Why is the cost to upgrade from 350 mags. to 500 efi`s a 50k increase?The present motors do have some value u would think since they never were used.I`m talking about ordering it with 500`s not replacing existing motors.I guess it`s like other boat options, marked up 200%.

I would order the boat with the 350 motors then upgrade to bigger ones from Cobra,Eckert, etc right away. Or you could put Whipplechargers on them and make as much power and save alot of money and have a really cool setup to boot!!

In my opinion Mercruiser is out of their minds with what they charge for upgraded power.

Keep us posted with your decision.

I second that. Save the 200+ lbs. weight and 50K. Use $20k for the whipple and props and lower units and save the other $30k. A small block which will go as fast as 500efi's would be very impressive.

Mercury ain't cheap ! It is difficult to formulate an exact dollar comparison between their upgrage and one of your own. The mercury upgrade is a known entity and comes with known performance and a WARRANTY package. The drive, gimble, lower, exhaust and all systems are upgraded, work together and warranteed. The boat can be demoed with that exact package upfront and the boat and motor combination is known. What is that worth? I spend countless hours hanging around a local high performance shop. Their are numerous customers, whom in search of greater speed and performance, have purchased or upgraded items. As most on this board know, it is difficult to buy just one or two parts and have the upgrade accomplished. Motor, drive, exhaust, x dimension, prop etc, must all work in concert to be effective. There are numerous little upgrades that are needed to effectively complete most upgrades. These small items such as offshore mounts, fuel pumps, braided high pressure lines etc - add up to a lot of money. You put all of thiese items together, spend time, effort & aggravation - hope they all work in concert and hope the performance meets your goal. How much have you really saved? You have no warranty.

My boating time is very precious. That is worth a lot to me. My pockets are not deep, so I try to get the best bank for my buck. I subscribe to the theory " when you buy right, you only cry once ".

My .04cents

Don't forget to take resale value into consideration. I have a lot of respect for all of the engine builders mentioned on this board, but your normal performance boat buyer knows and trusts only Mercruiser for performance and reliability. But I would save the money and weight and whipple it.

Dont know what boat you are ordering but the 6.2 s might be a better choice in a smaller boat. Less weight possibly better handeling and economy. I used to buy the 7.4 s and replace the internals with basicly the crank rods and pistons from the bulldog engines for half the price of the up grade to the 454 mags. Then spent the rest of the cash on a good set of oval port heads cam intakes and carbs.This produced a more powerful engine than the 500 s upgrade. With the 6.2 some forced air would be killer .

Sign over the Dyno at Tom Earhardts:

"Speed cost money. How fast do you want to go?"

A truer statement has never been put on paper.

Troutly,
How about a trial fit of a 351 w in this but decided on 302 turboed aprox 475 hp 600 lbs torque in this....

Of course I dont recomend modifications untill the warranty runs out and kidds dont do this at home.

buy the boat with 7.4's and do the up grades that we did to SuperV's for around $4000. per engine and make 505HP. all day long.......read the thread CrazyHorse where's the results?