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250 SHO - Any regrets?

fastmnstealth

fastmnstealth

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Looking to order soon (Probably a 2350RSR or 2375RCW) - will not get it on the water this summer, but will get 2014 pricing on a 2015 and dealer will store it for me this winter.

For those with experience/knowledge of the 250 SHO.  I'm torn between the 250 SHO and the 250 Offshore (both 4.2L).  I really like the idea of the 4.2L motor vs 3.3L 250.

-I'm coming from a F115 that is very quiet.  Is the SHO louder than the other Yam 250s?  All I read is a "little louder", but I don't know what that means.

-We do lots of putting around the lake at 5-10mph I would expect fuel loading problems because of FI, but I've read about the SHO running very cool and "making oil" because of it.  Has that been resolved?  I don't want issues because of how I use the motor.  Don't get me wrong, I'll stretch her legs on occasion, but I'm not a tournament bass fisherman.

-How about how low slung the motor is?  I've seen the video on youtube with the motor hung on the back of a pontoon doing high speed turns and "significant" spray on the cowls.  Is this a real problem?

I'm not saying money (~3K adder with digital gauges, etc) is not a problem because it always is a consideration, but if it wasn't, do you wish you would have gotten the 250 offshore?  It is slightly heavier 60lbs or so, but not as heavy as the 3.3l.  Digital controls seems nice, but not worth the expense to me.

Thanks,

Mark
 
The 250 SHO uses a 20" shaft but I'm not sure if that really makes any difference in performance. Mine comes in on Monday so I can report back next week. I don't recall the offshore version being am option when I ordered the boat in June.

My dealer advised us not to order the digital package. One advantage of the big bore is that it has better hole shot meaning that you can use a slightly larger pitch prop to get a little higher top end.
 
No regrets here! If you do your own servicing you will need to order the water hook up(looks like a fighter jet pilots mouthpiece) as the water pick up is right by the front and normal muffs don't work all that well. Lots of power, looks better (IMHO) than the standard Yamaha motors, especially when looking out from the rear loungers of my RCW.
 
I can't imaging that Bennington would continue to sell them if there were issues with the lower slung engine caused by 20" shaft, but it is good to hear people are still buying them and folks that have them love them! (at least Derrick anyway ;) )

Did Yamaha change the exhaust on the SHO?  Or is it the same as the other 250s?  I don't want a "hot rod" engine sound.  My brother has a 200EFI Merc that sounds cool, but I couldn't imagine it on a pontoon.  Couldn't have a conversation.  I have a friend with a Yam 250 3.3l and that sounds great.  I don't have access to a 250SHO to hear the sound.

Thanks for the tip on the muffs!

Mark
 
BulldogsCadillac said:
No regrets here! If you do your own servicing you will need to order the water hook up(looks like a fighter jet pilots mouthpiece) as the water pick up is right by the front and normal muffs don't work all that well. Lots of power, looks better (IMHO) than the standard Yamaha motors, especially when looking out from the rear loungers of my RCW.
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I agree on the looks. VMAX color and graphics is much nicer than the standard gray Yamaha color scheme.
 
We have the 250 SHO on our 2250 GSR and absolutely love it. We wanted a boat that could haul lots of folks and still get the old, slightly overweight, man out of the water on one ski. I wasn't so concerned about top speed - much more interested in the hole shot, which is exactly what the SHO provides. It's hard to replace displacement .... the 4.2L gives us the grunt we were looking for. It putts around the lake just fine - nice and quiet and pretty easy on gas at the lower RPMs. And I agree on the looks - hard to beat the big SHO motor on the back of a Benny.
 
I have the 225 SHO. My only regret is not going with the 250. It definitely has a great hole shot. It is quiet at idle, in fact I have had several people ask if it was even on. I will say that it is a bit louder while cruising than I expected. My dealer did warn me about this. However, I can still have a conversation and I definitely appreciate the torque. I think if just cruising is your thing, than perhaps consider the other Yamaha. However, if you want the power for watersports, this is the way to go.
 
Love my 250SHO and that's FO SHO!
 
Spent about a half hour with the new boat and the 250 VMAX SHO the other day.  So far seems impressive.  Nice hole shot, fairly quiet and looks downright cool.  The one caveat that I've noticed is that with the 20" shaft it does sit very low in the water.  Not really an issue but it does look strange having such a big engine sitting way below the top of the rail on the boat.  I'll post some photo's this weekend.
 
Kahlua, where are you in NJ? I grew up in Nutley and my wife is from Neptune.
 
Sounds like the only regret is NOT getting it. Nice to know I could potentially upgrade to one down the road. Damn you, PADS! 
 
bcpnick said:
Sounds like the only regret is NOT getting it. Nice to know I could potentially upgrade to one down the road. Damn you, PADS! 
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Yes, it does sound that way :).  Sees like the other issues can be lived with.  Noise and low slung nature of the 20"

Kahlua0517 said:
Spent about a half hour with the new boat and the 250 VMAX SHO the other day.  So far seems impressive.  Nice hole shot, fairly quiet and looks downright cool.  The one caveat that I've noticed is that with the 20" shaft it does sit very low in the water.  Not really an issue but it does look strange having such a big engine sitting way below the top of the rail on the boat.  I'll post some photo's this weekend.
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Thanks for the feedback. 

Sorry if I keep beating a dead horse here, but.... I know that noise is subjective, but my F115 would "whine" just off idle when putting, no real engine noise.  Certainly got much noisier at cruise and WOT.  I don't care about noise at cruise or WOT nearly as much as the 3-5mph put put around the lake.  This is where I don't want the sound of a hot rod engine :).   Does the SHO have this same kind of "whine" as my F115, just off idle and low speed?  My wife would NOT be happy if I gave up the quality of the "put put" enjoyment around the lake (60-70% of use) because I wanted a high performance engine at cruise or WOT for the occassional ski tow.  From everything I'm reading, this is NOT a problem and my wife will remain happy :).

I'm going to talk with dealer on Saturday.  I believe a 250SHO will be in my future!
 
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I don't find the putt putt sound at all offensive on the SHO. I would say it's quite quiet at low speeds.
 
WahooWa said:
I don't find the putt putt sound at all offensive on the SHO. I would say it's quite quiet at low speeds.
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Great, thanks!  and yes, "putt putt", not "put put" lol...at least I was consistent :)
 
Actually, it is not totally subjective. You just need a few people with decibel meters. It looks like there is an app, not sure how good that will be. I will likely not be back on my boat until next weekend. Maybe somebody else...
 
You'll love it! I can even guarantee it! If you DON'T love it, I will guarantee that I will buy it off you! Yup guaranteed, in writing,  you read it here first!  Of course I'll only guarantee that I'll give you a crisp $100 bill for it, $200 if you include a Saltwater Series II prop with it! Hehe, it is very quiet. Has a great tone to it at idle.
 
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