496HOBravoX vs 525EFIBravoXR
 

Am about to put down the deposit for my Sunsation 32SSR.
My heart really wants to go for the 525EFI BravoXR package.

Am just worried that the 525 XR package requires much more regular service than the 406HO BravoX package.

How are the lube change intervals of the XR ?
How often does the drive have to come off for lubing, greasing etc.

The Bravo X has permalube and can be run hundreds of hours without coming off....just as long as you lube and grease at the grease points...

I can do oil changes etc. myself but prefer not to have to take off the drive and not to open up the motors.

All input highly appreciated.....

525 good for 300 hrs before top end service.

496's, i have seen them with more than 1000 hrs.

intervals depend on how you run it. i have some people who service every 10 hrs with full synthetic oils. and others at 100. with conventional.
the x or xr drives do not lubeable u joints so you wont need to pull the drive except for storage and to ckeck the bearing and engine alignment which should be done every season.
spark plugs are 100 hrs on the 496 and when required on the 525. fuel filters are the same. 496 's tend to run a little fat so the oil tends to be quite black between chnges.
basicly its a warranty issue 496=5yrs
525=1

Actually, the only special maintainance (according to the owners manual) that is specified at 300 hours on the 525 is finally replacing the spark plugs!
Top end freshen-ups at such low hours are a rumour that was started by a batch of bad valve springs on HP500´s about 7 years back.
I´ve run both 496HO and 525EFi in my boat and there is no contest. The blue motor is so much better, although both have been 100% reliable. I change the oil every 25 hours on the motor and every 50 on the drive (black or blue motor). I use Mercury oils.
The longer intervals that are recommended for a 496 are only a reference based on the type of recreational boat that they are mostly installed in. With your Sunnny you will be using much of the motor´s potential, and should changing the oils more often, anyway.

Even the 600SCi does not require much special maintainance (I also have the manual in front of me), and Mercury Racing says that the blower motor seeing 6-700 hours without a freshen up.

A recreationally used 525 will see as many hours as a 496 and maybe more, due to the forged internals and hand built quality.

Remember you will be running the 525 at only 75% to acheive the flat out performance of the 496.

The XR is simply stronger than the Bravo 1, but has otherwise no disadvantage. The straight cut gears are a little noisier and absorb a few more hp, but will probably last alot longer, too!

The dock credibility, performance make the upgrade cost worthwhile, and the resale does the rest.

Actually, the only special maintainance (according to the owners manual) that is specified at 300 hours on the 525 is finally replacing the spark plugs!
Top end freshen-ups at such low hours are a rumour that was started by a batch of bad valve springs on HP500´s about 7 years back.

my comments do not come from a manual nor a magazine. they come from being in the industry for the last so many years. and keeping the consumer and mercury happy.

period.

i stand. 496 =5yrs. if your willing to except the speed loss than go for it. or be willing to deal with the requirements of more power.

I respect your (based on hands on experience) viewpoint.

I just cannot see the mild and conservatively set up 525 being treated to the same "temperamental racehorse" attitude that larger more powerful blower motors get, just because it is blue and has "racing" all over it. It is built with the same degree of perfection that the larger motors get, is offered, sealed and certified, to go racing with, but basically is just a blueprinted, better specced version of a similar motor (502)to the 496.
Higher compression ratio, better shaped porting, hotter cam, the headers and a well sorted motor management programm make the 525 do more than the 496, but it is still an ultra solid baseline (and basically the same block and heads as the 600, 662 and 700).

However, I´m quite happy to admit that a boat shop who sees the customers coming in with their little problems to be dealt with, has probably got a better impression of what does go wrong, and why.

I think a lot of it has to do with how the boat is run.

For example, you go out and buy a top of the line sports car with the "hot" motor in it. The car is going to be driven and driven hard. Buy that same car with a motor in that doesn't perform as well and your less likely to mobb around town.

Same situation with the boat. Everytime you've got some tool that wants to "see what you got" your gonna throw the hammer down and it's going to happen more often then you think, why else would one need or want to go with a motor as such.

Bottom line is, if you wanna go faster, have better re-sale and have people stare at your sh!t at the dock, go with some sort of blingy motor. You wanna blend in with every other boat on the lake , go with the HO's.

You also have to consider the fact that the manufacture is probably going to get you for an extra 50K on the twin upgrade..... This may or may not be of concern.

The 525 package gets my vote. However, I know a few people who got the 496ho's saved the coin. Ran them until they were out of warrenty and then added the Raylar kits for the upgrade. Big savings that way. Especially if you get the itch to go faster in a couple of seasons. Just an idea.

I disagree... I looked hard at the Raylar package.
To do it right your into those kits minumum 14K and that's cash money. The kit alone (the one with the cam) is 7K.
No you gotta install it, send your pcm to whipple, make sure your sh!t is dialed.... What I'm trying to say, this is not a back yard project.

Upgrade to the next kit with a new rotating assy cause your gonna want forged internals when you add the SC, naturally.

X 2 = 28K, paid today.

Not to mention... the Raylars aren't really helping the re-sale yet the 525's will.

