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Outboard Vs Inboard

Ahh, the magical search bar comes to the rescue again! I figured there had to be a topic on it at some point! Interesting thoughts, especially from the great Eric!

Anybody have any new thoughts or points on the matter?
 
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I did not have a choice as I bought a used Bennington last spring and it came with the I/O. As an aside, there are very few loaded newer used Bennington boats for sale. I believe owners love them and hang on to them. With One year of using the new to us boat I have some opinions.

Pro: I love the clean look and sight lines when pulling skiers and tubing

Love the sound of a V-8 when exhausted thru the outdrive. Had straight exhaust in the 70's, 80's and then I grew up.

Great low end for deep water starts when propped for it.

Like the raised loungers on-top of the engine cover - Looks different

Everybody else has O/B's

Because of the C/G it gets on plane with no bow raise. It is just on plane

As a drag racer, it is a beautiful sight to toggle the switch and raise the engine cover and see that big engine sitting in a clean aluminium engine compartment.

Cons: Not the fastest boat on the water. C/G is forward of the O/B's and you can not leverage the toons out of the water

GPH I am sure the O/B use less gas but I don't care. We spend more on Beer than gas. If we cruised allot it would make a difference. We play hard skiing and tubing and then float. Our lake all looks the same , so you stay close to the dock and go to the marina for fuel.

Maintenance is a big deal on the I/O. You will spend more for every repair and winterizing is a big & costly deal. You also have to pull the boat out of service early and start later in the season. It is not a problem for us because the community dock gets pulled on a schedule and boating season is over. With no warranties, the cost of maintenance has to be a consideration.

Cost on a new boat - It is cheaper to hang an O/B on a transom then build an engine compartment with lifting rams, blowers and bilges.
 
I've only owned 2 boats..............a 19 ft. Maxum bowrider and my current Benny both with the same Mercruiser I/O V6 220 HP EFI. It does everything we want it to do............pulls skiiers, tubers, wakeboarders and cruises well. Fuel consumption is not bad as long as you're not slamming that throttle down while skiing or teaching somebody to ski. If you need fuel just fill it up..............

As far as maintenance is concerned............I change the oil after every season after I winterize it by running antifreeze through the block with a kit I've had for years and used to use on my first boat.................The water/fuel seperator filter and the lower until oil/grease is also changed. Regular vigilant maintenance has never been a problem and w/the V6 being smaller in size to the V8 I have adequate room in my motor pod to get to anything I might need to get to.............

When we were looking for a pontoon boat we were resigned to the fact that we were going to get an outboard but I was a little apprehensive because I never had one..............then we came across the I/O we have now.............an engine we were really familiar with so we jumped on it..............plus at the time it was a 4 yr old boat with a brand new engine in it. The elderly couple who owned it forgot to winterize it and the block cracked. They replaced it with a new engine and ended up buying a deck boat instead. So we bought a 4 yr old Bennington w/ a brand new I/O in it............no brainer.
 
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Ok What's funny about this thread is I started it in Aug of 2011, We were on a road trip visiting a few lakes up north with our wake boat, We were at lake Shasta getting parts for the trailer when we stoped into the Lake Shasta Bennington dealership. That's when the Dealer told me "they dont order I/O's". The rest of the trip I was thinking about Benningtons and decided to pose the question, When we were here at lake Trinity (Photo). Its funny to see how things can change in just a few years. We still have the wakeboat and I thik we always will.

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I think Redemption said it pretty good. Ill add a few more cool +'s for the I/0 With the I/O you dont have a HUGE motor hanging off the back I say huge cause if you dont have a 350 off the back then all you have is a trolling motor, LOL that should get you guys going. Often we will back in to a cove and be socializing right at the back of the swim deck in waste deep water. The swim deck works as a gathering place. Our friend with a outboard will do the same thing (back in to the cove ) and as soon as that big Outboard gets near you you Avoid it "like a creepy uncle at a family reunion"

No doubt a Outboard with outperform a I/O while under way. But IMO some of the best times we have had on our boat are when we are parkerd or going 5 mph. Im 100% happy with my choice.

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That is a great drawing. The only thing missing is the engine pissing out the side while running :)
 
Haha, this is why I love this board! Nobody gets all negative when defending their decision. LOVE the drawing!! I also love the look of not having the outboard smack in the middle if my view. I think this has become even more of an issue since the rear loungers were introduced, as the view is obvious. Since I am NOT super mechanically inclined, the service is definitely a consideration. I've never been overly worried about fuel, it is what it is, that's why I got a big tank! Gee, I am always jealous of how beautiful your scenery looks in your pics! Water as calm as can be, gorgeous.
 
