Thanks that's what thought. The boat is a 88 bayliner 2855 Ceira. I got it for a good price. If I like the boat enough I might do the same thing you did with your Lib.
Not a bad idea for a boat that big.
Back in 2006, I found my Mercruiser engine/drive combination on Craigslist after a big windstorm. Seems a big tree fell on a 98 24' Bayliner and the owners insurance company "totaled" it.
If you are thinking about doing it, start looking now for a donor boat. I only gave $5k for mine, installed it myself and did some fiberglass work in the engine "room"
The guy actually wanted $6k for the entire boat! ......... even the trailer was a little bent! I go tth eengine, drive, instruments, wiring harness, gages, etc for the $5k price and also installed closed cooling.
After I got the engine and drive installed, I found a couple more packages, one in particular I wish I had gotten.....a newer 496HO Bravo III set up for $8k Although it was $3000 more, it would have been far better performance wise. Plus, I could have probably sold the entire 7.4L + Bravo III I got (for $5000) for $8000
One advantage of an older boat is that your registration and insurance costs are much lower. (my 87 Lib registration is only about $25/yr!)
The other thing is, because your boat is BIG, hold out for a Bravo III. The difference between the single-prop, similar HP KC and the Bravo III was nothing short of spectacular (acceleration from a standing start or at any speed) It might be a few mph slower but I really don't notice it.
I was also able to sell just about all the OMG King Kobra "stuff" (piece by piece) for approx $3600 over a 3 year period!
I even still have the OEM 460 OMC oil filter remote adapter, oil filter mount and fuel filter mount. It just so happens the oil filter adapter will fit the 1960 292 Y-block I am putting in my 55 Ford truck!! and I'm using the marine fuel filter in it too!
If you do decide to do a swap, ensure that you inspect the transom carefully. Boats this old sometimes have rot in the transom area.
Cheers,
Rick
