1981 Motor Boating Magazine v20 with Merc 200hp

[THEFERMANATOR]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

That's a great article, and it confirms what I've thought for a long time. 200 hp is simply better. (Think of a house air conditioner.. too small a window unit and it has to run all the time. Make it bigger and it works less to deliver the same cooling.... in other words, it's more economical) The same with a 200 vs a 150 on our size boats.

At any rate. it was a good article and I thank you BigShrimpin for finding it. I just wish they mentioned what pitch prop they were using in their tests. That would have helped a lot.

The cooling analogy isn't a good one as it has been proven time and time again that a 90-95% duty cycle of an A/C unit is MORE efficient than an oversized unit that doesn't run as much. If an A/C is oversized, the unit doesn't run enough to remove the humidity, yes it runs less, but it uses more electric while running, so you end up using just as much electricity, but don't remove as much himidity leaving your home feeling cold and clammy inside. Going oversized is a common misconception though. And it should be of note that a 1981 200HP MERC is actually a 175HP MERC by todays standards.

Originally Posted by bgreene

Now imagine the benefits of 300 hp !

But seriously, a couple of things......
1. engine weight - they show the 200hp as lighter than the 175 and 150. I believe it's backwards. Also, at less than 400lbs, all three of these engines are considerably lighter than many current outboards.... my etec 200 hp is more like 525 lbs.

2. engine weight - based on the reality of current 200 hp weight, the 150 truly is lighter, and this has some advantages too........

So, for those with 150hp pushing V's....... that's a very fine choice for these boats, with over 40mph top end, and less weight on the transom.

Engine height comment - I moved one hole further than my shop rigged, and still have 1 hole higher remaining. Might try it.........or not.

The 200HP 2.4L MERC WAS lighter than the 150 of it's day. The 200HP engine was a chrome bore or nicasil block whereas the 150 was a steel sleeved engine. And without all the extra crap on outboards, they used to be pretty light. My 225 EVINRUDE only weighed in around 465 pounds or so for the big V-6. SUZUKI had a 225HP outboard with fuel injection, dual plugs, the whole shebang, and it only weighed 470 pounds.

Keep in mind these tests are with carbed 2 stroke engines where raw fuel going out the exhaust ports was common place. The 2.4L engine ALWAYS had an edge over the 2.0L engines, so these results are what I would expect to see. Modern DFI or 4 stroke engines have changed these kind of results quite a bit.