Buy the 525's and defer that money in your payment. You can do a lot with 28K cash money today.

warrantys are also good for resale.

also, the typical consumer who buys the 525 wants the noise, the looks, the speed, and usually likes to spin the engine at or near its limits.
looking at it from a scaned brain concept or point of interest,the 2 most common areas of engine operation as for rpm are 0-1200 rpm's and 4500 and up rpms for old blue. where as the 496 usually has most of its time around 3500rpm.
it is easy to get hung up in the hype however when it comes to pulling the trigger the average consumer comes to senses when not the most experienced operator and usually chooses the 496. someone a little mre experienced and say 2yrs into boating at the over 65 mph speed, will usually opt for the 525.
in the past 2 weeks i have reflashed, scanned , preped,or serviced 15 verado 275's, 10 496's and 4 525's and 4 hp 700's. this includes original owners, and boater's whom may have grown as previously stated, and this has led the opinions for my comments.

one thing is for sure this website is a wealth of input and information, so keep on asking and let your fellow oso member's help in your decision,

good luck.

please do not misinterpet my comments as boastful or arogant, just attempting to share some knowledge.

Once again thanks for the wealth information ...

How much is a Raylar upgrade really?
 

Please don't misquote Raylar's prices for our 496 -525hp kits. If you are adding a kit on a stock 496HO, no ECM reprogramming is required and I have customers all over the planet that get them installed including the cost of the kit for about $9-10K all day long not $14K per motor. Lets get the facts accurate here for fellow OSO'ers and I cetainly understand any boater who chooses to upgrade his boat engine in other ways than a Raylar upgrade.
What are the choices for a boater who has stock 496 merc in his boat,
1. Take out the engine and sell it used for maybe $8K, then pay $35K for a Merc HP525, thats a net adder with engine and install cost of about $29-30K .
2. Install a supercharger kit on a stock 496 that must run 91 octane fuel and hope the stock pistons don't let go and grenade the entire 496 engine at an installed cost of about $10K.
3. Install a Raylar 525HP kit on the stock 496 at a cost of about $9-10K, be able to still run 87 -89 octane and have an engine that do and will run well over 500hours troublefree.

Could this be the real reason Raylar upgrades are so popular on Merc and Volvo 496 engines?

Seems like a "no brainer to me"

If you are ordering a new boat and you have the budget for an HP525 Mercury Racing package and your insurance company does not care if its listed as a racing engine, then by all means go ahead and get one, they are great motors, resale is strong and they will perform reliably for a long time with proper service.

Raylar is not here to bend peoples arm , Raylar is here to offer a nice affordable, reliable option for boaters with or about to be with Mercruiser 496 power.

Just the facts.

Best Regards,
Ray @ Raylar

My post originally said the 525's are the way to go. But I know someone who got 2 496Ho's complete with Raylar upgrades and the price was 19,000 out the door complete. I just threw it out there as an option.

Ray,

Certainly not taking anything away from your kit, I think it's a great kit, the best on the market. Your numbers (9-10K) installed are right in-line with mine.

In my post, I said "do it right", meaning exhaust too. This is where the additional $$ comes in. 14K is not out of line with what one can spend, as a matter of fact, it's what one can expect to spend if their going to do headers at the same time.

If one so chooses, and upgrades to the 106 kit, now we're talking forged internals and a re-program on the ecm.

I don't want anyone to make a decision based on my comments. Do your homework, figure out what the best option for you and your boating needs are and make the decision that best suites your needs. If the cost of a new boat and then an additional 28K to spice it up is what floats someones boat, I'm all for it.

If it was me....I would order the boat with 496's and XR's. Then after I ran the batchit out of those motors I would put ray's kits on. I am a firm believer in the raylar 600 and ho525 kits. They really make the power that ray claims. With the 496's your still doing over 80 and with the ssr package they are nicely dressed up from the factory.

Didn't do exhaust?

He sold the stock exhaust and picked up some used exhaust, I forgot about that. There would be a little coin involved for 2 sets of headers for the raylar kits. I am a big fan of the blue motors, just wanted to give the options.

I was faced with the same situation when ordering my Fountain. I chose the 496's with XR's with the idea of an upgrade path in the future if I wanted. To date, I have had 2 seasons of zero problem boating. The 496's are so easy to run, feed, maintain, and INSURE. Not to mention the $35K I kept in my pocket by not checking blue motors on the order sheet. That buys a lot of gas and a nice aluminum Myco.

In my setup I have a WOT of about 80mph and since this is my first performance stepped bottom boat, it suits me fine. And I was able to swing inexpensive 5 year warranties. So, my boating season is relatively stress free from a powertrain standpoint.

When it is time I'll either upgrade, repower, or sell the boat. A couple of Raylar kits in purple might just be the ticket, if I keep it. If I sell it, I have mild merc power under the hatch on a stellar hull, which will be very attractive to someone wanting to step up or repower themselves. Or if I have money to burn I can drop in a couple of 525's and my XR's are ready for the abuse!

Decisions, decisions!