Hopefully I'm in the right place. I am currently performing a total restoration on a 1972 Starcraft Chieftain which is a 25 foot aluminum cuddy cabin. I have made the decision to do away with the current inline 6 cyl I/O and replace with a OB on a bracket. Have already done all the research on how to reinforce the transom and hang the bracket so feasibility is not an issue.
While I have owned boats with both I/O and Outboards I have never done a conversion.
The inline 6 is 165HP 32 years old and the whole thing is tired. Have a couple of questions?
1. Is the Etec as good as the marketing material claims it to be? I like the idea of 2 cycle torque and all the claims they make on reliability. I haven't owned a 2 stroke since the 70's and it worked well but wouldn't idle for crap and was smokey.
2. The boat is light, probably 4000 lbs tops with full load of fuel and four passengers and gear. I don't need to go fast but obviously need to be able to get on plane and have enough power to make the boat do what I want in inclement weather. Looking for a recommendation on the 'MINIMUM' horsepower required to do the job. I would love for it to be the 130HP since that keeps me in the 4 cyl range.
I have had a lot of opinions on this from various folks all the way from 200HP is a must to hell yeah you could do the 130HP because the Etec is so torqey.
I post in the Starcraft forum quite a bit and the gang have been super helpful, hoping some one out here can give a logically statement around motor selection. Thanks in advance
While I have owned boats with both I/O and Outboards I have never done a conversion.
The inline 6 is 165HP 32 years old and the whole thing is tired. Have a couple of questions?
1. Is the Etec as good as the marketing material claims it to be? I like the idea of 2 cycle torque and all the claims they make on reliability. I haven't owned a 2 stroke since the 70's and it worked well but wouldn't idle for crap and was smokey.
2. The boat is light, probably 4000 lbs tops with full load of fuel and four passengers and gear. I don't need to go fast but obviously need to be able to get on plane and have enough power to make the boat do what I want in inclement weather. Looking for a recommendation on the 'MINIMUM' horsepower required to do the job. I would love for it to be the 130HP since that keeps me in the 4 cyl range.
I have had a lot of opinions on this from various folks all the way from 200HP is a must to hell yeah you could do the 130HP because the Etec is so torqey.
I post in the Starcraft forum quite a bit and the gang have been super helpful, hoping some one out here can give a logically statement around motor selection. Thanks in advance
