Monza 24 and TRS Drive Opinions?
 

I'm looking at a mid 80's 24SS with a 454 and a TRS drive with a BW trans. From the ad the boat looks very clean and the current owner's story seems to be totally in order based on my research. Its got about 150 hours on the engine and about 20 on the rebuilt TRS lower unit. The boat apparently was not left in the water, it was up in NH on a lake and kept either dry docked or on a trailer until the current owner bought it this year and while he's been in the salt with it, it has been kept out of the water when not in use. Based on this I get the feeling that the hull is probably solid but of course I'll give it a thorough once over anyways. From my research it appears that this hull is very similar to a few more well known brands of the 70's and 80's and it sounds like Monza has a reputation for building quality boats that do well in the rough water. I'm hoping to put a couple of hours on it if/when I get it home to get a feel for it. It sounds like its under propped a little (5500rpm and only 60mph) so I'd like to send the prop out to be labbed over the winter or maybe go with a different prop if that's what is needed.

I've been around boats all my life but the only one I have owned in my adult life is the one has been in my family since I was a kid in the mid 80's so while I'm very familiar with it and its Alpha 1/small block Chevy set up I'm not too familiar with other stuff. Basically, I'm not totally clueless but would like some input from those of you who forgot more than I'll probably ever know. :)

Any input or info anyone can give me would be most appreciated. Especially signs to look for on the drive/trans that would indicate potential problems. Also, if anyone could direct me to any good articles on the TRS or trans that would be great.

John

The Monza 24 is a rare boat, it came in two versions (SS & HX or X)..different deck configurations basically. They were well built, check it out and make sure transom, stringers etc have no rot etc. As for the TRS & BW trans...yes they are old school technology but are pretty bulletproof.
Cool boat ... good luck.

BTW- Sorry the one your looking at is the SS, the HX or X is the rarer of the two.

Here is a video of 24 HX / X from Puerto Rico...www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojAU3iOuiMg
/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txoTgqIIZ2c

Angel

Thanks for the info. I was watching those videos earlier this evening.

John

I have a 1983 Monza thats been in our family since it was built in 1983. It had a 370mercrusier with a trs and borgwarner trans and provided many years of trouble free boating. The problems started when i increased the horsepower. The boat currently has a blower motor with a Konrad out drive. The boat itself is built well but i have replaced the transom and stringers. Let me know if you have any questions. Harry

Harry can you please post pics of it?

Thanks Harry. Its got a mild 454 in it. Its estimated to be between 375 and 400 hp so from my understanding this should be a safe power level for the drivetrain. Is there fluid in the trans that needs to be changed? If so what type, how much, and how do I change it?

John

My buddy has one with an XR sportmaster on it and it hauls the mail!! It runs right around 80.

What kind of MPH were you able to run with the 330hp motor in it Harry? This one currently has a 23P on it and is turning 5500 at 60mph. I would think I'd want a little less RPM and it should run a little more MPH. Once I get it here I'll spend a little time GPS'ing it in the lake to have a good baseline to figure out what to do for a prop for next year.

Any more advice on this would be great.