New Deisel Engines From Mercruiser

[2002 LAUNCH SS OWNER]

I know Indmar has deisel engines available, but I thought I would share the news that Mercruiser is now using Volkswagens Toureg V6,V8 diesel engines, the V8 can put out up to 350hp and 500 foot lbs or torque, comes standard
with fresh water cooling, weighs almost 800 lbs( great ballast for V drive boats). Fuel savings of up to 30%, top rpm 4200.Imagine the pulling power of this engine in a direct drive boat, out with the 454 and put in new V8 diesel* The down side is the cost, just like getting a diesel for your 3/4 ton truck, buck up the dough if you want the best.

Imagine one of these new V8 deisels in a older Saltaire that came with a big block** it would be a sweet boat

[Moose]

I would love to put a diesel engine in my Saltare. Wakeboarding through the cloud of black smoke from take off would be sweet.

[haugy]

This would have to be on a Saltare that was getting new stringers though. I wouldn't drop one in on mine without new stringers. The mounts will be WAY different, and the structural changes you'd want to make would be perfect while rebuilding.

I'd like to do something like that, but I'd also want to see the torque curve and at what RPMs it's highest at. Shouldn't be any black smoke if your settings are dialed in right. Black smoke means you aren't burning diesel completely and efficiently. Those VW diesels are just damn amazing engineering at getting the most power from the fuel.

So how much cost are we looking at for the engine? $4800?

[jasun]

http://www.cmdmarine.com/Product2/4.2L/assets/TDI_4.2_specsheet.pdf

[tg0824SSVGG]

Agreed. I am on my 3rd TDI from VW. They are great and run forever. Of course, I also have 2 big power strokes for pulling boat and camper!!


Todd

[Sirgonz]

Would be nice to get same pulling or better pulling power on less fuel.... Wonder what took them so long?

[Salty87]

is diesel still worth it with higher initial cost and higher prices at the pump?

[cadunkle]

No thanks, I don't buy foreign junk. Might be interested in a marinized 7.3 if the ROI was right, but I doubt you'll get that with an off the shelf engine package as the costs for marine diesels are typically quite high. If your engine needs freshening up you can get more torque than that VWs 516 ft/lbs and likely at a much lower cost. Of course you will not get the lowered fuel consumption though.


Agreed. I am on my 3rd TDI from VW. They are great and run forever.

If they're so great and run forever, why are you on your third one? I'd think you'd still be on the first. Not bashing, just don't understand.

[haugy]

A 7.3L would be overkill big, and I'm talking engine size not power. That would be a giant brick. While they are good engines, the 7.3L, 6.0L, and the 6.4L I've run and been around have all had major repairs.

The VW TDi's nothing.. Only thing one needed was some light maintenance. People get newer ones because they are nicer cars inside, better suspension designs, quieter versions of the TDi, etc.

I'd vouch for the VW Tdi's well before I vouched for any of the truck diesels, Chevy, Dodge, or Ford.

Before this turns into a which diesel is better battle. Boats have been running diesels for years. They run strong, long, and reliable if taken care of. I swear by my Cats and Detroits. The Cats have been through hell and back, literally.

The only reason it hasn't been pushed so hard in smaller boats is Diesels used to be Taboo. The smoke made people think the worst, the smell was acrid and powerful, and the noise was immense. The new diesels, burn cleaner and with minimal smell, and they are much quieter. Plus they've been able to get real high power ratings from much smaller versions which really limited them in the small boat category. Only thing holding them back now is the cost of diesel itself. Notably much higher, so the real question will be how's the mileage rating on these engines in boats?

[tg0824SSVGG]

Why the 3rd one?

I live in the boonies first off:
* Passat number 1: 1996, I finally got rid of it in 2011 with 385,000 miles on it - ran like a scalded dog, got 50MPG, but the body was falling apart
* Jetta number 2: 2011, The Jetta just wasn't the right car for what we need, it had 49.000 miles on it
* Passat, number 3: 2013, it's got 1500 miles on it.

I have big kids, and the back seat in the Jetta is just too cramped. Back seat in the passat is huge. Nothing wrong with the Jetta - and the first passat was just getting old.

[Jetlink]

is diesel still worth it with higher initial cost and higher prices at the pump?

The cost of 87 octane here in Illinois near me is higher than the cost of diesel. A galling of diesel is going for $4.00/galling while 87 octane is going for $4.15/gallon and premium is running around $4.50 gallon.

[Salty87]

around here 87 is currently about $3.39 and diesel is $3.75

[inair]

A real cost analysis has to include not just the price of fuel but initial cost including installation, how long you plan to own the boat, ancillary installation cost, and so on. I own a 2004 2500HD Dodge Ram with a six cylinder Cummins Diesel. When I bought it the diesel option was $9000. The truck I owned prior was a Ford F250 six cylinder gaser that I owned from 1984 till 2004. I rebuilt the motor twice during that time and I felt that in the long term the initial price was worth it because of the extended life of the diesel engine. Also when I bought my Dodge in 2004 the price of diesel was less than regular gas. I'll have to run my 2004 for eleven more years and go through many unknowns (maintenance/fuel price changes) before I know if I made the right choice. Since 2004 there have been numerous emissions rule changes that I'm told are expensive maintenance items.

Having said all that, if I was buying a new boat I don't think I would choose diesel because of fuel availability issues at marinas, higher fuel cost and much higher initial cost balanced against how long I plan to own the boat. Retrofitting one of these in an older boat just seems silly unless you have a used turbo motor that will fit the bill and and are willing to spent the time to make it all hang together. After doing all that work I wonder about resale ability when the time comes?

[CornRickey]

Tranni gearing and prop pitch would be a adventure.

[2002 LAUNCH SS OWNER]

My Buddy tows his 24 foot Centurion Surf Boat with his 2007 VW Toureg with a V10 Tdi Diesel, he passes everything on the hills thru the mountain pass to our lake, He has a 2004 f350 that he blew up 6 liter 3 times so he sent truck to Dakota and had a Cummins installed* He still prefers to tow with the V10 Toureg

New Diesels are much cleaner now, no black smoke or smell, Mercruiser has shopped the world for the best Diesel engine they could find and I believe they have made a good choice. I would think engine is around 20,000 with Transmission but if you are buying a new boat it would be a choice worth looking at.

Indmar has a diesel inboard engine available also

[2002 LAUNCH SS OWNER]

Just thought I would put it out there, and I am very happy with response, I drive a full size GMC Denali with a 6 liter gas engine and it really sucks the fuel towing my boat thru the mountains, but I could buy alot of gas for what it would cost me to sell my Denali and then buy a Diesel Pick Up Truck. The same would apply if you took out a big block gas engine then installed a Diesel in your boat, it would take a long time in fuel savings to recover the cost of new engine.

Having said that though there are people in North America that can do anything and love a challange and strive to be different than the next guy and these are the same people that will break ground and to try be the first diesel inboard owners that you will see on the water some day soon

[2002 LAUNCH SS OWNER]

Maximum RPM is 4200, how is that a problem, this is not a diesel that red lines at 2800 rpm, Mercruiser is marketing these engines for a direct replacement for Inboard Sterndrive engines and Inboard direct drive engines.

[2002 LAUNCH SS OWNER]

If Mercruiser would give me a new VW TDI V8 engine to put in my boat and pay for the retro fit I would gladly be the first person to try surfing behind my boat and see if there is any black smoke or fumes

Indmar has had a diesel engine available for a few years and I saw picture of a ski boat with one of these engines installed, the owner lived in Hong Kong, I do not remember which brand of Ski Boat it was.