4 Cyl mercruisers...

[elcapitanjim]

Hi Fellas!
I'm looking into buying a used 19'0 Sea Ray Bow rider. Looks pretty immaculate on pics. However, the engine is a Merc 3.0 140 hp which I assume is a 4 banger. Can anyone tell me how good or bad these little engines are? unreliable, reliable or STAY AWAY FROM IT AT ALL COSTS! The boat ran in fresh water and will do same IF I purchase it. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

Welcome to iboats.....
The GM 181 CI 140 hp is a good, reliable motor.....
However, it will depend on what you will use it for.....
A 19 footer will be underpowered with this engine for skiing....
I'd have to say it is too small for a boat that size....
A 19 should have at least a 4.3, IMO....​

 

[Jerico]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

I have a 17.5' bowrider with the 3.0. Very solid engine, excellent on fuel, cruises nice at about 35-38 mph, and will pull a tube with no problem. With a 19 pitch prop, a skier has to either be strong or light for me to pull them out of the water. 17 pitch will pull the skier up, but I have to watch not to over-rev the engine at WOT.

I would think in a 19' boat it would be under powered. If you're just wanting to cruise with you and the wife/SO, it won't be fast, but it'll do it. If you want to pull and play I suspect you will be disappointed.

 

[heyttown]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

My 18' sea ray bowrider has a 3.0 in it....Im 300lbs and its pulled me tubing, We have used all the water toys on this thing and so far the only thing we cant seem to manage is the wake board...

boat goes around 40 w throttle barried and me by myself...thats on the dial.Im hoping to verify with gps this yr.


Good on gas...

Like others have said if your just out for a cruise it should move at a good clip, but might be underpower if you want to play with the water toys.

 

[billbayliner]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

I have a 1950 Bayliner BR with the 3.0 in it and I love it. This will be my 5th season with it.

I ski, pull tube ect. Cannot beat the it's economical / reliability traits.

 

[wakeboarddude]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

I have the 3.0l in my 17.5' bowrider. Even before i had it rebuilt it always pulled up a wakeboarder no problem. Now that its been rebuilt it has plenty of power and its running great. Its cheap and economical to run, and since its been made for so many years there are many parts available for it. Rock it and have fun!

 

[dsstephens]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

oddly enough, I just put the same motor (merc 181, non-crossflow) in my 72 land rover. It will pull that 4000 lb truck up and over whatever has the misfortune to get in it's path quite well. (well, it did before I broke it) That being said, trucks on tires and boats on hulls are vastly different beasts, but I'm only answering the question from a motor perspective, not a suitability to desired task perspective.

the 4cyl mercruiser is actually a marine variant (bored out from 151 to 181) of the GM Iron Duke that was in everything from monza's to jeeps. Good news is that parts are cheap and plentiful and nearly any mechanic can work on it if you ever get in a pinch and can't find a marine mechanic or don't want to do it yourself. There are also a lot of performance mods available for it if it isn't enough for you, though I haven't ventured there myself. It has proven to be a very reliable block over the 30+ years it has existed.

 

[BAYLINER185]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

I had an 84 WEBBCRAFT 190 19 foot open bow ( same exact boat as
wellcraft )


SAme lil 4 banger motor and alpha stern drive. The boat did about 40 MPH and had pleanty of power for crusing. The Webbcraft was a heavy boat and road well in rough water. I beat the hell out of that motor and it never broke. I did need a new starter solinoid once and an altanator but that was about all I ever fixed on it in the 2 years I owned the boat.

I did have a craving for more speed after a while though but over all the boat was fine with the 4 banger.

 

[jpg1130]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

Hi Fellas!
I'm looking into buying a used 19'0 Sea Ray Bow rider. Looks pretty immaculate on pics. However, the engine is a Merc 3.0 140 hp which I assume is a 4 banger. Can anyone tell me how good or bad these little engines are? unreliable, reliable or STAY AWAY FROM IT AT ALL COSTS! The boat ran in fresh water and will do same IF I purchase it. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

I have an '06 Maxum 1800 SR3 (with the extended swim platform) with the 3.0L 135HP motor on it (Same motor your talking about) I put a 4 blade 19p prop on it for playing and cruising. I've pulled tubes (and avg. weight tubers too) with ease. Haven't pulled skiers/wakeboarders but will be doing that this year. I usually have at least 4 adults (plus me) and a large cooler on board and I have no complaints about the power this engine puts out. Good on gas and very easy to maintain. Check the fluids and plugs, change the oil, check the belts and you'll be good to go. Sure I'd like to have more power but you'll always want more power no matter what engine you have.

Hope that helps - Good Luck

 

[Wotam]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

>"far the only thing we cant seem to manage is the wake board..."

A wakeboard is very easy to pull up with the 4 banger... just roll on the throttle... smooth and easy... count 1, 2, 3...

Many people new to wakeboarding tend to hit the throttle hard like you're trying to pull up a slalom skier. Bad move.

