40 HP max on my 16' pontoon says the plate by the captain's seat.

MistaJoe

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I want to trade my 40HP that previous owner bought with the boat but a friend pointed out that if the capacity says 40HP a dealer may not put on a 90 or 115 for me. When people are chopping up the lakes here in central Florida or it is a windy choppy day the 40HP barely gets me through the waves safely. Also can you be ticketed for having a motor that exceeds what is written on the capacity plate if you are stopped? Appreciate any insight.
 
Yes you can be ticketed for exceeding the capacity plate .
 
You would also void what may left on your Bennington warranty.
 
Yes you can be ticketed for exceeding the capacity plate .
And you could also be in for a hell of a lawsuit if ANYTHING was to happen to ANYONE on your boat or another if in an accident with a motor over spec’s horsepower on plate. This would be a lawyers dream!!!!!
 
Yeah, everyone on here is correct. You'd be lucky to find a dealer that would mount something above the rated capactiy.
I had a 21' Pursuit walk around cuddy that was rated for 225hp. The 175 blew so I had to repower. Tried like hell to get them to mount twin 115's (transom was wide enough for twins as twin 90's were a factory option) and it was a flat out "NOPE, NOPE, NOPE". I went with a single 225hp
I'm afraid your stuck with your 40hp unfortunately.
 
Your friend, and everything above is correct.

To add to they list above: You cannot have insurance on a boat if it has a motor higher in HP than the capacity plate maximum rating. And if you were to lie to insurance about motor on it so as to obtain insurance, but later have an accident, problem or issue, then refer to SemperFi’s lawsuit warning above….

Your option if more HP is a must due to whatever conditions you boat in is to buy another boat with a hull and transome built and rated for more HP…and thus reflected as such via its capacity plate.
 
Just to be devils advocate and throw a couple "what if's out there", the powerboat association went from Crankshaft horsepower in 1985ish (If memory serves me correctly), to propshaft HP rating. Given this and the variable of a 10% rating tolerance (which is why you see Yamaha Vmax SHO, Mercury Optimax Pro XS, Evinrude HO's) which are typically on the higher side the HP rating. So a Yammy Vmax 150, Mercury Pro Xs 150, and Evinrude 150HO) are all pushing close to 165hp vs the 150hp they are rated for. The increases get larger as the HP goes up. A typical 250hp outboard in the "special high output models", could be putting out 275HP and be well within legal limits of HP ratings. Yet the capacity plates say 250hp max rating.
Just a FYI.
 
Just to be devils advocate and throw a couple "what if's out there", the powerboat association went from Crankshaft horsepower in 1985ish (If memory serves me correctly), to propshaft HP rating. Given this and the variable of a 10% rating tolerance (which is why you see Yamaha Vmax SHO, Mercury Optimax Pro XS, Evinrude HO's) which are typically on the higher side the HP rating. So a Yammy Vmax 150, Mercury Pro Xs 150, and Evinrude 150HO) are all pushing close to 165hp vs the 150hp they are rated for. The increases get larger as the HP goes up. A typical 250hp outboard in the "special high output models", could be putting out 275HP and be well within legal limits of HP ratings. Yet the capacity plates say 250hp max rating.
Just a FYI.
That’s interesting, but doesn’t change a thing.
 
That’s interesting, but doesn’t change a thing.
Nope it doesn't in this case does it?. But what if somebody wants to repower an older boat? What's the law or rules? is the capacity plate on a older boat crankshaft or propshaft hp? That's all I meant by my post. Pretty much a grey area isn't it? I don't know the answer.
 
If buying another boat is out of the equation then perhaps optimizing your existing boat can help.

What about the boat is unsafe when going through waves? How would additional HP help you?

Is the engine maintained and running optimally (you are achieving the target RPM per OEM)?

Would a different prop help in these situations? Bigger diameter can give better control and grip at the expense of speed. Or are you looking for more speed?

Is engine mounting height correct?

Are you trimming up or down to properly crest the wave? Correct quartering angles?

Does the pontoon have excessive growth on the bottom that is creating drag? Do the toons have water in them adding weight?

If there are other issues just adding HP may not achieve your desired goal. Conversely solving any other problems could eliminate the need to repower.

Just some thoughts, good luck!
 
I had a tiny little fishing boat that I hung a 15 horsepower on it even tho it was rated for 7 horsepower. During the twenty five years of my ownership it never gave me problems with boat control or structural integrity. On one occasion I hung my neighbors identical motor on the transom just to see how it would go with two motors. That combination seemed unsafe because the boat was twitchy. I have always enjoyed pushing the limits and have also had to set limits during my career as a engineer. If I had been overly concerned about risk and liability I probably would never have left the house.
 
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