Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

i have a 175 johnson looper on my 18. my wife told me we will not repower when the time comes, just buy another boat. i priced 130 etecs and they were 3 times what i paid for the lock stock and barrel. i can carry a huge load if i need and i have plenty of power to get out of most any situation that may arise. i would think essentially having half of my horses would not allow me to get on plane quick and keep me on the top of chop instead of in the trough.

Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

Wow, a 175 on an 18SF. That thing must fly. Seems more than I need for the chop I ride. I mean the boat is only 2,000 lbs with the motor and loaded with fuel. I don't want a V6 and associated weight. I keep coming back to the etec 115 because I want a V4, but don't want one that is stressed too much. I'm guessing 115-130 hp is about perfect for the 18SF.

Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

It's amazing how the weight can add up. When I'm loaded for an offshore trip its about 3500lbs. I wouldn't want anything less than my 150. If your sure you'll stay light and not have a big top, that 90 would do ok with the right prop. Your fuel bill would sure be low.

Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

I disagree on the fuel - example my cruise with the 200 is 3400RPM run that pig at 4200 and the fuel goes way up. Running the 90 it will be working very hard in comparison. About 130 is perfect but only 1 chioce from Yam - a 150 would be fine also. I can't run mine very fast either but the power helps the handling as much as anything. My 115 was pretty good though and the inline Merc was not a torque monster so 115 Etec will work fine - can't believe how heavy all of them are, that Merc came in at 268 I think.

Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

I used to cruise my old 115 @ 4500 all day long on the Bahama trips with a very heavy load in the Seafari, burning about 8 gph; averaged 2.8 mpg. With that 300 lb motor, I could slow down and plane at 12-13 mph if it got rough, with the same or better mpg. I suspect a lot of guys with the 450+ lb 4 strokes have trouble planning below about 18-20 mph; you'll spend a lot of time airborne in a 20 at that speed in a 20 if seas are over about 3'! I also found another advantage with a small wound up motor in following seas - because I was well up on the torque curve, I could bump it up to 4600-4700 and it would stay on plane going uphill in the big swells with no throttle movement required. My 150 is so sensitive to the throttle that I think I now would be on and off the throttle a lot in the same sea condition.

Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

i agree w/ red. loaded down for a big fishing trip, w/ t top, phone booth, and 2-3 people, i would never consider less than my 150 back there. ive redone my scuppers and splash well so thats not an issue (still sits above water line though). i trust fr. franks opinion wholly, but w/ my configuration, i wouldnt want less. not to mention i had a 200 merc racing engine on the boat when i bought her. had i gone w/ anything less than 150, i would have been miserable.

Re: 90 or 115 ETEC for 18SF?
 

It's real easy to get used to having that kind of power on tap, even if you don't use it very often. I love my 5+ mpg with my 90 hp, but every now and again I really miss blasting along at 50 mph in the Gulf of Mexico.

I promise you, were not finances and operating expenses such a huge issue, I would have raised the deck, and raised the transom to 30", and put a 225 hp Mercury Verado on the back of my Seafari. :D

I have a friend with a 21' Checkmate Starflite and a 250 hp Yamaha HPDI on Lake George. It can just touch 85 mph.
Every so often, he lets me drive. :cool: