Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

[A Frechette]

Hi Folks,

I am getting ready to buy a pontoon boat. I am curious about the top speed and trade off's between a Sweetwater 24' with a 135 IO vs an outboard.

So how fast would a 24' two pontoon go with a 135io?

How much difference does a third pontoon make?

How big an engine do you need to pull someone on skis? Or a boogie board?

Any help is appreciated. I am afraid that I won't get a straight answer from local dealers who are dying to unload stock that's been on hand for 9 months...

Any other suggestions are welcome. This is my first pontoon boat, and I plan on keeping it for several years.

Thanks,

Allen

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

3 toon makes a big difference. even then they are not going to perform it a v hull boat. most that are skiing and water sports are going to the 200hp. if you can get a 4.3L.

i have a 20ft with a 2004 50 johnson, it just is a cruise boat.

 

[A Frechette]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

Any suggestions on a motor package? Is it worth the loss of interior space to get an IO? Are they quieter? Any idea on what the top speed might be?

We plan to do Shasta this summer with some friends, and we are concerned that it will take all day to get to the remote coves they go to with their ski boat. If it doesn't make a huge difference to have a I0 135 Vs a 90 outboard, it opens up the field of used boats a lot.

Thanks for any opinions.

Allen

 

[wishihad]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

Quick guestimate for a triple toon w a o/b
90hp 23ish
115hp 28ish
135hp 30ish

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

I get the impression you will be boating with friends who have V-hulls and therefore you have a concern about speed. If that's the case and your friends will constantly ride you about your plug along party barge, then a pontoon is not for you. They simply are not speedy craft. Putting lots of horsepower on a pontoon will result in consuming lots of fuel, especially if you are constantly in a hurry. Consider your purchase carefully. I suspect you are about to make a mistake. You might be better off with a compromise such as a deck boat. Much better performance and while not as roomy as a pontoon, they are more roomy than a standard V-hull.

 

[Mike722]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

You might consider a deck boat- room of a pontoon with the speed of a ski boat. I have never had a high Hp OB, but I prefer the easy of maintenance of the OB over an I/O. Up here in the midwest it is nice to lift the boat out of the water and have it drain all the water out when you are not sure when the temps are going fall below freezing.

We now get an extra month of boating out of the pontoon over the I/O runabout.

 

[coolguy147]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

a nice evinrude etec with a 115 v4 or a 90hp inline 3 cylinder motor

but there is the factor with inboard outboards so u could get a a nice 135hp mercruiser.

im going to tell u right now the outboard is going to be much less maitenece espcially from etec and the fact that they r two strokes. they claim no maitenece for 3 full years. and the outboard is most likely going to be lighter

just a thought

 

[OldePharte]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

I would second the third log advice.

There a lot of high HP outboards on pontoons where we boat. My guess is that you want to stop short of having 2 300HP hanging off the back of whatever you buy. You really need to test drive various options and engine sizes and then make an informed decision.

One issue of going too fast in a pontoon, is the potential of flipping it. But if you keep it under 60 mph, shouldn't be much of an issue. However, one thing to consider is the wave action where you plan on doing most of your boating. Submarining a pontoon,even at slow speeds, is no fun and can be very expensive.

 

[5150abf]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

As Silver tip said, you need to decide if you want the room of a toon or the speed of a ski boat because you can't have both with the set up you are looking for.

You can easily get a toon up to 50+ to run with a ski boat BUT you will need a big block I/O or a 250 outboard.

A planing hull like a ski boat rides on top of the water, a toon pushes through the water which is much less efficient so you need much more power to get the same top speed.

Advantages of a toon over a mono hull are a ton more deck space and a super smooth ride, the only real downside is less top speed.

So do you want to go fast or enjoy the boat more when you are done going fast?

 

[smclear]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

I've had a Tri-toon with an I/O. It was quick enough to pull skiers and tubers although it's not the ideal for that. It was also quite quiet. The downside was the serviceability. (Bennington's do it right in this dept.)

Currently I own the same pontoon in an outboard version. 26' Tri-toon w/ 135 HP Honda. It's also quite quiet. Speed is good to.

A pontoon might just be the perfect compliment to your friends speedboat. Find a spot, the pontoon becomes "Base", and enjoy the day(s)!

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

if you want to stay any where close to your friends, go deck boat. i also have a Chris Craft 230 deck boat 5.7 VP drive. it will stay up with the ski boat, and rated for 13 people. there is a head and sink, cabin under the passenger console.

 

[A Frechette]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

Hi Folks,

Thanks for the tips. Sounds like I will be ok with an decent size outboard. I don't plan to keep up with my pal with a malibu, but it will be a nuisance if it only goes 15kts. Guess I will need a 4 stroke to go on Shasta.

I live near the Willamette river and most of it's life it will spend at 5kts with steaks and martinis...

Any opinions on makes and engine types? Who makes the quietest, most reliable motor?

Thanks again for the help.

Allen

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

i like the etec, and the yammy. if you go i/o volvo penta drive.

 

[5150abf]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

Boatwise you can't beat a Bennington, as smclear said, they do it right and they are still in business which is something you should watch when selecting a boat.
Alot of companies have gone under in the last 6 months and I don't know if I would be comfortable buying a boat that may or may not have a warranty behind it.

I am alittle bias as I work there, but I have seen everyone elses boats and we are hands down the best engineered, built, designed boat on the market but please go look at several brands and make up your own mind.

As to the motor it is hard to beat a Yamaha outboard or Volvo for an I/O but it also depends on what service you have near you, if your closest Yamaha dealer is 100 miles away but there is a Honda dealer just down the road, look at a Honda.

I would shy away from Southbay and Tracker, Tracker is a good boat but they are very low line entry level boats, Southbay are just bad boats and should be avoided, they consistently rank at the bottom of JD Powers in almost every category.

Good luck

 

[wishihad]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

e-tec all the way!!

 

[fyrfightr]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

I have a 95 Crest 25' 2 tube pontoon with a Merc 135 I/O. GPS is 24.5mph with 4 adlults onboard. It has the bottom skirting on the flooring which gives a much smoother ride at speed. I would personally go with a 4 stroke outboard if buying new(for ease in winterizing). If getting a toon that will go faster than 20mph, I would get the underskirt, as a lot of water gets splashed up against the floor joist and causes a jarring feeling.

 

[1badtoon]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

Take a look at Premier Pontoons ! Several models to choose from and the PTX preformance pkg. is one of the best on the market!!!

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

bennington.

 

[samo_ott]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

I have a 95 Crest 25' 2 tube pontoon with a Merc 135 I/O. GPS is 24.5mph with 4 adlults onboard. It has the bottom skirting on the flooring which gives a much smoother ride at speed. I would personally go with a 4 stroke outboard if buying new(for ease in winterizing). If getting a toon that will go faster than 20mph, I would get the underskirt, as a lot of water gets splashed up against the floor joist and causes a jarring feeling.

I've never seen a skirt under a pontoon boat but see what you mean. Do you or anyone have a pic? thanks.

 

[fyrfightr]

Re: Help on Pontoon Boat Selection/ top speeds

I've never seen a skirt under a pontoon boat but see what you mean. Do you or anyone have a pic? thanks.

I don't have a pic handy as boat is 200 miles away. But is fairly common on tri-toons. On mine it is sheets of aluminum that start at the top of the tube, go up to the flooring, across the bottom of the flooring, and back down to the top of the other tube. I read about someone using old pickup bed liners as skirting and it sounds like a good idea......