repowering what are you thoughts?
 

I have a 92' Cig Cafe Racer and I am wanting to repower it yet again (this will be the second time). When I first bought the boat it was 3 years old with around 30hrs on it it was powered by a pair of 454 mags with Bravo drives. The motors had problems and the speed just wasnt there so I went and repowered it with a pair of 500 hps and kept the same drives. This past year the motors are starting to seem a bit tired and i blew both drives at different times (both during poker runs). I want to repower and make the boat as bullet proof as possible so im think i want to go with a pair of 600sci's and a pair of B-max drives what are your thoughts on this combo?Any help will be greatly apprciated.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

That should be fine.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Mucho dinero :D I guess the power would depend on how fast you want the boat to go

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

That's a lot of coin to drop into the boat. If you are married to Mercury power, go for it, but I would build some N/A 600HP motors, perhaps some http://www.raylarengine.com/ pieces, or something else.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

The 500,s are an excellent motor to rebuild/upgrade.You might want to consider that along with an upgraded drive.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Cheif engine

jr mike

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

700sci with new merc drive :D :D

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Take them to dean gellner and he'll make those 500's 600's with a little head work and new piston's. then upgrade your drives.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

600's good solid engine , the boat should fly , and as far as cost you pay not to have problems.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Im not "married to Merc power persay Im just thinking about the warrenty issues and servicing aspects. There are alot more places to get work done on Merc Racing stuff then there is for something like Chief engines or Rich Zul or somthing like that. The way im looking at it I love this boat and i dont think there is a more beautiful boat than the Cafe racer and any money i put into it to repower is still cheaper than buying a new boat.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

I'm with you... I have an 87 Cafe and I'm going the 496HO/Bravo route...it'll be slow, but warranty/service/reliability are more important to me. I have very little invested in mine and even after the repower will still be able to make money on it if I had to sell it(which I doubt I will ever do...considering the replacement cost is 300K)

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

I agree with you. When it comes to service locations and warrenty merc can't be beat. I'm not knocking any other engine builders.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

i would go along with a couple of the other guys here and say upgrade the 500's you already have, great engine to upgrade and cost will be reduced then just upgrade drives accordingly. I know warranty is a concern but i think you will still be ahead by using what you have then purchase new.

Good luck

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

I thought about the 496's also but Im a speed junkie! and it seems no mater what I want it can never be fast enough but i also dont want to spend the coin for a couple 1000hp's and 6 drives. i like it the way it is i guess. But I want to be able to run the piss out of it and not worry about breakage . Thats why I want to go with the B-max drives with the new bigger power.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

That can be a pretty big misconception. Just because someone is a Merc dealer doesn't mean they know anything about their ultra high performance stuff. The majority of the Merc dealers and service techs around here couldn't tell you anything about an 850sci or 1075. There are multiple people that have had to fly in, or ship their boat to someone that has experience with Merc power.

There are WAY more mechanics across the nation that can work on a high performance carb motor than an EFI setup.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

BigD, where are you located?
To build up your 500s figure 4k each, plus take out and reinstall.
To upgrade to XR inners... 5K for both.
So you'll be close to 18K for all the work.
New 600s w/ bmaxs will be what?? 80-90k for the pair?

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Fully agree w/ TSG. That is why I ask where you are located. I'm sure someone here knows a top guy in your locale.
Do you think the guys at your local merc shop have the exprerience that specialty shops have? Plus that warranty you like to much is only 1yr.
I'm sure a local builder can do the same.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

You do make a good point but what kind of warrenty would I get upgrading my motors to 600hp probably none. Now dont get me wrong I understand i can have my motors rebuilt probably 5 times for what it will cost me to repower with new. I want to get more power and more reliability out of the drives so that I dont break down during a long run or a poker run . I guess I want it to be bomb proof.

p.s. Stormrider Im in Upstate NY about 40 minutes south of Rochester.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

JC Performance!!! :drink: :drink:

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Yep, Jeff rebuilt my 454(old) to 461ci 560hp 550lb/ft.

Give him call and just chat w/ him. He'll give you some ideas.
516.216.0778.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Rebuild of the engines, Turbos and install Arnesons and you´ll never look back. Ok you can drop the Turbos but keep the ASD´s.

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Think 'Diesel"

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

Yep Diesel would be the key too...

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

diesel would be great for fuel milage but I think the increase in weight might slow me down a little. Its not even an option. Maybe Ill give JC Performance a call. As far as asd's, Its tough enough sometimes to find a place to dock my boat in a spot thats only as long as my boat without having to worry about the extra 3 feet hanging off the back for the asd's

Re: repowering what are you thoughts?
 

have a good engine shop like jc er someoen take your 500s and make around 600-625hp, then get yourself a couple new merc its/sportmaster xrs :D