Best motor for a 2275GCW? Placing order today!

Which would you choose?

  • Mercury Optimax 200hp

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Mercury optimax 225hp

    Votes: 1 8.3%
  • Mercury Verado 200hp

    Votes: 5 41.7%
  • Yamaha "high power" 200hp

    Votes: 6 50.0%

  • Total voters
    12

ChuckP

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Hello fellow Bennington owners! This is my first post so I thought I'd make a "grand entry". :) We currently own a 2007 1850Gl with the Super Sport package that we purchased new in late 2006, well for a few days at least. The first people that came to look at it made an offer on the spot for exactly what I wanted out of it! So it is time to move on and in a few hours I'm going to the dealer to order our new 2275GCW with ESP and all the toys. I wanted to go RCW but since there is no option for yellow we had to stick with the GCW, it would be so cool if there was some form of custom order program. But anyway....

My main question is on the choice of power, our dealer seems to be a Merc and Yamaha shop. I have a Yamaha now and its been a great motor but Im told that I can't get into the VMAX outboards because they only come in 20" shaft? Now like most of us budget is a concern but I may be willing to stretch a bit if there is a good enough reason. I know that the 225hp Optimax would squeak into the budget, but I can option up and got with the Optimax 200 and still come in under $40k so that sounds like the screamin deal to me. How is performance? Any real reasons to go more than 200hp? What kind of weight am I looking at with boat/motor/fuel/4 passengers? We do plan to tube and so a little skiing and wakeboarding too as this boat is not only replacing our other Bennington but also a Crownline 185ss. We live on a good sized inland lake.

For those who have the center tube storage, do you use it alot? My wife is sold on the idea, but its a $1000 option that I'm not sold on.

What about going full boat on the stereo (Sony/Kicker upgrades, amp, sub)? Thats another $1000 and I love good sounding music but Im wondering if this is like a car in that usually the upgraded stereo's are only marginally better than stock and you can do a much better system for less $$$. Is this true of the Bennington systems?

And what about raised helm? Don't have one now and don't think Im missing anything really, just not sure with the larger boat if it would help?

This has been a very long first post so time to wrap it up. Thanks in advance!
 
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Oh and BTW, at a given throttle setting is there much difference in fuel burn between so a 200hp Verado and a 250hp Verado?
 
Welcome to the forum! Its a nice place to come for help on technical issues and such. Lots of good people with lots of information.

Now to comment on your questions.

As for the motor. My choice wasn't there. I went with the 250 Verado. Several reasons for me. First, I have never been told, "I should have went with a smaller motor." Also, I liked the idea of the self contained hydraulic steering. I have fingertip control and the boat handles great. Lastly, I just think it makes the boat look cool with that black motor on that black Benningtom.

Center storage is very nice and roomy. Everyone wants to see it and I tell them, "thats where we hide the bodies." LOL Seriously, there is tons of space there to be used by things such as skis, floats, noodles, paddles, boat hooks, etc . . . Heck, I even store my box anchor down there. I have yet to get it so full I can't look in and find what I need.

Stereo: Mine came with the six Kicker speaker upgrade with the Sony unit. All I can tell you is you can hear it all over the boat. Even when the boat is in motion. I do have plans of doing the amplifer thing at some point.

I went with a raised helm and think it is one of the nicest things I did. I remember when I was young, my uncle(who I boated with a bunch) would always put a throw cushion in the boat seat to get a better view. I guess that made quite an impression as I thought the raised helm was a must have. I still do.

I don't think you can go wrong with these choices.

Good luck.

andy
 
I vote for Yamaha. Why don't you order the boat with a 20 inch transom and then your Yamaha options are extended to the SHO engines in 200, 225 and 250 hp? I ordered my 2011 with a 20 inch transom.

The infloor storage is awesome. there is little place else to put larger thing on the GCW and the in floor storage is great for theese items.

Having been a diesel tech for nearly 20 years I like the simplicity and reliability of yamaha. The verado is supercharged which I am not a fan of as that is just another thing to fail over time "Which superchargers are not know for long term reliabiliy". I would not go with any 2 stroke anymore no matter what the efficiency or cleanliness is.

I would do the kicker speaker upgrade for sure but the amp and other extras is your decision. can't comment on raised helm as I have never been on a pontoon with one.

Personally I would say a 200-225 would be a perfect match for it as my 150 handles mine ok but it has its hands full. especially with a 59 gallon fuel tank.
 
I guess I kind of overlooked the 20" transom option and so did my sales guy. :unsure: Ive heard nothing but praise for the VMAX SHO motors, just haven't seen the price tag on them yet. My wife's Dad has run both Yamaha and Mercury and he thinks Yamaha are the best bet and require less maintenance. So thank you Wild and Free you just solved a dilemma for us! Since you have the same boat, do think we'd be happy with a 200hp? Id really like to be able to hit 40mph with 2 passengers.

