ahead and it does appear that they are going to be an option on a boat like the Sea Ray 400SLX for 2022. I'm sure others, as well, but that was one I could easily check on. I'm sure it will be used on their outboard powered Sundancer cruisers... and I have no doubt we'll be seeing these on large CC's and such.

Heck, even though Grady uses Yamaha, you know that some customers will order their boats then immediately swap to the Merc's before even splashing the boat. I mean, with the last car I bought, I swapped the regular carpeted floor mats for rubber ones before I even drove it off the lot. It's pretty much the same idea, right?

 

[family affair]

Dennis, I do wonder at what point Grady will break its alliance with Yamaha. Mercury is inovating at a pace Yamaha does not seem to be interested in or can't justify the cost to keep up with. Mercury products are lighter, quieter, more fuel efficient, easier to maintain, and nearly as bullet proof as Yamaha. Yamaha has rested on "we are reliable" for too long.

 

[Don Davis]

Not to derail this thread but I believe the real future is in electric outboards, in my opinion. I know there are some already out there that are smaller HP, I have had an electric trolling motor for years for the lakes on my small tin boats and it’s awesome quiet later at night hearing the loons on the lake, just magic. I go back to when I first started working in forestry on the BC coast. Canfor ran the logging railway at Englewood on Vancouver Island and converted from steam locomotives to diesel electric and the power generated was unbelievable as they hauled hundreds of railcars with logs over 100km to the dry land sort at Beaver Cove. I realize we are many years from big electric outboards but it will be interesting to watch their development similar to the automobile industry.

 

[Fishtales]

Agree with Don. I wonder why this isn't more fertile ground for the electric market. You can put a big battery in place of a fuel tank and range for most recreational boaters should not be a problem.

 

[family affair]

Even with a big battery the energy density still isn't good enough for more than 30-60 minutes of run time at cruise.
There are several viable battery technologies on the horizon that will easily double to triple this or better.
If you think GM is commiting to all electric by 2035 with the current battery technologies, you'd be wrong. The future is bright!

 

[DennisG01]

Torqeedo has been coming out with larger and larger electric outboards, but so far they're only up to 80HP. I think the overall weight with batteries (to give about an hour run time at full throttle) is a few hundred pounds more than this Merc big boy... and still only 80HP. Double the batteries and we're looking at close to 3,000lbs.

But it's going to take a long, LONG time for the boating world to accept electric power for anything other than short distance, recreational use. Look how long it's taking for the automotive world to come around - and we're still not there - then there's the whole infrastructure and charging ability (inability) once there a lot's of electric vehicles out there. There's no charging stations out there on the water...

Back on point... Family, that's a good point. And maybe this is what Yamaha and others need - a good, swift kick in the butt to say "hey, start thinking outside the box". I do agree that I think we're going to see this type of technology trickle down to smaller engines over time. Heck, Merc first introduced DTS (their version of drive by wire) into the market on the 8.1L sterndrive engines back in 2001 (although it was actually a joint venture between them and Sea Ray). Now, digitally controlled engines - although not "common place" - are certainly very popular with many manufacturers and many ranges of engine sizes.