Urgent. Volvo 4.3 or Mercruiser 4.3

[sammyjacob]

I'm buying a Four Winns Horizon tomorrow 170 and need to urgently know what Engine/Drive I should choose. I have the option of the Mercruiser 4.3L Alpha Drive (1 year Guarantee) or the Volvo Penta 4.3GL SX Drive. (2 year Guarantee). They also offered the 3litre version of the above. Which one should I choose. Everywhere I read the HP is the main thing and that I'll get better Performance/MPG out of a bigger motor! <br />I cant find the specs for the above (4.3L) engines on the 170 Horizon any where (including Boattest).

 

[Dunaruna]

Re: Urgent. Volvo 4.3 or Mercruiser 4.3

Hi Sammy,<br /><br />Same engine different clothing. Both Mercruiser & Volvo list the same HP rating - 3.0L 2BBL 135HP, 4.3L 2BBL 190HP, 4.3L MPI 225HP.<br /><br />I personally would chose 4.3LMPI, Mercruiser or Volvo is your call depending on extra features (warranty looks good on the Volvo). Others here may offer an opinion on the drives. Good luck.<br /><br />Aldo

 

[Swishguy]

Re: Urgent. Volvo 4.3 or Mercruiser 4.3

I have the Volvo penta 4.3 efi in a glastron mx 185. Before that I had a 4.3 Mercruiser in a Mariah. The volvo-penta outdrive seems like a more quality built unit & the efi has throttle response that is amazing.

 

[f_inscreenname]

Re: Urgent. Volvo 4.3 or Mercruiser 4.3

Merc and Volvo are good drives (some say Volvo’s are tougher). Always go with the biggest motor you can afford. It is better to have more power then you need then not enough.

 

[tommays]

Re: Urgent. Volvo 4.3 or Mercruiser 4.3

just wondering how much they charge for the 4.3 option and how you are going to use the boat i am guessing its a 17 ft boat unless you plan to due a lot of water skiing due you realy feel you need the big motor<br /><br />tommays

 

[KM2]

Re: Urgent. Volvo 4.3 or Mercruiser 4.3

I think it was trailer boats magazine but I could be wrong on that. They did comparison and the Volvo edged out the merc by a tiny margin. They tested acceleration and top speed. The only other thing I remember was they like the volvo clutch system better. I suggest you look up the article before you decide. I don't think you could go wrong with with either one. Kevin