Grand Sport-Euro-SS2000-T4 w/conservative power? Possible 4 stroke?

[Stoker1]

<HR style="COLOR: #72a5d8" SIZE=1><!-- / icon and title --><!-- message -->Duh, they run slower right?

Family & fun but not the higher cost of insureance. Would consider power of up to 200 hp but might even go as to say 150.

FOUR STROKES might be a possibility too. So far its the Suzuki 175 thats really appealing.

Thinking of either:
V's
SS 2000,
Grand Sport

Mod Tunnel
Euro / T4 (or even an LPB version as john has a good rep)

We're talking used.

Those mentioned above are the top of the dream list as I've seen lots of other rigs in the FS section that are eye catching.

To fuel the fire & keep the desire I'm keeping plugged in to the forum but can't go all out like a lot of you can. Wife has agreed to it a long time ago & she knows I want a decent go fast boat that can handle a family of three. Naturally the idea of the i/o cruiser comes to mind but they're not as cool. Might be what I have to settle on anyhow as they're much roomier.

Kind regards,
Jamie

[JW]

A Optimax or ETEC or HPDI 2-stroke will get better mileage and be faster with those boats than any of the current 4-strokes....................

[BUZZ]

My grandsport w/ a bone stock pro-max 150 would run 79 mph. If your family is involved & are into any watersports, I would VERY highly recommend the grandsport over the SS. W/ the grandsport you will have twice as much room & storage.

[Fl Boy in ILL]

For a family boat I agree with Buzz, the Grand Sport is a much better family boat, more room, more sotare, windshield, easier to get in and out of. I have owned both so I speak from experience

Rick

[steve]

And I don't think the Euro is nearly as good on bottom end with a smaller motor. Its a great boat , but the Grand Sport with a 150 or 200 Merc would be better with weight at low speed, holeshot , skiing etc. Actually I'd go with a 175 before the 150. The sleeves (porting) are much better in most of those . The 150XR6 would be the exception. It, the 175 and the 200 all are excellent platforms for additional power if you choose to add bolt ons in the future also. The SS will be faster but its not what you'd be happy with as a family boat, sounds like. I'd pick the XR2002 before the SS if you want something faster than a GS with plenty of room and ease of use. The seating is the only drawback in the XR2002.
If you go 4 stroke, choose a tunnel not a V hull. Same with the heavier 2 strokes. The V's handle and topend much better with the lighter motors ( any boat does actually) and the tunnels don't mind the weight back there as much. For the money it would be hard to beat a GS with a 200hp Merc. for what you want to do.

[msethsmile]

I had a ss with wife and three kids, bring the shoehorn. Had 2 gs's and agree with above folks, way better for family. Probably off 10 mph or better vs ss with small power. I don't think tunnels do well with small hp. Don't know zip about 4 strokes.GS has severe storage and headliner / lite under bow. No allison I've ever seen is easy to get into. Some gs's have ski poles.

[David]

Light power = my kind of thread.

The usual approach to speed is more power. Starting with a faster boat allows the use of a cheaper, more fuel efficient, and more reliable smaller HP motor.

200 HP could get you over 90 in a Euro or an SS2000. With 150 HP, my money is on the SS2000. Mark from Iowa got high 90's with a lightly modified 150 Promax on an SS2000. John Tiger tested an SS2000 at 80 mph with a 115 Ficht. I expect a lot of set up time went into both those boats.

As noted in a post above, the GS is slower than the SS. With 150 HP, I would expect a GS to be about as fast as a Euro, ie 80 mph +/-.

The lighter the power, the more you want a V bottom over a cat. Cats don't like weight, ie your family or your friends, although with power this can be overcome.

Do you plan to ski/tube/wakeboard? None of these boats will put up big wakes for boarding. The GS is available with a factory ski pilon. I still need to add a ski pilon to my SS2000, as it gets pulled around a lot by skiiers. It depends how good a skiier you are how big a deal this is. From my first boat, I know a pilon can work wonders for tracking. I've never seen a Euro with a ski pilon, but most Mod VP hulls track well with skiiers.

I have an SS2000 with a 150XR4. Prior to the Ally, I had the same engine on a Virage (Mod VP hull). The Virage went pretty good solo, but always felt slow with a passenger, and real slow with a boat load. The Ally is much faster, and isn't effected by weight as bad. Of course the Virage seated 5 in more comfort than any of the boats we are discussing.

