Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos

Posted by Grey Growler on 06/14/09 - 6:53 AM

With an opportunity at hand to purchase a 2005 Dauntless 180 with a 2005 Mercury 115 EXLPT EFI at a very attractive price, I would appreciate the advice of experienced owners about the adequancy of the motor for the boat. My use will be primarily freshwater fishing and occassionally pulling a skier on inland lakes, but also with some saltwater use for inshore and near offshore fishing. BW lists this as the "minimum" HP for the boat. Will it be enough for my purposes? Would trim tabs help? Also, are there any special problems to be alert for in connection with this motor, which appears to have been lightly used and well cared for. Thanks for all advice, pro and con.

Posted by Mark Finkenstaedt on 06/14/09 - 7:35 AM

Hey Grey,

I have a 2001 Dauntless with it's own set of problems right now - it was suplied secondhand with a 135 Optimax. I was getting at one point around 34 mph out of it on glassy conditions but it seems I had a bad #6 cylinder at the time. Before this problem was detected we were having a bit of a time pulling a skier up (180lbs) - somewhat but not impossible. My experienced skier friend thought it a little underpowered and I have no idea as to the state of the cylinder at this time.
115 sounds okay for getting out on the water but pulling a grown man from the water? I'm sure you could pull them but it's sucking them up from the water that's the issue. I'm sure the more experienced can lend a hand mathematically.

I'm trying to re-powering with an E-Tec 150 so that a skiing shouldn't have any problems but the cost is steep.
I'd grab that boat regardless.

Make sure you get a test done on that engine - compression check / inspection so you don't end up like me.

Edited by Mark Finkenstaedt on 06/14/09 - 7:42 AM

Posted by Grey Growler on 06/14/09 - 8:31 AM

Thanks, Mark. I'll make the motor check up a conditon of the sale. Even if everything checks out OK, however, power would still be an issue in my mind and I hope to hear about that from some present or former owners of the 115 EFI. Good luck to you in solving your problem.

Posted by sosmerc on 06/14/09 - 9:34 AM

My 1998 Ventura is a similar hull. I have the added weight of a custom made stainless bracket for my 15hp Merc kicker, dual batteries, 3 gallon kicker motor fuel tank. My 1998 135 Optimax had plenty of power to pull me up slalom skiing with 5 passengers in the boat and about 20 gallons of fuel onboard. 17 pitch Enertia Prop.
I do have Bennett trim tabs and a doelfin and that surely helps.

I believe that with tabs, and a doelfin AND most importantly, the correct prop that would allow a 115 to reach max rated rpm WITH normal load in the boat.....it might be MARGINALLY ok for skiing.
More hp is always better though, because you don't have to run the engine so hard to get the perfomance you desire.

Currently I have a 1997 Merc 200 DFI on that same hull and she really flies, AND I can slalom ski at the speed I want while the engine just lofts along at 3000 rpm! It's pretty cool.

Posted by Grey Growler on 06/14/09 - 12:24 PM

Thanks for the input. My concern remains and is heigthened by the test data on the Whaler website that indicates a time to plane of 9.3 secs. for the 115 EFI with a Vengance 13-1/8 X 16 prop with a total wieght of 2,834# and 2 people in the boat.

Posted by Mark Finkenstaedt on 06/14/09 - 8:30 PM

That's a sweet boat and there are some deals to be had. If the prices is right can you re-power with even (god forbid) a Merc. (just a personal thing at the moment).

I love the 18 Dauntless it is a lot of boat once in the water plenty of deck and features. It's hard to beat and easy to trailer. A new one 2009 is about $52,000 without a trailer.

If it's a steal you might not get a better chance.

Posted by bdubose on 06/15/09 - 1:37 PM

I'll second that it's a great, very versatile boat. I would think the 115 would be fine for fishing but you will likely struggle with the skiing especially if trying to get up on one ski. Our 180 Dauntless has a 150 Optimax and we rarely seem to use what it is capable of. Good luck. BD

Posted by Joe Kriz on 06/15/09 - 1:47 PM

Let's look at this from another angle.

The Classic Outrage 18' has a weight of 1250 pounds and has the max hp rating of 150 hp...

My 1997 Outrage 17' II had a weight of 1700 pounds and a max hp rating of 150 hp...
I had a 115 hp on it and would have preferred a larger motor...

The 2005 Dauntless 180 has a weight of 2000 pounds and a max hp rating of 150 hp...

You can see by the above, the boats get heavier but the max hp doesn't change for these models.

I would suggest the max hp rating of 150 if you do a lot of skiing...

Posted by cban on 06/27/09 - 9:29 AM

#11

The Dauntless 180 is an awesome all-around boat. I have the 1999 hull which gets some criticism for riding bow-up at slow speeds, but if you trim your motor in, that's not a problem. I tube, fish and cruise in confidence with the heavy hull in sometimes choppy waters of the Sapelo sound and in-shore areas. I have a 2003 Suzuki 140 four stroke and I have all the power I need, but I wouldn't want to go below that power level, especially if you have a full capacity of passengers and fuel. I don't think you can get a better multi-purpose boat (I'm sure that others will disagree), but make sure you have enough power for your purpose, a 115 seems questionable.