Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

[turboxr]

Hey all.

I've been wanting a boat for a while and when I stumbled on the fact that some mid to late 80's boats had my beloved 2.3 Ford 4cyl, it sealed the deal. I'm in the market. Now, I have a few specific questions. I've done some searching, but haven't gone too crazy through the annals of the forum, so forgive me if this has been gone through. I'm looking for a list of all the ski/speed boats that used the OMC/Ford 2.3. So far I've figured out this much:

-Bayliner Capri 1750
-Starcraft Medalist 1701
-Renken Bow Rider
-Some Sunbirds

Are there any others I should be looking for? I am only looking for a boat with this motor as I know the motor front to back pan to valve cover.

Second question. Here's the doosie (is that how you spell that?):

Can it be turbo'd? This is the real reason I'm after one of these. I've got 3 or 4 extra complete turbo motors from Mustang SVO/Thunderbird TC/Merkur XR4Ti as well as turbo manifolds, efi setups, wiring harnesses in stock. 1+1 should = 2. Badda boom badda bing, 230hp lightweight lake rocket. So, can I run a turbo/efi in a boat? Or does the marine-ness of it prohibit it? I.E. the funky exhaust. Remember, I know next to nothing about boating so excuse the ignorance, despite how blissful it can be.

Thanks!

 

[chrisrooter]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

I love my little 2.3l in a 17' donzi. But you should consider the condition of the rest of the boat, you say your a beginner. So floor,transom,stringer rot or water logged. Also the outdrive is an expensive item but sei makes some conversions for example my omc is out of business many years, so parts are hard to come by sometimes except for the internals of the 2.3 are available. This is a great board to get you through many problems. So enjoy your search, and try to do a water test on whatever you buy, and maybe have a marine survey on it. Here is a pic of mine, you should know it well.

 

[chrisrooter]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

I just read your post again and had to laugh you are looking for list of ski/speed boats with a 2.3. Well that's gonna be tough I do not consider mine a speed boat with a 2.3, but I do still love it.

 

[matt167]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

2.3L is a great powerplant for a Mustang, Pinto or a Ranger but not so much with a boat. Only used a few years in only a handful of boats and only used with OMC stern drives, so now 25 or so years later, the supply of marinized parts to fit the 2.3 is diminishing and a lot of parts are 2.3L only

The mods you listed won't work without re engineering. The exhaust is wet on an I/O so the turbo really wouldn't work too well. It can be made to work in special applications like diesels but not with the limited parts available.. Ignition and carb/ EFI need to be marine spec as per USCG.. Also outdrives only have one gear, so you really shouldn't change the torque/ hp curve on the engine. Prop swap to a smaller prop can do a little for the hole shot but not a lot if the motor just doesn't have enough torque

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

I would be looking for a boat without the 2.3L Ford engine. Go price out manifolds for it before you get too attached.

And you can't turbo it.

 

[Nivekt]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

Sorry to break it to you Turbo but unfortunately your love for this motor is ill advised when crossing over to the marine world. You're venturing into the obsolete,expensive and hard to find territory of OMC. Ford got out of the marine business in the mid to late 90's so I suggest you look for something that is powered by Chevy with either a Mercruiser or Volvo Penta drive system.

 

[Howard Sterndrive]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

The 2.3 was ok, but not something to seek out. High revving OH cam engine that needed to turn 5400 rpm to realize the 128HP therefore required unique gears in the outdrive that are no longer available. Several NLA parts make them a poor choice.
Not a good motor for watersports as they don't have gobs of low end torque.

When they run, they are fine - I'm not bashing the engineering, but the Cobra drives have some shortcomings that can be worked around on all other models except the 2.3- on the 2.3, due to the gear ratio, you're stuck with a drive that can slip out of gear when the shift cable gets old or misadjusted, and a few clunks can make the boat a sudden lawn ornament with no repair parts available.
There is a guy here if you search that did a roller cam top end conversion on his 2.3 - I don't think much performance was gained and I don't know if performance was the goal anyways. You can't really do any HP mods that you would do on the street because 7000 rpm will have u joints and gimbal bearings flying off the boat. And the lower unit is only good for 130HP.

