150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

[Budder]

I am looking into purchasing a Tahoe 215 CC deck boat. I have found several, but the engine size varies from a 135 to a 225 Mercury Optimax. I have even found one with the 200HP Verado. The boat is 21' long and will be used primarily for fishing and to ski/tube every now and then. Will the 150 be enough engine, or do I need the 200HP?

Is the Verado to heavy for this size boat? That seems like a lot of engine to me.

 

[xeddog]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

A lot of it depends on your style of boating. If you are happy with just cruising around to get from point A to point B, then 150 may be enough. If you want to get from point A to point B FAST, then go 200. The 200 will, of course, be thirstier.

I would say go with as much HP as you can safely get. A big motor can still go as slow as a small motor, but a small motor can't go as fast as a big motor.

Just my $.02

Wayne

 

[Coloradolakeboy]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

Hopefully you can get your question answered here.... what you need to consider is the variance of applications of the motors you are considering. Some will run and idle at lower speeds better. Others are like the souped up car your friends built when your where a kid, that run best at full throttle. I own the latter. Hope that helps.

 

[DuckHunterJon]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

That's a hard decision. I was in the same boat (ok, slightly different boat, but almost same motor decision) looking at Fish&Ski's. I was looking at 20 - 21 ft boats, and found several with 150's and some with 200's. I finally decided the 150 would be plenty, it would push the boat to about 56 mph, and would be better on gas. Great decision made.

So what did I buy - found a deal I couldn't pass up that included a 200 Optimax. My reasoning was that the 200 direct injected motor would get as good if not better mileage than the carbed 150 I was looking at. Oh yeah, and it was 2 years newer than anything else I was looking at for comparable price.

In the end, either will probably do what you want. It's up to you on do you want the performance, or the (small) benefit in gas mileage. Remember, the bigger motor will burn less gas if you back off the throttle a bit.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

Go with 75% of the boat's max HP rating. I have a 21 SeaSwirl with a 150HP Johnny. Low end power is plentiful, but not too much top speed (40-42MPH tops). Cruising at 33-35MPH feel about right.

 

[westexasrepublic]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

200

 

[jameswh0]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

Budder, I am looking to buy this same boat in a 2006 with 200HP Mercury Verado. How have you liked yours so far? You did say you bought it right?

 

[Faztbullet]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

Unless you have a dealer close that is Verado certified.... stay away. Not any Merc dealer can service a Verado.

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: 150 or 200....which is best for a 21' boat?

Even a 200 is a bit small I would think for a 21 footer--go as big as you can get that is certified for the boat.