Oh My! Mercury V12 Outboard

[Midnightsun]

Amazing amount of innovation here. Take a look at the video.

https://www.boatingmag.com/story/boats/ ... -outboard/

[tomschauer]

Well, if my 7.4's ever bite the dust, I'll bolt two of these to my swim platform!
Should be a pretty simple 60k fix.

[Cooler]

Nope, 60K will not cover even 1 of these bad boys. Starting price is $77K, and hoo boy do they burn fuel!!! The good news... recommended maintenance interval is 200 hrs. I believe they have capacity to carry 14 quarts of oil, each. They weigh over 1200 lbs. Two speed transmission, but the ratio does not improve much. Next time I drive through Fond du lac, I may look at one of these beasts. I would think they have a display at the factory to get the salivating started. If I was interested in OB's, I would look at the new diesels first. I just can't get my head around hanging 3 or 4 of these things on the stern of a 44 to 50 foot boat. er

[buster53]

Marine 7 got more HP out of an 8 cylinder and probably a lot less weight. It’s a shame Volvo shut it down.

[Viper]

Actually, my recollection is that the Verado is less than 200lbs heavier. Considering it's a V12 vs the V8 of the Marine 7, and that everything about it is beefier, plus duo-prop, and a lower unit steering mech, just 200lb more is more than reasonable for the additions. I worked on a Marine 7 not too long after they came out, they were very heavy motors and I though the Hp to weight ratio should have been better IMO. Time will tell how the new Verado makes out but the design comes with a few very useful and imaginative innovations that will make them appealing for boat OEMs and owners. They sure make the best use of space from not having to turn the entire outboard for steering which will change the way boats are rigged and built. One thing's for sure, outboards are getting bigger an more popular as we had discussed in a previous thread!

[RGrew176]

It's amazing just how many newer boats are being built to accommodate outboard motors.

[Viper]

I had touched on this one or two years ago as rumours were sterndrive hull designs were slowing down and OEMs were transitioning to outboard even for larger cruiser markets. Boat owners in the smaller boat class have been catching on for some time that sterndrives are maintenance hogs. Some of the transom assembly maintenance and repairs are down right expensive which one should always budget for or else. Not as much maintenance needed on outboards except gear lube changes and engine maintenance but that goes for sterndrives too. Outboards however don't have heavy maintenance transom assemblies with bellows, gimbal bearings, etc. that all need to be replaced regularly. They're also a simpler design that doesn't require u-joints, engine removal for some repairs, etc. Outboards are also mounted overboard which frees up precious usable interior space. They also don't require cutting a huge hole in a transom which is regularly a source of water intrusion both into the bilge and transom core.

What outboards do cut into is usable swim platform space. Hang two or more units and you won't have much of a swim platform left for practical use, socializing, etc. which is very popular these days hence the increase in popularity of large OEM platforms and add-ons. As a result, be prepared to see more and more mechanical sections of hull sides that swing down to double as swim platforms. They're a great feature but do nothing for you if you like rafting off to other boats. The more popular these systems become, the fewer boats will be able to raft off together. Sometimes that's a good thing though