And how is fuel burn, do you think the 59 gallon tank was worth while? Right now we go through maybe 50 gallons a SEASON with the 50hp. But Im sure thats all about to change!
 
a) Always buy the biggest engine you can at initial purchase. Don't overlook the two-strokes either. These aren't the old fashioned "Skeeter Foggers" anymore.

B) I am not sure why a 20" shaft is an issue for you, but then again, maybe it is. I don't know everything by a LONG shot. But DO double-check that, eh?

c) I can't recall anyone ever complaining; "There's too dang much storage on this boat!"

d) Unless you want to spent the bucks on an aftermarket system, in which case you should probably ask about an "Audio Delete" option, then you may as well buck up for the tunes.

e) Raised helms are nice for forward visibility. Frankly, if you have a chose, spend the money on the upgraded captains chair.

f) Yes, there will be a difference in fuel burn. The laws of physics demand it. Will it be enough for you to either notice or care? I doubt it.

g) Unless you find yourself traveling long distances between fueling opportunities, I wouldn't bother with the bigger fuel tank for any reason beyond simple convenience. Which may be enough motivation for you of course...
 
If you want to hit 40 then the 200 would be reguired. I have a 150 Yamaha and can hit 37 - 38.

The in floor storage is huge. I would think that on a boat with the center walk thru you would definatly want the in floor storage since your loosing the storage under the sun pad.

I have a 31 gal fuel tank on mine and wish it was bigger you'll like the 59.

Don't have the raised helm so I don't miss it. I heard that on the G series the raised helm is kind of a toe stubber. Don't know if that applies to the new models.

Now hurry up and get that boat ordered. You can always make some last minute changes if needed
 
Good luck with your purchase and welcome aboard.

I have a 2011 2275 RCW and we love it.

We got the raised helm and i think its a must have. I do wish i had the center storage, but spent the money on cooler thngs like underwater and side led lights. Have u thougbt about the merc optimax pro xs line of engines? Equivelent to sho and evinrude etec ho motors. Upper range of allowable hp for a given size. Plus u get low water pick ups, carbon fiber reeds, etc. I get low 40's with a light load. If u arent going to do amps, etc, then the kicker ulgrade is fine. Loud enough and clear enough for most people.

Good luck

Todd
 
I guess I kind of overlooked the 20" transom option and so did my sales guy. :unsure: Ive heard nothing but praise for the VMAX SHO motors, just haven't seen the price tag on them yet. My wife's Dad has run both Yamaha and Mercury and he thinks Yamaha are the best bet and require less maintenance. So thank you Wild and Free you just solved a dilemma for us! Since you have the same boat, do think we'd be happy with a 200hp? Id really like to be able to hit 40mph with 2 passengers.

And how is fuel burn, do you think the 59 gallon tank was worth while? Right now we go through maybe 50 gallons a SEASON with the 50hp. But Im sure thats all about to change!
The Yamaha SHO 200,225,and 250 are the same engine, power difference I would imagine comes mostly from ecm programming. May be slight internal differences. I boat on a rather large lake and I absolutely refuse pay the extra $ to fill at marinas if at all possible, we can often put 50-80 or more miles a day on the boat with no stops in between so yes the large 59 gallon tank is well worth it for us. It is center mount so the boat runs even and smooth where as the standard tank for the GCW is only a 25 gallon tank under the right rear chase lounger and 25 gallons was not an option for our needs not to mention the fuel tank in a rear corner will always cause the boat to list to that side a bit.

I too would aim you at the largest engine you can afford but I would say the 200 would easily cover you and 225 would be more than sufficient for your needs..
 
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Wow! A whole lot of conflicting opinions on here. I will reinforce what the others before me have already indicated. Select the biggest motor 1st, then select options with left over money within your budget. It's what I wish I had done.

Now for brand selection. Both are great motors. Yamaha has the 3yr ltd. warranty and offering an extended 2 years if you buy new this month. Mercury is offering the exact same warranty package as Yamaha. I too would avoid the 2 strokes though. Not because of their performance (many can attest to their ability to out perform 4 strokes), but because their resale values are not nearly as good as a 4 stroke. Don't shoot the messenger, I'm just informing you of the perception of the general population, whether right or wrong.

I don't want you to get your hopes up too much on the Kicker sound system. It is really not that impressive and certainly not worth $1,000 IMHO. A decent stereo shop could give you much better sound at that cost.
 
We are on the second week with our 2574 GLi, a vacation week so we have gotten several hours on it already. First, superchargers can be very reliable, many Verados with 1000+ hours on them. Check out www.veradoclub.com for a great info forum. We are not talking add on supercharger kits here. Merc has always been a great company and it is American made. I ended up with the 250 Verado Pro, thinking I needed a bit bigger to slalom ski, heck it rips my arms off at anything more than 1/2 throttle. I can run 47 mph on GPS, and have used 35 gallons in 7 hours of running pretty good and some skiing. 5 gallons per hour is surely not bad for break-in and not putting around. FWI the 200 is a 4 cyl, the 225 is the first of the 6 cyl Verados.

