Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

hey guys I have a 2016 23 foot avalon Catalina with AX7 turning package. it has a merc 150 four stroke and is WAY under powered. just got back from the dealer and got a quote for a 225 merc pro xs, as a verado is out of the question due to much re rigging and almost 2x the cost.. my question is who is running the 225xs on there tritoon??? how do you like it? what are your top speeds? what prop are you running?? any info helps guys from my research I think I need to run a 17-18p enertia and should see low 50s. again what is your setup and experience? thanks guys

You won't see low 50s with that set up and Engine. I have a 2375 with Verado 250, with a simonsmotorsport tune to 300-325 and can only get 53. That is with many prop changes for experimenting and changing my engine height.

What are you considering "Way under powered"? What kind of speeds are you seeing now? Usually "Handling/Turning" options are a few MPH slower than simple straked tubes options due to the extra drag from larger/lower center tube that help increase the handling. If you see 40mph now the math says 50% more hp = 25% more speed so you would see ~50mph

Do what I did and get your new motor from Jacosmarine.com and save a ton of money.
What is the max HP rating for your boat???
Get the max hp and you should see 50 mph or so.

Yeah, what's you're top speed at what RPM's, I think it's called the AXT pkg Has a 2" larger center tube. You might pay 15 or 20 grand for 7mph. Most speed tests I've seen with Avalon aren't as fast as others, they are fairly heavy boats though, It may be 3,500lbs with motor where many tri-toons are around 3,000lbs or less with motor. If you had a 27'er i'd say the 150 is to small, But with a 23'er I would suspect set up 1st.

[quote="DWRAT"]Do what I did and get your new motor from Jacosmarine.com and save a ton of money.
What is the max HP rating for your boat???
Get the max hp and you should see 50 mph or so.[/quote]
Just curious, if you don't know what the max HP on his boat is, how can you say if you get the max HP he will see 50?

If that boat is heavier than many others, he is not going to see 50mph with that engine/HP.

[quote="Scott1"]
Just curious, if you don't know what the max HP on his boat is, how can you say if you get the max HP he will see 50?
If that boat is heavier than many others, he is not going to see 50mph with that engine/HP.[/quote]


Since he says he has the AXT package max HP should be 300 and based on that guess I also would guess 50+ mph.

I based his weight on the Catalina platinum, His will be closer to 3,000 lbs with motor, not 3,500 +. And may be max 250 hp.

Yeah, I don't know how much they way. Just from experience on my lake, there are a few 250's and 300's and they are barely hitting 50 if at all. You need to test props and motor height. It takes a lot of HP to go much faster once you get to a certain point. That is why I am saying I don't think a 225 will get him there.

Scott's right about there being a point of no return on pontoons.

When you've got a 2 tooned boat, about 30 mph is where you'll hit a wall and mega horsepower increases would be required to get the boat faster. But the boat's not rated for that much horsepower.

When you jump up to a tritoon with lifting strakes, 40 mph seems to be where an owner hits a speed wall. My Bennie with 150 hp does 40 mph, but 50 more horsepower may only get me 2-3 mph more. And 100 more horsepower (if my boat was rated for it) wouldn't get but a couple more mph maybe.

Unfortunately, high performance tritoons are a big, big cost over boats with three 25" toons with strakes. And the cost difference in outboards from 150 hp to 250 hp is $6,000 or more. And when it's said and done, that huge investment is for 5-7 mph that many owners seldom see in day to day cruising.

Pontoons/tritoons are expensive enough already without throwing big money for marginal improvements in speed.

And here I though my 19 mph on my old 24 foot Harris (75 hp) was plenty fast enough... Not sure why I'd need to go much faster than that.

23 foot pontoon doing 50 mph on the water. wow that is moving

[quote="DWRAT"][quote="Scott1"]
Just curious, if you don't know what the max HP on his boat is, how can you say if you get the max HP he will see 50?
If that boat is heavier than many others, he is not going to see 50mph with that engine/HP.[/quote]


Since he says he has the AXT package max HP should be 300 and based on that guess I also would guess 50+ mph.[/quote]


Its rated for a 225 but the manufacturer is giving us a new plate that is rated for a 250 because they changed that rating in 2017

[quote="rancherlee"]What are you considering "Way under powered"? What kind of speeds are you seeing now? Usually "Handling/Turning" options are a few MPH slower than simple straked tubes options due to the extra drag from larger/lower center tube that help increase the handling. If you see 40mph now the math says 50% more hp = 25% more speed so you would see ~50mph[/quote]


at 5800 rpm turning a 15p enertai we are right at 28 mph with medium load and Bimini down.. it also falls flat on its face in turns. just wrote the check for a 250xs so should help ALOT!

Ok that's what I suspected. There's no way in hell that should be in the 20's, Something else is going on. Maybe motor to low, Tach or speedo not right (if not gps). The dealer should be able to get you to 38, Then would you be willing to pay all that cash to get to 43? Or would you say good enough? Like I said earlier, It's a 23' boat not 27, you should be there.

[quote="avalonax7"]
at 5800 rpm turning a 15p enertai we are right at 28 mph with medium load and Bimini down.. it also falls flat on its face in turns. just wrote the check for a 250xs so should help ALOT![/quote]

Something is wrong with your numbers.
My boat with a 150 4 stroke will turn a 15p enertia 5350 rpm and I can hit 39-40 mph.
Hopefully your 250xs gets step up correctly because your current is not.