Quote:
Originally Posted by Fotoman
I have a 1979 Marine Trader Europa Sedan with a FL 120 in it. Runs great but I'm starting to find it a bit slow. Against the wind and current (St. Lawrence River) I will often drop around 4 knots. I'd like to have a bit more power to never go under 6 and to reach 8-9 with no opposing forces.
Would putting in a new engine get me the extra speed I'm looking for or is it just wishful thinking?
There is a guy in my marina who has a MT 36 and repowered with a Volvo 200 HP (I think) and he goes significantly faster than me.
(No need to get into the cost debate at this point, just the rationale new engine vs speed).
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Sorry to be a wet blanket, Fotoman, but even if money was no object I doubt you would gain much, even with a 210hp Cummins in there. I have the exact same vessel and engine, and I can just feel that there is more than enough power to reach over hull speed, but any faster than that would raise the fuel consumption so much I seriously doubt it is worth it, if the engine is otherwise ok.
If the engine had become so bad it was a throwaway..? But even then I doubt it, the boat in just too heavy and too short to realise the theoretically semi-planing capability. Better to save the money, sell her while the engine is still good, and, to use those iconic words..."get a bigger/faster boat"..!