In floor locker would be great if you want to ski sometimes, otherwise ski is laying on the floor ready to trip someone. Wish I had the locker, I would gladly trade upgraded sound system for the locker. Besides, you can put the kids in there it is so big, and it has an automatic bilge pump.

I cannot see a reason for the raised helm, not at all. (besides, I understand the seat is the same height overall, just the windshield, instruments, and steering wheel are higher.)

With the ESP package, I will NEVER go back to a boat, these things handle so well, and ride awesome on rough water. Good luck with your choices.
 
Chuck,

Welcome to the Bennington forum. A great group of people with a lot of pontoon/boating knowledge.

After choosing the model which you have done, choosing the engine has got to be the most important decision you will make. Looks like you are headed in the right direction with 200hp and up choices. I spoke with quite a few boat dealers in our area and the majority liked Yamaha the best. My Bennington dealer sells Yamaha and Mercury and said they both make great engines but he prefers Yamaha. I chose the Yamaha 250hp SHO and like it quite a bit. It does have the 20 inch shaft so I had Bennington build with the appropriate transom. It's quick out of the hole for skiing and works well for tubing. We had 14 on board (max capacity) for a cruise over the July 4th holiday and it worked great. I have a feeling I would be praising the Mercury Verado 250 (my second choice)if I had gone that route.

I chose the 60 gal center fuel cell and so glad I did. The RCW and GCW come standard with 25 gal. and that is about 4-5 hours run time the way we use our boat. Less trips to the marina gas pumps is a bonus.

$1,000 for in-floor center storage? Are you kidding? That's what I said to my dealer when we looked at the option list. I did get it and glad I did. It's huge and very well done with the bilge pump and lining. On our previous boats we always had tubes, skis, or wakeboards in the floor and in the way. Not now, everything is tidy and put away.

I did get the raised helm and it helps some. On my three prior boats, we usually had an extra seat cushion at the helm but that is not needed with our new toon.

I got the upgraded kicker speakers, amp, and it sounds pretty good. Not as good as my last boat where I spent an extra $3,000 in stereo, sub-woofer, amp upgrades. If you want a killer system, go aftermarket. This upgraded system you get from Bennington will satisfy most owners.

Best of luck in your decisions and keep us posted.
 
So the boat has been ordered!!! After seeing pics of the raised helm at the dealer's I knew it wasnt for us. We did get the center tube storage but passed on the center tube fuel tank. Our lake is only 7 miles long and we'll only take 1 or 2 trips a year to "big" water with the boat so I think we'll be good with std fuel tank. Dealer said it was a 33 gallon tank? We did upgrade to the Kicker speakers, but that was required to get the stern lounge upgrad. While I was there we called the stereo guy they deal with and we are going to put a small system in when the boat is delivered (head unit, 5 channel amp and sub). It will cost less than the Bennington upgrade and sound much better. The same guy did the upgrades in the Crownline we had (sold earlier in the year).

As far as engines go, they really believe in (push?) the Optimax as the best combo of power/speed/price, so I bit and ordered the 200hp Optimax. They assured me it will definitely run in the low 40's on the 2275 GCW. I could afford the 225hp Optimax if I wanted or the Verado 200, maybe the 225hp but they thought the Optimax would suit us best. He sells Yamaha motors too but said there are known issues with cavitation using the SHO motors from Yamaha and really didnt want to sell me one? So there must be a little something extra from Mercury in it for them. But Im fairly convinced that the Optimax must not be a bad motor, I mean why would they push something that is roughly $1500 cheaper when thats less profit in their pockets?

Im not sure if price talk is allowed but we got OTD (before tax) for $39.9k, which seems like a pretty fair deal to me.
 
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Sounds great, is the optimax 2 or 4 stroke? My rig was a late 2010 model with a 2011 serial number and standard was 25 gallon tank they must have upped it for actual 2011-2012 boats.

I would say you will be right at 40 or a couple mph over with the right prop. sounds like the 15 X 15 merc inertia props are working out super in that hp range.
 
Sounds like a nice package.

Say, where are you? What lake I mean.
 
So would all agree that I made a decent choice of motor? I think so, but am not an expert on these things and its not to late to change. The Optimax is a 2 stroke.

Im on Belleville Lake in SE Michigan.
 
So would all agree that I made a decent choice of motor? I think so, but am not an expert on these things and its not to late to change. The Optimax is a 2 stroke.

Im on Belleville Lake in SE Michigan.
Chuck

Congrats on the new boat

where are you at on Belleville Lake, I keep my Bennington at Sandy's Marina

Ron
 
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We live over on the Rawsonville side of the lake in the area of the sand bar.
 
We live over on the Rawsonville side of the lake in the area of the sand bar.
cool, I think I have seen your boat before do you live almost across from the sandbar on the south side of the lake ?.... either way congrats and we are on the water 3-4 times per week we should tie up and hang out some time, usually we hang out past the sandbar and around the corner close to the ski area.. just look for 2 Benningtons it will be me and Tom

and BTW order your boat with the PWR-ARM top you will love it if you go under the bridges

Ron
 
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