Posted by JRP on 02/14/16 - 1:39 PM
#47
I'm really impressed by this Merc 2.1L Fourstroke platform. in the 115 HP versions, the power-to-weight for a fourstroke is impressive. I was wishing that some variant of this motor with a CT gearcase might work as a repower candidate for my 19 Outrage II. But with input from a number of more experienced operators (among them Finnegan), I reluctantly concluded that it won't be quite enough.
Even this latest higher-end 115 XSPro version is still probably insufficient. It would likely be okay for solo excursions, but not for the full boat I usually run.
There is a big HP, displacement, and weight gap between these engines at 115 HP and 2.1L, and Mercury's next-larger 150 HP Fourstroke at 3.0L (the weight spread is around 100 lbs.) Too bad Merc wouldn't bridge that gap with a 135+HP modern fourstroke engine in the 2.5L displacement range that still weighs in under 400 lbs. I'd hang one on my transom in a heartbeat.