Advice on OB upgrade

[HawkTX]

Hey guys...I've been lurking (not in a creepy way - HA!!!) on the site the last few weeks and have really enjoyed the threads and conversations. Looks like there are some experienced pontoon experts on here. I'm looking for advice in regards to a Bennington 24 SCWX EXP I just purchased. Well, everything is done except for a the final decision on the Yamaha OB, which I need to decide on by Monday. It comes with a Yamaha F150LA and I was told could do up to 39mph or I could upgrade for a costly amount to the Yamaha F250. I was hoping to get some input on whether I should do this. We are a family of 6 (me, my wife, my son, two daughters, and a French Bulldog that thinks she is a person). We love riding around, beaching, and the very occasional tubing, but other than that, no water sports. I feel like the 150 will be enough, but I'm very curious to hear what you guys think. This will be my second boat. I traded in a 2013 Yamaha AR240 Jet boat with High Output twin engines and man did I like the power, but I think this pontoon will better suit my family on several fronts. Thanks in advance for your help!

[Maholli]

well most people always say go as much power u can afford... Me personally would come down to cost... what is price dif?

[HawkTX]

well most people always say go as much power u can afford... Me personally would come down to cost... what is price dif?

About $4K more.

[BoatCop]

Always go with the highest HP the boat and budget will allow. If you don't, you'll wish you did.

[zoom650]

You will find a 150 very capable.

But, if you enjoy the thrill of the ride and dropping another 4K is no consequence, go big or go home.

[RcgTexas]

Key word for me is "NO watersports" the 150 will do well and not be bad on fuel. If you were going to pull tubes or skiers i'd say the 250 or a 200. but you know what you will use it for. if you ever think you may want to pull tubes or skiis then go with the bigger motor because with a crowd onboard the 150 may be sluggish to pull with. Now if that doesn't confuse you I can elaborate!

[tms0425]

A good compromise now is the new Yamaha F200 4-cylinder. Easier on gas than the V6, plenty of power, lighter weight, less money. Several "S" model SPS hull owners on the Club Bennington discussion board have them and are very happy with that choice.

[Discovery]

Well, can we agree that trailer tires suck? That is were we may be able to start before the green flag drops on engine discussion.

[ralph]

A good resource to see estimated performance numbers would be on Yamahas website under Performance bulletins. They have 2 Benningtons similar in size that you can refer to. They do not have the 150 HP ratings but they do have the 115 HP which should give you some idea.

115 HP - Bennington 24 SLi - 32 MPH
250 HP - Bennington 2375 GCW - 44 MPH

The web site is;

http://yamahaoutboards.com/owner-resour ... -bulletins

I hope this helps with your decision.

I have a 20' Sweetwater with a 90 HP Yamaha and we're VERY happy with it's performance and fuel consumption but we're probably a but older since we're empty nesters and our kids are grown and gone.

[HawkTX]

Thanks for all the replies. I've got some thinking to do before Monday.

[Bamaman]

It's unclear which hull you're talking about on the 24' S series boat. I was thinking the 200 hp Yamaha was as large as the full length 3 toon boat will handle. The F250 is a very much heavier engine that takes much more expensive hull--commonly on the more expensive Bennie models.

The $4K price difference also sounds very, very low as 250 hp engines cost around $6K more than a F150. And don't forget that the 250 hp motor requires SeaStar Power Steering assist which would be another $2.5K (over the standard SeaStar hydraulic steering.)

I have a 24SSLX with F150 and the Express 3/4 length center toon, and it does my family well with 40 mph top speed. The F150 is conservative on horsepower, and is much more motor than the F115.

I also agree that the F200 would be a fine addition to a S model boat, but I would think it's almost $3K more. But it's a great performer.

Good luck with your dealer on Monday.

[Strake]

I had a similar decision a year ago when we ordered our new boat, a Berkshire tri toon that's about 24 ft.

Although I know from riding on our friends similar Bennington with a 150 Yamaha that it's more than enough power for cruising around, and the occasional tubing. I looked at Yamaha's performance spec page on the Yamaha engine webpage at every possible engine / boat combination and wanted to make a decision I would be happy with for the long run......

For us, I found the F200LB was the most bang for the buck, best overall performance, and best fuel economy when compared to the 150, even though I was spending just over $4k more for the difference.

If you go with anything bigger than a 150, it is highly recommended to have POWER steering. That alone makes a big difference in handling pleasure.

Our boat is rated up to 300 hp max and I looked at the 150, 200, and 250. It seemed to be about a $4k to $5k difference for each 50 hp increase.

Our boat will run up to 42 mph GPS wide open at 5600 rpm using a Yamaha Reliance SDS 14.5 X 15 pitch Stainless prop. I usually cruise at 3000 rpm which with 4 or 6 people gives me 18 mph GPS.....

As I track my fuel milage each tank full, we burn about 2.5 to 2.7 gallons per hour for total use which includes, idle, cruising and some short wide open burst now and again. I also track distance covered per gallon and I'm getting 4.45 miles per gallon.

I'm very happy with the choice we made, NO regrets or wishing I had gotten the 250 or 300. We do have the Sea Star Power steering too.

I would suggest you look at the Yamaha performance webpage and look at all brands of pontoon boats for different motors and find what is close to what you have. There is tons of good info there.

[Bryden24shp]

Before I would think too hard about this, call or email Eric Simon at Simons Motorsports http://simonmotorsports.com/ 760-440-9334 info@simonmotorsports.com and ask him what an ECU burn will get you. I got 85 horsepower and beter fuel economy out of my Verado. I trust Eric to all my ECU work. Its the best $650 I spent in a long time....

[HawkTX]

I guess I'm going to stay with the Yamaha F150. After I really discussed what I will be using it for a couple of the guys at the dealer that I have known for years agreed that I didn't really need to go with the bigger 200 or 250. We might pull the tubes out once or twice a summer. Most of the time we are cruising or hanging out at the beach and my wife and 10 year old daughter freak out if I go past 30mph. They said top speed is close to 40mph with the F150 so it doesn't even sound like I will be going top speed that much.

Thanks for everyone's input. I appreciate it.

[BobG]

After I really discussed what I will be using it for a couple of the guys at the dealer that I have known for years agreed that I didn't really need to go with the bigger 200 or 250.

When you're trying to outrun a storm, there's no such thing as "big enough".