bravo1 drive vs ????????????

I just ordered a carrera 257 party effect I have never owned an I/O before always had a jet. Any way I ordered it with a 496ho and a bravo 1 drive. Is this a good combination or should I upgrade the drive and if so to what and why???

If you ever plan on adding more power, add the Bravo XR with external steering...Stronger gears and you won't have to worry about upgrading the steering later when you want to add more power to the 496. If you are going to keep it stock, the Bravo 1 should be fine...at least it has been for us with 385hp.

Originally posted by boater
I just ordered a carrera 257 party effect I have never owned an I/O before always had a jet. Any way I ordered it with a 496ho and a bravo 1 drive. Is this a good combination or should I upgrade the drive and if so to what and why???
If your going to stick with stock power the the Bravo 1 is fine. If your going to go with a Procharger or Whipple down the road then go with the XR. I think you you'll be bored the with stock 496HO and will want more power. The stock 496HO will get you about 63mph under regular summer conditions.

Spend the money now on the XR and dual ram hydraulic steering. If you don't add more power, at the very least your rig will be worth more when you go to sell because chances are the next buyer will want more power. Good Luck.

What other drive makers are out there?
Here's a scenario - 650-800hp single drive.
Imco?
Bravo XR?
Any others?
Why do you want external steering and what about the setback off the transom? I saw this a lot at the LA boat show and wasn't sure why some of the super high performance engines had setbacks off the transom pushing actual outdrive about a foot further back?
Thanks!

Originally posted by diggler
What other drive makers are out there?
Here's a scenario - 650-800hp single drive.
Imco?
Bravo XR?
Any others?
Why do you want external steering and what about the setback off the transom? I saw this a lot at the LA boat show and wasn't sure why some of the super high performance engines had setbacks off the transom pushing actual outdrive about a foot further back?
Thanks!
As far as I know, Imco and Mercury are the only companies to produce the actual out drives. Max Machine Worx, Teague, and others provide upgraded components for the Bravo drive. You will get varying opinions on which drive to mate to a 650-800 horse big block. After reading a recent thread, I would probably opt for Mercury's XR drive and go from there.
External steering is mandatory for boats that run north of 70 mph or so. You can get away with single ram steering for 70 mph boats, but after about 80 mph, you need the dual ram set-up (my understanding). The dual ram steering is designed to handle the stresses put on the outdrive at high speeds and keep the boat tracking straight.
Standoff boxes are used to set the drive back for two reasons. The further back the drive is from the hull, the cleaner the water the prop gets. Also, depending on the standoff box, it can raise the proshaft height as well. Both will increase speed. The key is to find out if your particular boat will gain from one of these pieces. Some hulls incorporate plenty of "setback" into the hull, and thus don't need standoff box. Ask the boat mfg. on this one.
Good Luck.

Boater, I would probably recommend stepping into the XR drive now, but in your current configuration, there is no need for any external steering. If you ever do decide to put more power into the boat you will be glad that you did step into the XR drive. The steering is a two hour project if you decide to do it later. Additionally, one tip when talking to Carrera about building your boat. They have a tendancy to run "S" pipes for the exhaust. Normally they place the tips straight down from where the top of the exhaust manifold is. BAD IDEA! It is the easiest from the rigging standpoint, but if they do that, you will never have any room for external steering, if you choose to put them on. Tell Alex out there that you want the "S" pipes kicked out at a minimum of a 45 degree angle and that they are to come out on the outside of the stringers between the external swim step brackets. This way your exhaust is still below the water line and you will have room to fit the steering if you ever upgrade to more power. We have the Carrera 28 Raptor that is over at the showroom and they put the "S" pipes in the wrong location. Be very upfront with them and tell them that they are not to put them straight down from the manifold. Otherwise you will be sorry you didn't later.