Quote:
Originally Posted by uncleboo
The person that mounted mine back in '03 has the av plate about 3/4 to1' below the keel. I'm assuming I should raise mine as well. Running a Suzuki df140 on the transom.
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I usually check the E-Tec Owners forum every couple days, where the engine techs often mention the importance of correct mounting height, and it seems like almost
all dealers mount the motors too low! I can think of several reasons they might do that:
1. The average boater, especially a newbie, has no idea how much motor height can effect performance.
2. If motor is too high and the prop ventilates during hard turns, even a newbie will notice that, and complain!
3. The typical dealer could care less that you aren't getting optimum performance! He's very busy during the peak boating season, so he doesn't want to be bothered by come-backs! The safe option from his perspective, particularly if he's dealing with a newbie, is to just mount the motor on the low side of normal to minimize complaints. If you find a dealer that pays attention to mounting height, that's a good sign of a much better than average guy that really cares about his customer!
I agree, your motor is mounted way too low if AV plate is BELOW the keel! Just make sure you don't have some oddball combination, like a 25" motor on a 20" transom or vice versa! I think the AV plate set at 1.5 to 2"
above keel is about right, but a sea trial to insure the AV plate is above solid water and handling is good is what's important. I sort of like to get it too high initially so I know where the "edge of the cliff" is and then drop it down a hole, but when doing that, it's a good idea to monitor water pressure to make sure you don't create cooling problems! I believe the basic design of the prop and how heavily it's cupped is a more important factor than size in determining running height. For example, some bass boat and race props are designed to be run "semi-surfacing", but that's a very specialized application, not not likely what you'd want on a typical SeaCraft!