common engine sizes?

[nola mike]

i mentioned in another post that i'm looking to buy an 18-21' i/o bowrider, late '80's-early '90's. i've been looking around, and can't find a list of common engine sizes used in boats of this size/era.

i'm looking for common engine sizes (cid and liters), # cylinders, and hp. if i knew that some were mated to OMCs, and some to mercs, that would be a bonus.

so when i see an ad for a 3.0L, or 3.5L, or whatever, i'll know that it's a ford/chevy block that produces 150hp and is 4 cylinders, or whatever.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: common engine sizes?

Ford V8 = distributor in front. Chevy V6 & V8 = distributor in back.
Ford V8 = 302 or 351 CI probably mated to an OMC outdrive.
Chevy V8 = 305 and 350 CI in those years but there are many more going farther back. V6 = 262 CI.
2.5 and 3.0 are chevy 4 bangers. 230/250 CI is an inline Chevy six
In the vintage you are looking at, nearly every I/O is powered by a GM (Chevy engine).

Horsepowers are all over the map. To convert Liters to CI multiply by 61.

 

[stonyloam]

Re: common engine sizes?

First boat right? The following is just my opinion: won't try to tell you what to buy, but STAY AWAY from anything with an OMC outdrive, and stay away from the mercruiser 3.7 L 4 cyl (470 type engine). They can be a lot of trouble for a new boater. If I were looking for a boat of that vintage, it would be one with a 4.3 L V6 with an Alpha 1 outdrive, but any of the motors (except 3.7) attached to an mercruiser outdrive should be OK, providing they are in good shape. One other piece of unsolicited advice is to have the outdrive checked out by a reliable mechanic to make sure it is OK. The cost will be minor compared to the cost of fixing a bad outdrive, especially with a boat of that vintage. Just my opinion.

 

[nola mike]

Re: common engine sizes?

Ford V8 = distributor in front. Chevy V6 & V8 = distributor in back.
Ford V8 = 302 or 351 CI probably mated to an OMC outdrive.
Chevy V8 = 305 and 350 CI in those years but there are many more going farther back. V6 = 262 CI.
2.5 and 3.0 are chevy 4 bangers. 230/250 CI is an inline Chevy six
In the vintage you are looking at, nearly every I/O is powered by a GM (Chevy engine).

Horsepowers are all over the map. To convert Liters to CI multiply by 61.

thanks much. so for a guy that has only had foreign cars and thinks in metric, it looks like <=3.0L = 4 cylinder, 3.8-4.3L = 6 cyl, and >5.0L = V8. looks like i can maybe just google engine size + boat model to get hp...

 

[180shabah]

Re: common engine sizes?

When you have a couple that your are seriously interested in, post here with pictures and S/N's if posible.

 

[nola mike]

Re: common engine sizes?

well, no pics but i'm going to look at a 21' galaxy with a 4.3L merc. i'll post my concerns in my other thread (more on topic).

 

[Liquid_force]

Re: common engine sizes?

Hmm, 4.3L might be a bit undersized for a 21' if it's a big 21, especially if you're planning much in the way of skiing/boarding/tubing.
However some of the later ones are 200+ hp. Which would get the job done in most cases (propped correctly).

My '89 19' 4.3L 175hp is really about as low as I'd want to go (pwr vs wt) to be doing much skiing.

 

[nola mike]

Re: common engine sizes?

Hmm, 4.3L might be a bit undersized for a 21' if it's a big 21, especially if you're planning much in the way of skiing/boarding/tubing.
However some of the later ones are 200+ hp. Which would get the job done in most cases (propped correctly).

My '89 19' 4.3L 175hp is really about as low as I'd want to go (pwr vs wt) to be doing much skiing.

well, it's an '85 galaxy--i'm guessing its an 209BR, as that's closest to 21'. info on this site shows it to be 20.25' with a wt of 1805#. presumably this is either a 170 or 190hp?