Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

[bhanson]

LOVE my boat: Chaparral 21-footer with 260 HP V8. Problem is she is a bit much for my aging Grand Cherokee to handle, to the tune of a $2000 transmission rebuild last week.

Looking to scale down to something more manageable in the 19-foot range. Finding that alot of the boats in this range have the 4.3L V6 with 190 HP.

190 HP will be no problem for wakeboarding, but will 190 HP be sufficient to pull a 200-lb'er on a slalom ski. WITHOUT drowning me first as it slowly drags me thru water? How about multiple skiers?

 

[Bigprairie1]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

....4.3L/190hp is fine for this. I've pulled 9 skiers out of the water, two of them on slalom with a 188HP merc, albeit the torquey V-8 302.
Still, this shouldn't be a problem.

 

[KCook]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

I would hold out for a 5L. My '96 Chris-Craft 190 had a Volvo 5L. They are out there ....

Kelly Cook

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

light load in the boat 4.3 is fine. loaded 5.0. i have a 23 ft Chris Craft deckboat, and the 5.7 VP is killer. 6 onboard 2 skiers.

 

[JB]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

I would hold out for a decent tow vehicle and keep the Chaparral.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

I agree with JB. I'd be looking for a fairly solid truck to tow your existing boat.

 

[crb478]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

If you love the boat I would also keep it. The 4.3 will pull you out just fine if you go that way, but you will still need a good tow vehicle to pull it. They are basically the same when you get them rolling. I just sold a Wellcraft Excel 21 footer with a 4.3 and it would snatch me out of the water at 230lbs. It would also run 50mph GPS with four on board on smooth water, but I think I would definately keep the boat you already have.

 

[WAVENBYE2]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

Definitely a bigger truck !! Jeeps really aren't built to pull that kind of weight, our boat is above 3,500 pnds. i Know yours has to be at least that if not heavier, Bigger truck !!

 

[steelespike]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

I'm no Jeep fan but my 92 Cherokee (190hp) pulled about 2,200 total lbs easily.in overdrive on rt 81 in NY state shifting out of overdrive only once in the 100 miles between canadian border and central NY.Of course That much more weight adds a lot but I would think with a transmission cooler and common sense driving would work pretty well.I would think the Grand would be rated close to 5,000 lbs.I think the new Liberty is and that is closer to a Cherokee.than a Grand.

 

[Boomyal]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

Take control bhanson. These are not the kinds of decisions that the ladies are meant/capable to make. Keep the Chaparral and dump the wife.

Seriously, step up to the plate and firmly plant your foot on it. Keep the Chappy and get something to pull it. You don't have to drive that 'something' back and forth to work. Men do boats and vehicles and ladies do quilts (or something like that)

 

[tnduc]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

You can probably find a weekend tow vehicle cheaper than another boat. You can buy a 20 year old pickup or Bronco or K5 blazer for a few thousand.

 

[F_R]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

My goodness, have we all gone insane??? We had a world of fun with this simple little boat and towed it with a '59 chevy car. Note where the wake starts, and it has already pulled two slaloms out of a deep water start. 1958 35hp Johnson on a 15ft plywood boat. Ski all day on a couple of 6 gallon tanks. That's all we need.
http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s311/frankr_photos/Skiing4.jpg?t=1184530331

 

[scoutabout]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

Ha ha -- love that pic FR! I remember my dad talking about the momentous occasion when he "stepped up" to a whopping 33 horses from his Scott 18. Big man on the bay he was that day!

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

http://www.larsonboats.com/senza/186io/default.asp

Shamless plug yes, using a gxi it will rip up all the skie's you want to pull, run 50 plus and take one hell of chop in stride, A fuel injected v6 has as much power as a 5.0 carbed

 

[blouderback]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

A fuel injected v6 has as much powe... whole shot will be much better than the 4.3.

 

[bhanson]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

WOW !!! LOL !!! Where to start ...

My 1st anniversary is this coming Sunday, so the "keep the boat, get a new wife comment" appealed to a certain dark side of me but, hell, for the price of a new wife I could go get a new boat AND a new truck. Problem solved.

Boomyal, you are truly inspiring. After reading your rant I immediately marched down the stairs to confront my wife in the kitchen and tell her who made the boat and truck decisions in our home. I looked her in the face, then saw a little plaque on the wall behind her: "If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." Enough said.

I do love my boat but there are a couple other factors involved, including the fact that it is now 20 years old and, frankly, we just want something a little newer plus it is too big for our new garage (even with folding tongue on the trailer). "Imported F R" now has me wondering if I am "downsizing" enough. There is a really nice 1960 magnolia w/ 40 HP glastron evinrude on Craigslist here in Denver and I'm thinkin' Hmmmm ...

Looking at two boats right now. One is a 1998 Rinker Captiva 192 with 5.0L/260HP, the other is a 1997 Caravelle 1990 SE BR with 4.3L/190HP V6. Both in excellent condition but the Rinker is almost 2X the price of the Caravelle, thus the initial question. If the V6 is sufficient, then always up for saving some money, but also don't want buyer's regret first time we are out with some friends and noone can get out of the water.

Test driving the Caravelle later this week.

 

[MikDee]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

The Vortec V6 has 4" pistons, & 3.48" stroke just like the 350 V8,,, the 305 has 3.5" pistons, & a 3.48 stroke, a detuned 350. In some respects the early Chevy Astro vans with the 200hp 4.3 V6 had more torque, then my 88' Monte SS with the HO 180hp 305, but the Monte had 3:73 gears to help it out. It is a healthy V6! I have this motor in my 96' S-10 pickup right now with 3:08 gears, and if it had 3:73 gears, it would give my Monte a good run for the money.

 

[beerfilter]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

Exactly,what year is your"aging grand cherokee ",and,what motor do you currently have in it?
If you have that "tired old 4.0",you can easily bring it back to better than stock performance with some old school parts.
Thats right,I said better.
Just watch the Jeep addiction.

Just
Empty
Every
Pocket

If you have the usual 4.0,STROKE IT!
300 hp is easy with this motor,and,very doable on a budget.
Torque?
Massive amounts of low-rpm torque are the hallmark of ANY good I-6 engine.

Got the 5.2L,v-8 ?
Swap for a 5.8L !

With a rebuilt tranny,you are now ahead of the game,unless you have that POS aluminum rear axle.
In this case,find a suitable swap candidate.
Then gear it deep.

If,by chance,you have the early XJ version with the 2.8L v-6,OR,the 2.5L i-4,you should not have even bothered with the transmission.
The 4 banger is way to underpowered,and,the 2.8l v-6 is a turd,but,you can polish it with a 3.4L replacement.

Keep your boat.
Upgrade your tug!
JMO

 

[180shabah]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

Don't be afraid of the 4.3. it is not a torque deficient engine as was implied above. The 4" bore diameter makes a bigger difference than does the smaller displacement(and missing cylinders) compared to the 5.0. It is also 100lbs lighter, and this makes a huge difference in a smaller boat.

Also, should you decide that you still need more power, you can upgrade to a 4bbl carb(Edelbrock carb and intake manifold) for an honest 230hp and no loss in economy or reliability.

However, it will never make that mean v8 rumble.

 

[AguaSki]

Re: Wife said "smaller boat", not "bigger truck", but is V6 OK?

Boomyal, you are truly inspiring. After reading your rant I immediately marched down the stairs to confront my wife in the kitchen and tell her who made the boat and truck decisions in our home. I looked her in the face, then saw a little plaque on the wall behind her: "If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." Enough said.

A happy wife is a happy life!