One consideration we have here in the not so great Lakes anymore, is the fact the water levels have declined dramatically in the past few years. A outboard will draw less then water then a IO. Our neighbors had to leave their 21 deck boat with a IO on their host and shrink wrap it there as the water levels had dropped so far. Saginaw bay and lake st clair has been hit the hardest by these declines. I do like the sleek lines of a IO especially with the new rear loungers. Now if you could have captains choice or some sort of thru hull exhaust like the go fast boats, that would be sweet!!!

Todd
 
The demo Q I/O they had at the open house last fall had the switchable exhaust. Not crazy loud, but a nice rumble B)
 
While I like your analogy, you may be exaggerating the size of an OB.
 
And I do love my beautiful ivory aft teak platform. :wub: (without the stepup over the engine) :p

aft teak.jpg
 
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LTC your right after looking at the link you posted I might have over sized it a bit. The 350's I have seen don't seem that small. For sure if I had my boat on a big lake and most of the time I was hauling booty I would have gone with a OB all the way.
 
I have van outboard but I do love the look of your boat Geewest, very classy
 
TomS said:
The demo Q I/O they had at the open house last fall had the switchable exhaust. Not crazy loud, but a nice rumble B)
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There is a thread here last year with somebody complaining about the exhaust noise with their new I/O. Mercury has do something since our boat that has increase the exhaust noise. IMHO i would rather you didn't hear me before I pass you!
 
So all you wonderful folk with the inboards, are those dual prop inboards, or single? I was speaking to a quite knowledgeable mechanic from my Bennington dealer this weekend (I assume knowledgeable, been doing it a long time and knows a HECK of a lot more than me!) and he swears by the dual prop. Says they are faster out if the hole, hold their 'grip' in a turn and don't aerate out like a single may. Any thoughts?
 
The demo boat had a Bravo 3 dual prop with great performance in turns, no ventilation, and a nice hole shot. It probably wasn't the last word in top end but you're not giving up much. The logs don't get out of the water quite the way the outboard does.
 
The Captains Call exhaust is an option this year on I/O's. I traded my 2012 Q in on a 2013 Q 2575 Sport Tower with the Mercruiser HO 8.2 DTS and when we were ordering the new boat this option was on the dealers option list. Boat is set to be built next week. When the boat comes in I will take some pictures and we will see what the exhaust looks like. I also ordered the Shark Hide option,anyone know what this is? The Dealer and I think it is put on to help keep the tubes bright, but not sure.
 
We have the bravo 1 outdrive which is single prop. There is a downside to the dual prop. We borrowed my parents Crownline with the Volvo Dual prop several years ago to cruise from Cincinnati to Louisville. During the cruise we hit a flat piece of watersoaked plywood. It got stuck on the smaller back prop blade and created a big vibration. Stopped the boat, raised the outdrive and took the wood off the prop blade. Next day we headed home. We got to the locks and had to do some reversing to get out of the way of a tow coming out of the locks. We locked up and when I tried to get on plane the boat would not do it. We got out of the way and i stopped and raise the outdrive. The back prop was gone. Found out that the props are held on with a nut that doesn't have a positive lock. When we hit the wood with the back prop it loosened the nut. When we backed up the rear prop worked off the shaft and is laying at the bottom of the Ohio River. We put people forward to get on plane and made it to the takeout ok. Bad news was when I went to purchase a replacement Prop. Almost $700 dollars was the least expensive I could find. I am sure the performance is better with the duals but the outdives are more expensive and the prop cost is scary. I am very happy with the performance of the Bravo 1 and I purchased a high performance stainless steel prop for $150.
 
Okie Dave said:
The Captains Call exhaust is an option this year on I/O's. I traded my 2012 Q in on a 2013 Q 2575 Sport Tower with the Mercruiser HO 8.2 DTS and when we were ordering the new boat this option was on the dealers option list. Boat is set to be built next week. When the boat comes in I will take some pictures and we will see what the exhaust looks like. I also ordered the Shark Hide option,anyone know what this is? The Dealer and I think it is put on to help keep the tubes bright, but not sure.
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You will be happy with the sharkhide treatment. There are several threads about it in the forum.
 
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