HP 600SC. What am I buying?
 

I'm looking at a boat with HP600SC's in it. Not the 600SCi.
I notice in looking around the web that these engines don't seem to have been in the market place for very long. This versus the HP500EFI which seems to have been around for a long time. Is there a good reason for this? Maybe because the 600SC was a costly upgrade compared to the 500EFI so maybe people just didn't buy them. Or was there a technical reason why the 600SC was canned?
I'm not a big fan of carburetors but I guess they are simpler than EFI.
Any good reasons to stay away from them?
Thanks for you input.

Good motors but were expensive and most went 800sc. Back then and even today to a degree merc changes the blower motors often. The 1250 was just getting "old" and here comesthe quad turbo to stay ahead of the game. The 600sc had a lot of wow factor back then. Made over 600hp and capable of a lot more. Carbs are great with that set up. Just check compression and see what boost the blowers are making on the stock pulley in case they need a rebuild.

Does anyone know if the 600SC has some kind of ECU that can be read to see the rpm/time profile. I'm asking since I'm looking at one that has 300 hours and I'd like to know if that's 300 hours of which 150 are at 5000RPM or if it's 250 hours mostly near idle....one engine has been 'rebuilt' already....not sure how much of the engine was rebuilt yet...I haven't seen the rebuild sheet.
Anyway, anyone know re the engine hour/rpm profile?
Thanks.
-Steve

At 300 hours I am sure the other motor is due for some head and blower work at least if it has never been opened.

Budget for a full rebuild and figure that into your purchase price

Yes....good input on the budget for a rebuild.....I guess it's pretty hard to say what range of $ a 'rebuild' is since we don't know what is needed at this point.
Any clue re the rpm profile?
I'm asking since it makes some sense to me how the engine was used more than how long it's been used......I'm sure 10 harsh hours are much worse than 1000 gentle hours....

No ECM's that can be read on 600SC's to verify actual hours. At 300hrs, its time for top end refreshes.
Be warned, 600SC's are very thirsty engines.

The 600SC's are rock solid motors. The motors in my boat started out as new 600SC's when my boat was built. Before they were installed, they were sent to Teague, had new cams, intercoolers, and PFM blower drives installed. They make 800hp at 10 psi and turn 6000 rpm's, and.... run on 91 octane. These motors are absolutely bulletproof and start with just the touch of the key. I've been very happy with them. There are lot of potential in these motors stock.


Darrell.