Z06vette1

Has anyone had any experience with the 555 cu in mpi motors listed in the classifieds? Would be going into a 2001 h2x currently have a 7.4 mpi and am underwhelmed with the power

dbkski

iTrader: (1)

Are you talking about the ones for sale by Ron Sporl? If so
contact Gerald here by PM at "gnorthga". Gerald and Ron are
good guys. However I must say that 600 ponies in your Baja
can be deadly without serious modifications to the boat other
than just dropping the new engine in. Are you ready or aware
of that? Our boats are similar and I am at over 72 MPH with a
stock 502 MAG. 425 to 500 HP in your H2X would really make
it fly without being crazy.

Sledge Hammer

I have a 2001 Hammer with a 555 carb motor built by Ateco. It is 610 HP and 640 torque. I had to add full hydraulic steering and put a two inch shorter Sportmaster on. With a 28 inch labbed bravo I am running 84-86 depending on conditions and fuel load. You do have to pay attention. You have some more length then I do so you can do it safely. However, at a minimum you need to get hydraulic steering. If you are not willing to spring for the steering, I would not go with the engine.

Z06vette1

I have updated the gimble and am planning to have a full dual ram hydraulic steering system on before I put it away for the winter. The 7.4 mpi was rebuilt shortly after I bought the boat and was an unexpected expense. I love the boat but the power just is uninspiring. The boat looks great but lacks the wow factor when pining the throttle. I'm thinking about a complete drop in package that I can replace back to stock when I sell it in the future. The interior and hull are mint many people ask if the boat is brand new when they see it. I've spent my life driving race cars ( dirt sprint cars and NASCAR late models since I was a teen). I purchased the boat as the first boat that I've owned and outgrew the power after a couple of weeks. It sounds great but I'm looking for the throttles to be more than a volume control! We boat on the Ohio river so we don't need to have a large "wave crusher" but would like to travel to some poker runs and turn some heads with some speed from the little guy. The boat has become part of our family since it has taken some serious tlc, patients and money to get her back in shape. I would like to keep it efi and have thought of a new 525 or 565 merc but the cash for a new mer would be a fools errand. Mwas hoping to spend 10k on a serious power upgrade. That's not including upgrading the drive. I have been researching a new merc its gimble that would include the hydraulic steering or a xr drive with dual ram to helm. Some options that have arose have been a 500 efi, a new 525 or 565 from merc or a mpi package from a builder like Ron sporl or hot to go racing. We are looking at some houses on Norris lake as well as lake Cumberland and ideally this would this boat would end up on a lift at the lake house. I already have well over 30K into this boat and 59.6 mph just doesn't cut it. I wish I had some more experience with set up as I'd like to start piecing together the drive and am uncertain on the direction to go. Do I need to look for a shorter drive package? I appreciate all the oso input. I've gotten the boating bug and have enjoyed the 100 hours I've put on this boat over the summer

Mr Gadgets

Years ago, I had a friend that put large motor in an h2x. He started with the small motor and was not happy, similar to your situation. At the time he ended up with 1170hp Procharged motor. An Xr drive with -2" shorty and went to LOTO. He ran the poker run down there on Friday to break in the motor and drive. Saturday morning he went out and made one pass. The anouncers on the radio anounced his boat and expected a 80mph pass. He went 109mph. Set a new record. At the time of the drive build, I called a guy in Ohio that used to do a lot of work on Baja's at the time. He said that when he was playing with the h2x, he would have gone to a -4" if he could find one. The boat seems to like "short" in his opinion. With the -2" my friends boat seem to handle well. I never rode in it. After LOTO he would run every weekend, making 100mph passes all day long, giving friends rides. With that power level the XR upper and lower gears would start to pit at 65-70hrs. He was happy with that maintenace schedule. He later bumped the power to 1400hp and only ran it a couple of times. He bailed on boating and sold everything a short while later. But he did make history when he had is Fifteen Minutes!! After that, XR upper gears started breaking teeth off and have continued to do so ever since.
If that boat were mine, I would put the 600hp in it, run a Bravo 1 X drive with -2" shorty. Make sure the motor is capable of 6000rpm to help keep the drive happy. With that light boat, the Bravo1 X is a better upper gear set than the XR's. I currently have a friend running a B1 X in a 24' Checkmate, with 900+hp and is on the fourth season with that drive. It is opened up each winter for inspection and it has done well.
Hope my story helps. Email me if you want more details.

Dick

Z06vette1

Dick

Thanks for the info I appreciate it.

H2X BOSS

I have 600HP-+ in mine, and hit 81GPS. Hydraulic steering is a must! Still playing with my bravo 1 until it grenades....
RYAN