(don't ask how I know this.. :>)

 

[DJ]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

the 4cyl mercruiser is actually a marine variant (bored out from 151 to 181) of the GM Iron Duke that was in everything from monza's to jeeps. Good news is that parts are cheap and plentiful and nearly any mechanic can work on it if you ever get in a pinch and can't find a marine mechanic or don't want to do it yourself. There are also a lot of performance mods available for it if it isn't enough for you, though I haven't ventured there myself. It has proven to be a very reliable block over the 30+ years it has existed.

It's a good engine but it is not the "Iron Duke".

The 2.5L and 3.0L GM based MerCruisers/OMC's and Volvos are based on the Chevy II engine that dates back to the 1960's.

The "Iron Duke" was a 1970's invention that was short lived.

The 3.0L (181) is a bit light for a 19' boat (Sea Rays are a bit heavy) but if propped right it will do the job.

On the plus side, they are: economical to run, easy to maintain and repair.

You should be able to bargain with the seller. The small engine hinders the Sea Ray's value.

 

[dsstephens]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

DJ - well, the 153 is the chevy II and the 151 is the factory named iron duke - so you are technically correct, however, from the late 60's through even now, the term "iron duke" commonly refers to a gm four banger and depending on the year of the block, you know which one they are referring to. kind of like "coke" means "soda of some flavor" in the south. But, I do stand corrected as the proper mercruiser variant is the Chevy II. That being said, MY iron duke is the 151 bored out to 181 and utilizing all of the mercruiser 181 bore parts.

However, that's not what the thread is about. I was only stating up that the block is pretty stout and the motor is hard to kill in either variant.

 

[DJ]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

DJ - well, the 153 is the chevy II and the 151 is the factory named iron duke - so you are technically correct, however, from the late 60's through even now, the term "iron duke" commonly refers to a gm four banger and depending on the year of the block, you know which one they are referring to. kind of like "coke" means "soda of some flavor" in the south. But, I do stand corrected as the proper mercruiser variant is the Chevy II. That being said, MY iron duke is the 151 bored out to 181 and utilizing all of the mercruiser 181 bore parts.

However, that's not what the thread is about. I was only stating up that the block is pretty stout and the motor is hard to kill in either variant.

dsstephens,

I wasn't "busting your chops", I was just pointing out a "technical" mis-statement.

We completely agree that the little four banger is as tough as nails, if maintained. Any "hack", like me, can maintain one of those-very reasonably. Engine maintenance is simple. Drive maintenance is as complicated as any other MerCruiser product. No more so.

Also, if one knows what to expect, they won't be disappointed.

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

I was gonna point that out, but I am not nearly as diplomatic......​

 

[JCF350]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

That being said, MY iron duke is the 151 bored out to 181 and utilizing all of the mercruiser 181 bore parts.

Takes more than a bore job, need to add some stroke also.

plus your info is a bit off has the 151 already has a 4.002 inch bore.


181cu.in. 4.00 inch bore x 3.60 inch stroke

153cu.in. 3.875 inch bore x 3.25 inch stroke

151cu.in. 4.002 inch bore x 3.010 inch stroke

 

[96lt4c4]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

Man..... that thing would seem way under powered if you ask me. I had a 16 ft Four Winns with the 3.0 in it. That boat felt pretty good, I could pull a skier and 2 tubes if I wanted. A few years after I sold it, I rented a 18 ft Sea Ray at KY Lake one summer, it had a 3.0 in it. It felt like a dog, I remember thinking why would they even put a small 4 banger in that big of a boat. I can only imagine what it would feel like in a 19 ft boat. I would look for one with at least a 4.3 in it.

 

[tommays]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

19' 3.0 boat

40 MPH 3.5 to 5+ MPG with GPS/ fuel flow backing up the facts if your willing to spend 3 min swaping a prop on a hard core ski day it works fine

 

[elcapitanjim]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

I really appreciate the input I have received from everyone.
Given that I want to own a boat even at the soaring fuel prices, the little engine that could sounds like a smart choice. Specially since I don't intend racing for fun, otherwise I'd buy a 100000000000 hp super boat. By the way, since posting this, I have been looking at other boats, 19 & 18 footers with the little tyke engine.

Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!
JIM

 

[Wotam]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

>"18 ft Sea Ray at KY Lake one summer, it had a 3.0 in it. It felt like a dog,"

Hull form and weight make a tremendous difference in performance.

The 3.0 drives my 19' bayliner to 42 mph (2 in boat, 21" pitch prop) 40 or so with 5 aboard. I downprop to a 19" pitch for watersports... pull out of the hole isn't adequate with the 21". Top speed with the 19" is about 37 mph, limited by RPM... you can't run WOT with it.

Average fuel use per day of summer boating... 10-12 gal depending on how much tubing we were doing. The guys with the wakeboard boats were taking on at least 25 gal per day.

At $5 per gal that's gonna really hurt.

 

[Don S]

Re: 4 Cyl mercruisers...

Top speed with the 19" is about 37 mph, limited by RPM... you can't run WOT with it.

If you can't reach the rated rpm at WOT, then you are lugging the engine and it (the engine) won't live very long.
Best to not even use a prop that won't get you WOT rpms. It's a total waste, and it doesn't help top speed.