Knowing the engine inside and out is not that important for most boaters because a boat typically sees 50 hours a year and you just do routine maintenance.
Get a smallish boat with a 200+HP Chevy V6 in front of an Alpha One Merc drive and you won't need a turbo or any special knowledge. Most smaller runabouts with that setup will run 50 mph and try to yank a wakeboarders arms out of their sockets on takeoff. Two things a 2.3 will never do.

 

[turboxr]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

Ok, so after all that, I'm still enamored with the idea. It seems it would take a huge amount of re-engineering. I've seen turbo'd boats. Can I not just run the exhaust up and out the cover instead of through the water? Would that mean a giant hole in the hull? I'm sorry again for my ignorance. And, I suppose Efi wouldn't be a must, I can run a blow through turbo setup. The biggest issue I see would be the outrdive not being able to handle it. Can ratios be changed? the U joint breaking doesn't seem like an issue as it looks just as stout as an automotive driveshaft joint.

 

[matt167]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

No, you can't run a dry exhaust without a lot of shortcomings. It would need to come up and out of the boat without touching anything. It could get hot enough to burn the glass otherwise. Turbo's are used in racing but that's expensive and a whole nother ballgame. You could use a centrifugal supercharger tho.. Still, you can make a lot more power with a different engine. I actually would suggest/ buy the 470 mercruiser over the 2.3L OMC.. Get a good cylinder head like a P51 or a Cobra Jet cylinder head, match the pistons to get the compression up to 9.5:1 or so. port and polish the manifolds. Probably good for a couple hundred HP but gobs of torque.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

You can't run a dry exhaust period!

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

I actually would suggest/ buy the 470 mercruiser over the 2.3L OMC..

But that's like "outta the frying-pan and into the fire too!!"

So, can I run a turbo/efi in a boat? Or does the marine-ness of it prohibit it? I.E. the funky exhaust.

Only if you have an inordinate amount of money and time.

Dry exhaust can only be used with open engine compartments. Just about ALL stern-drive boats have enclosed engine compartments.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

470 would also be a bad choice.

 

[turboxr]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

Ok ok ok I get it. Bad idea. Even though I'm usually the one who does something new because others tell me it can't be done, I think I'll bow out on the turbo idea- as much as I like it.


However, I'd like to stay with the 2.3 if possible. Here's an idea- swap the head for a turbo d port head, put a roller cam in it, larger carb, and run an eaton M90 roots supercharger. That takes care of the electronics, keeps the wet exhaust, and still gives me forced induction. How's that sound? I suppose then the biggest issue would be getting enough fuel to it.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

Ok ok ok I get it. Bad idea. Even though I'm usually the one who does something new because others tell me it can't be done, I think I'll bow out on the turbo idea- as much as I like it.


However, I'd like to stay with the 2.3 if possible. Here's an idea- swap the head for a turbo d port head, put a roller cam in it, larger carb, and run an eaton M90 roots supercharger. That takes care of the electronics, keeps the wet exhaust, and still gives me forced induction. How's that sound? I suppose then the biggest issue would be getting enough fuel to it.

Ahh.....nice to dream I guess.....we all do it.

You want to use an engine that was at best a POS in a boat. Then you want to use an obsolete outdrive, with NLA parts (also a POS) behind the the (POS) engine.

I'm usually the one who does something new

Good luck. Take pictures.

 

[turboxr]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

Without dreams, where would we be?

Ahh.....nice to dream I guess.....we all do it.

You want to use an engine that was at best a POS in a boat. Then you want to use an obsolete outdrive, with NLA parts (also a POS) behind the the (POS) engine.



Good luck. Take pictures.

 

[Howard Sterndrive]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

out boating

supercharger seems to be more what that setup would need than a turbo though, but still - there's 2 reasons why none of that is popular in boats...and it's the Chevy V6 and V8.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: Newbie! Interesting OMC 2.3 questions inside!

out boating

supercharger seems to be more what that setup would need than a turbo though, but still - there's 2 reasons why none of that is popular in boats...and it's the Chevy V6 and V8.

There's a 3rd reason. super charging (turbo or engine driven) with that engine and comp-ratio would also increase the risk of detonation and "kaboom"