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View Full Version : 377 Scorpions vs. 496 HO



Chico&Zeus
12-24-2005, 03:46 PM
I am looking at a couple of boats...both are 30' and same hull, the one comes with twin 377 scorpions runs high 70's low 80's all day long and is a decent price. What I would like to know is how much more performance could I expect if I supercharged the scorpion engines. Next....I would really rather go with the big blocks but if they performed the same, the fuel savings along with the difference in price would draw me towards the 377's. I would also consider getting the 496 ho's and add the Raylar kits down the road. IS THIS WHAT I SHOULD DO??? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

djunkie
12-24-2005, 03:48 PM
I'd go with the 496 HO's. But if you plan on spending the money to upgrade them with the Raylar kits then I'd recomend spending the extra now and just getting the 525's.

TCHB
12-24-2005, 04:06 PM
1. Horsepower to weight is always in the mix.
2. The scorpions are reliable
3. How much are you saving in buying it with the small blocks??
4. Resale will not be as strong but if you save enough now maybe not a big deal.
5. Which outdrives does it have???

TCHB
12-24-2005, 04:09 PM
Here is a boat with alot more HP than 496s!!
PERFORMANCE (Sunsation 32)
Peters designed the 32 Innovator's 24-degree hull with a pair of full-width steps and a delta pad in the aft running surface. There also were smaller offset steps between the inner and outer strakes, and between the outer strake and the chines.
The fuel-injected engines delivered a combined 1,000 hp, which was handled by a pair of Bravo One XR drives with 1.5:1 ratios and lab-finished Bravo One 15 1/4" x 32" four-blade stainless-steel propellers. Connecting the drives was a stainless-steel tiebar for the IMCO full-hydraulic steering system.
With the engines turning 5,400 rpm, the 32 Innovator topped out at 92.4 mph, a couple of miles an hour faster than the manufacturer estimated it would run. The hull-and-propulsion-package combo proved equally efficient and invigorating in acceleration tests. From a standing start, the boat reached 84 mph in 20 seconds. It took the same amount of time—3.7 seconds—to run from 30 to 50 mph as it did to run from 40 to 60 mph, and it went from 40 to 70 in an equally impressive 6.4 seconds. The 525s were a great choice for the boat.

INSman
12-24-2005, 04:09 PM
Whipple used to and may still have an SC kit for the Scorps as I was considering at one time, just no NEW Scorps were being made or available when I built my boat.

Smokin Joe
12-24-2005, 04:15 PM
Twin Scorpions are a beautiful thing you cannot go wrong with blue motors and the fact they will run day in and out. I would skip the super charger and stay with stock blue motor reliability, the weight and gas savings are a plus.
joe

TCHB
12-24-2005, 04:15 PM
Here is another boat 32 Footer
Is the delta-pad bottom 33 Outlaw SST better than the pure conventional V-bottom version? That's the obvious question, and one that can't be answered without both models with the same power running side by side on the same day.
We didn't have that opportunity, but we did have the new 33 Outlaw SST with twin 425-hp MerCruiser 496 Mag HO engines, Bravo One XR drives with 1.5:1 gear reductions and inward-rotating Bravo One 15 1/4" x 30" four-blade stainless-steel propellers. In addition to the delta pad, which was roughly 8 inches wide and 11 feet long, the 24-degree hull had four strakes and flat chines.
With the engines turning 4,750 rpm, top speed for the 33 Outlaw SST was 75.2 mph, which wasn't bad for a 7,500-pound boat. Dropping the Mercury 380S K-Planes and nailing the throttles yielded a time to plane of 3.8 seconds and a zero-to-20-second speed of 67 mph.

TCHB
12-24-2005, 04:18 PM
Shockwave 29
Nothing charges us up more than testing new models. The chance of discovering a gem, is always intriguing. The next best thing, however, is testing a boat we've evaluated and appreciated before with different (i.e. bigger) power.
Such was the case with the Shockwave 29 Magnatude we ran during the Parker, Ariz., leg of our 2002 Performance Trials. We'd already tested the 30'7"-long, 8'6"wide boat twice-once with a single 470-hp HP500EFI engine from Mercury Racing and once with a pair of 310-hp MerCruiser 7.4-liter MPI motors-and we liked what we found. (We enjoyed the twin big-block engine version enough to give it an "Outstanding Offshore Value" award in 2000.)
This time around, Shockwave outfitted the 29 Magnatude with twin 350-hp Mercury Racing Scorpion 377 motors, and we liked it better still. More power and less weight in a proven package … what's not to like? And even with the power upgrade and a slew of options, the boat still rang in at a reasonable $126,000.
PERFORMANCE
Knowing that 29 Magnatude had run 70.8 mph with the HP500EFI and 74.3 mph with the twin MerCruiser offerings, we were curious to see how it would do with a pair of Mercury Racing's hottest (and only) small-blocks. As we suspected, the upgrade was well worth making. Outfitted with Bravo XZ drives with 1.5:1 reduction, Mercury Bravo One 15 1/4" x 26" four-blade stainless-steel propellers, the boat hit 77.5 mph. No doubt, the 106-degree afternoon heat cost the boat a few mph.
The power move also made sense when it came to standing-start acceleration. Time to plane for the 6,800-pounder with its Dana Products trim tabs down was 3.4 seconds. In 20 seconds, the boat reached 74.5 mph. The small-block motors also delivered a swift kick in midrange acceleration drills. The boat zipped from 30 to 50 mph in 4.5 seconds and 40 to 60 mph in 5.2 seconds. Performance fell off slightly, though predictably so, at the top end when it took 8.8 seconds for the boat to run from 40 to 70 mph.
Though the power had changed since we last tested the 29 Magnatude, its 24-degree stepped deep-V hull had not. The first step was approximately 8 feet forward from the transom, the second step 4 feet aft of the first. All four of the boat's strakes ran full length. Chines were roughly 3 degrees negative and 3 inches wide.
Why mess with success? The 29 Magnatude exhibited the same steady handling manners it had in past evaluations. The boat sliced slalom turns well at 30 mph, and was even more precise in those turns at 40 and 50 mph. The same performance pattern continued in circle turns: Handling precision increased with speed, always a big plus in a performance boat, and hydraulic steering certainly didn't hurt.
We would have loved to test the 29 Magnatude in rough water as we had before. Still, we can say that we tested the boat offshore in the past, and it delivered impressive rough-water performance for its length

