Facts about Evinrude/Johnson racing outboards made my OMC

[lars strom]

First stop..Conchy Joes for lunch.

[odd1]

Have that glastron in my yard

[lars strom]

Formula V8 boats of Cees van der Velden #1 and Nicola Mora #14 Stockholm 1983.
You can see my Volvo racing truck in the background.

[lars strom]

My Volvo F1-V8 racing truck in Stockholm.
Workbench with all the tools inside. Spare power-head and gear-case.
Of course a built in generator and air pressure.

[lars strom]

Lars Strom

Admin

#19 Kicco Vidoli Team Molinari/Nordica
in London F1-V8 GP 1985. You can see #35 also. Art Kennedy was the replacement driver for regular Barry Woods in this race.
Yes..I also was part of this race in my #8 Burgess/Evinrude V8
Thanks Fast on Water.

[lars strom]

Cees Van Der Velden in action in the dry pit.

[lars strom]

John Hill in his #42 UIM OE-F3 Burgess/Johnson RS 1978.
He switched from Mercury to OMC in early 1978.

[lars strom]

Yes..Cees told me this in a bar when I drove for his team in the World OE Championship race in Evian, France 1979.
The round scar you see clearly in the red circle here he got as a kid playing with a hot cigarette lighter in his dads car..
He burned himself by mistake..

[lars strom]

Charlie Strang at a photo shoot at Second Effort.

[lars strom]

A very fast Argo Offshore boat in Finland in the seventies.
Powered by a Johnson Stinger GP and a GT-115 gear-case with reverse.
On top of that..A beautiful sound all over the archipelago in Finland..

[2us70]

In 1966 at the Orange Bowl 9 Hour Marathon two brothers from West Palm Beach won the single engine class with a European built v-bottom boat with a v4 Evinrude with a racing lower unit. I remember they had a spare lower unit and tools mounted in the boat if the needed to change it. This was due to the race rules requiring nothing but fuel to be taken aboard after the start of the race. I wonder if that was a prototype of the later GT motors?

[lars strom]

@2us70
Sorry, I don't know the answer.


Pasi Haavisto

Lars Strom #8 Formula 1 Stockholm GP 1984. Artistic style. Artistic means that the film frame was in such bad condition that you cannot get a normal picture from it.

[lars strom]

Jack Aylsworth

OMC Cobra – Performance Strikes

In 1985, OMC introduced the Cobra Sterndrive with great fanfare and immediate success. The ads and catalog featured direct “in-your-face” comparisons to MerCruiser underscoring the Cobra’s advantages. It was designed to give MerCruiser stiff competition being more durable, more serviceable and more corrosion resistant. Hydraulic lines were shielded & hidden. It could be operated in any trim position. The gimbal ring could be serviced without removing the engine. The vertical driveshaft operated in a protective bath. Automotive high-solids paints produced a lustrous finish backed by beefed-up anode protection. All clear advantages over the MerCruiser.
**Teething Problems **- OMC quickly earned contracts with market volume leaders Bayliner and SeaRay, plus several smaller builders. Unfortunately, all the significant design advantages were overshadowed by a seemingly minor issue. Due to problems with the inner shift cable core, shifting problems occurred.The inner core would bind within the protective sleeve and cable problems could lead to issues with the dog clutch. While an initial distraction, it was not a difficult fix. Better installation training for boat builders and dealers was also initiated.
The Cobra Gets More Bite - In 1986, OMC got even more in MerCruiser’s face with the introduction of the King Cobra backed by a massive 340hp high-performance 7.5liter Ford V8. In 1987, Cobra sales skyrocketed by 87 percent over the preceding year while high-performance jumped again with a 370hp King Cobra. With strong support from Ford the Cobra line-up saw increasing horsepower increases over the following years.
**The Snake Gets A Partner **- In 1992, a joint venture with Volvo was formed. Volvo would own 60 percent and OMC 40 percent and a new modern production facility was built in Lexington, Tennessee. OMC officially went out of the stern drive business in 1998 when Volvo purchased the rights and the manufacturing facility in Lexington.

[Amberjack1234]

King cobra

Jack Aylsworth

OMC Cobra – Performance Strikes

In 1985, OMC introduced the Cobra Sterndrive with great fanfare and immediate success. The ads and catalog featured direct “in-your-face” comparisons to MerCruiser underscoring the Cobra’s advantages. It was designed to give MerCruiser stiff competition being more durable, more serviceable and more corrosion resistant. Hydraulic lines were shielded & hidden. It could be operated in any trim position. The gimbal ring could be serviced without removing the engine. The vertical driveshaft operated in a protective bath. Automotive high-solids paints produced a lustrous finish backed by beefed-up anode protection. All clear advantages over the MerCruiser.
**Teething Problems **- OMC quickly earned contracts with market volume leaders Bayliner and SeaRay, plus several smaller builders. Unfortunately, all the significant design advantages were overshadowed by a seemingly minor issue. Due to problems with the inner shift cable core, shifting problems occurred.The inner core would bind within the protective sleeve and cable problems could lead to issues with the dog clutch. While an initial distraction, it was not a difficult fix. Better installation training for boat builders and dealers was also initiated.
The Cobra Gets More Bite - In 1986, OMC got even more in MerCruiser’s face with the introduction of the King Cobra backed by a massive 340hp high-performance 7.5liter Ford V8. In 1987, Cobra sales skyrocketed by 87 percent over the preceding year while high-performance jumped again with a 370hp King Cobra. With strong support from Ford the Cobra line-up saw increasing horsepower increases over the following years.
**The Snake Gets A Partner **- In 1992, a joint venture with Volvo was formed. Volvo would own 60 percent and OMC 40 percent and a new modern production facility was built in Lexington, Tennessee. OMC officially went out of the stern drive business in 1998 when Volvo purchased the rights and the manufacturing facility in Lexington.

I truly don’t understand why OMC and Volvo did not continue the relationship with the Stern drives even though they had a minuscule part of the market compared to MerCruiser they still could have been competitive and produced sales for the two compani22Stern drives even though they had a minuscule part of the market compared to MerCruiser they still could have been competitive and produced sales for the two companies.It’s just like Volvo buying seven marineIt’s just like Volvo buying seven marine and immediately ceasing production after Mercury Came out with the V 12 engine 600 hp. I personally think they could’ve been competitive with the 557 627s but I guess Brunswick and Mercury Are such behemoths in the Marine industry nowAre such behemoth in the marine industry now no one can compete no one can compete

[lars strom]

@Amberjack1234 ,

Thats not correct.
Volvo Penta close down Seven Marine production long before the Merc V12.
The new female President made clear it’s was to follow the Paris Climate Accord..!!
She is taking VP on the green road..!!
Like it or not..that’s her plan