If you only need 4 seats, the SS is a lot of fun for the family. If you need 5 seats, you need a GS.

It should be noted that the Euro is much easier to drive than an Allison. It takes seat time to master an Ally.

4 strokes are too heavy and generally not torquey and not right for any of these boats.

All these boats are hard to insure. Insurance companies don't like cats and they don't like Allys.

[Stoker1]

Last trip home the family & was out burning up the roads and stopped into a few dealers to have a look. Came across a GS out back & I almost died. Jumped in, & two seconds later I was cruising the waters (in my mind). The wife could tell that the heart strings had been pulled something fierce. She complied with my same feelings, room, super nice looks, even unique.

I had a good idea of the price without engine, but when the guy actually told us outloud, her jaw dropped. Of course I got to telling her how we could buy a normal two stroke late model engine for around 3k etc, etc but then thats still pricing out to what a new i/o bow rider w/power is going for.

Haven't seen many mod tunnels in the past so memory is very foggy. Thought to include it in the conversation as thats what a lot of folks like. Four seats, & decent room but most of you are putting some power on them.

Water sports are not a priority but getting out in a boat you dont see everyday is. Good looks, better than average speed/power ratio & room for three. I know the GS would be the ticket.... Money is in the bank earning interest till the day comes.

See ya.

[msethsmile]

David--the 150 ss w/ 2.4 merc tuner only ran 97, 83 w/ 115 Johnson Fastrike 60 degree (carb motor), no mods other than L.U.

Stoker--
a couple of thoughts on power and gs
1. 200xs, should run 93-4 ish and great mileage at cruise
2. BRP has resurrected the 60 degree motors in E-Tec 150, 175. 200 in the future? Worth a look, just over 400 lbs.
3. One of my alltime favorites, the Yami 115-130 v4. An omc 'guru' in N Illinois told me one time a 115 on an Allsion was stupid, I disagree. Yami sold that motor as of 05, don't know about o6. On a Gs should be in the 70's.
4.2.5 xs, discontinued but worth a look. I've only seen one, at the drags no less. High 90's? on a gs. Suspect anything over a 200 a Euro will outrun a GS.
5. Find a mint used GS (divorce, bankruptcy,etc) and put on good used 150 and run well into the 80's for $12-13k or less. There was a guy at the ally rally with a late model (02-3?) xb2003 and a 280. He bought it on a distressed sale for 14K? The boat was perfect.

[ROLF]

Check hulls over 20 for Hotrodtodd's Triad,looks like everything your lookin for in a turnkey package.
Rolf

[Fish]

notwithstanding my own personal preference (euro), mirage also makes a 4 seater. Not as roomy, but parkers runs pretty good with that big ole motor, and I saw tunnel mike's 3 seater with two people do high 90's a few months ago with a carbed 200.

I agree with most of the posts above about going with the v with lower power. My euro ran 91 with a 200 (although I do not think my setup was exactly right) and 34cc heads. The problem I had was that there is a hop when clearing the air through the tunnels that most tunnels get. Mine was around low to mid 80's and I was getting to the end of my 200's power when I was trying to drive through it. Again, setup better would have helped (and more seat time), but with a 260 I usually do not feel the hop because I drive right past it, with the 200 I noticed it a lot more. driver weighing 265 probably did not help much either

[David]

'only 97' with a lightly modified 150...still sounds fast to me

I saw the Triad in the for sale listing and it would be a good low power buy. Another low power boat could be Fibertron's Vector. I've seen it, and it is a very nice boat that could go 80+ with 150. I'm not so sure about a Vector in rough water though.

All these boats are good. My advice is to buy the first good deal that comes along. Any of these boats would make me happy.

[stokernick]

Stoker,a stupid question from me:If you have a Stoker now,how would that not do everything you want it to do,and if you don't,what are you waiting for!!!!!!

[David]

Stokers are great boats and I really wanted one for a decade or two. But if you wanted to go fast with light power, would the Stoker be the one?

[Stoker1]

If you have a Stoker now,......

Don't own one, but have always liked their lines. (West Coast). Another thing to consider is does anyone have an Alli in Europe? Container shipping is going to be another consideration.