Kilrtoy
12-24-2005, 04:28 PM
496 run 87 pump from any station
377 run 92 pump, but better use a good station, which means more dollars
.50 cents a gallon difference
at 100 gallons a day that is 50 bucks or 150 every weekend
that is ruffly 600 a month more in fuel
inquired at the dealer into the 377's and was told you must use fuel additive...
DO NOT KNOW HOW CORRECT THIS IS, I WAS JUST TOLD THIS BY THE DEALER

bigq
12-24-2005, 06:54 PM
377 with the Whipple running 92 is about equal to the HP500, give or take a few. That was a great little motor running Lunati internals i believe. I would choose the scorps over the 496 unless it will be in the ocean and you can use the closed cooling.

77charger
12-24-2005, 07:16 PM
drives will last alot longer behind the small blocks for sure.They are pretty good engines.

spectras only
12-24-2005, 07:21 PM
I have the 377's [ not the scorpions ] and couldn't be happier with them [87 octane ]. They spin faster and more power than standard BB. Unless you're a midget ,the big blocks are difficult to access even to the spark plugs . Here's a picture of my engine bay , clearly a lot more room between the two engines than with big blocks.
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/twin%20377
Match made in heaven for a 24' boat :)
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/IMG_1607%20copy.jpg
Have Bravo 1X drives with 1.65 ratios that allows my bravo1 26P's to spin up to 5150 rpm's. Put some 28's for more top speed .Some penalty in the holeshot , but less rpm's for longevity.
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/twin%20bravo%201X
loafing about http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/June%202505-166%20copy.jpg

rvrhlic
12-26-2005, 10:48 PM
I am looking at a couple of boats...both are 30' and same hull, the one comes with twin 377 scorpions runs high 70's low 80's all day long and is a decent price. What I would like to know is how much more performance could I expect if I supercharged the scorpion engines. Next....I would really rather go with the big blocks but if they performed the same, the fuel savings along with the difference in price would draw me towards the 377's. I would also consider getting the 496 ho's and add the Raylar kits down the road. IS THIS WHAT I SHOULD DO??? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
If you are thinking about adding the raylar kit, you would be much better off just getting the 525's and beign done with it. Adding the raylar kits to the 496 can blow the engines. I am speaking from experience.

Raylar
12-28-2005, 07:23 AM
Whatever you choose to do, it will depend on how you plan to use your new boat and also importantly what kind of resale you will have when and if you resell the boat. If you like to accelerate quickly and have a fast top speed, then there is " no replacement for displacement!". The 377 Scorpions are nice motors and they perform nicely in smaller boats. I think if you look at the overall performance and the resale, you will step up and get the big blocks. The HP525's are great engines, except for the price Mercury gets for them. If the price adder for the HP525's is not a problem for you, then order them, you will be happy with them and the performance and resale will be great on the boat. If you are pushing your budget like most boaters are today then the 496's are the best investment for power, reliability and resale. As for adding our kits to the motors, I will just say that over a hundred of them are out there all over the world now and are not blowing up any motors. the ***boater on here with the comment just can't seem to understand that any motor new or otherwise can let go. Even new HP525's blow up very rarely but it does happen and those are blueprinted motors. His Raylar kit did not cause his motor to blow up and his boat is running all last year with a Raylar motor.
This is a great place to get feed back on your decision and you might also want to ask the same question on some other forums like OSO. Whatever you decide, you will love your new boat! Have a great time with it and be safe!
Good Luck,
Ray @ Raylar

Phat Matt
12-28-2005, 09:14 AM
What else can we eat besides popcorn? :)

Escape Velocity
12-28-2005, 12:43 PM
I've always been happier with a boat that has more cubic inches for all-around boating driveability, especially for getting on plane. It's the kind of difference that even passengers, not just the driver, notices.
I've also been extremely pleased with the improved performance of my 496HO powered boat with the Raylar HO 600 kit. It really woke my motor up, and the midrange acceleration is now the "push you back in your seat" kind. Before, it seemed like the boat just kind of gradually speeded up. This particular kit is more of a complete makeover because of the need for different pistons and rods, but those were both changes that I wanted to make anyway to make it a truly high performance engine. I got a very good deal on the boat by buying it with a 496 in it. It made financial sense for me to upgrade not just the motor, but I also had money left to upgrade the Bravo X drive to an XR drive with Max Machine Worx parts and still be ahead of the game.