Sportjet 175 Question

Snoslyder · 08-03-2009, 01:56 PM

I am looking at purchasing a boat that uses a Merc Sportjet 175 and was wondering if the sportjet series motors suffer from the same 1/3 hp loss to the pump...ie:300 hp rated marine V-8 only produces 200 hp at the pump.

USMCfisher · 08-03-2009, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snoslyder

I am looking at purchasing a boat that uses a Merc Sportjet 175 and was wondering if the sportjet series motors suffer from the same 1/3 hp loss to the pump...ie:300 hp rated marine V-8 only produces 200 hp at the pump.

I have that same motor and i believe it is a 200 HP powerhead and 175 HP at the jet. Could be wrong though.

DownTime · 08-03-2009, 02:10 PM

The 175Hp sportjet uses a 200Hp powerhead.

The 175Hp sportjet seems to be the best of all the models by consensus of all I have talked to that own them. The 210, 230, and 240 have computer control boards vs. the manual linkage on the 175 which seems more dependable and less expensive to maintain.

danger · 08-03-2009, 03:02 PM

175 SJ is 175 hp at the nozzle. It uses a 200 hp power head, but due to its elevated efficiency is the equivalent to hanging a 250 outboard pump on your boat. (250*.7 = 175)

Have one in a 2003 MM open sled and love it.

baitsauce · 08-03-2009, 06:51 PM

The Merc SJ motors are the most "efficient" jets on the market. The water going through the pump is not forced to change direction like on the pumps bolted on outboards. They suck water from under the boat and squirt it straight out the back.

I love

mine. It has all the power I ever need.

cmb1998 · 08-04-2009, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baitsauce

The Merc SJ motors are the most "efficient" jets on the market. The water going through the pump is not forced to change direction like on the pumps bolted on outboards. They suck water from under the boat and squirt it straight out the back.

I love

mine. It has all the power I ever need.

I have a 175 too. There are lots of neighsayers but I think it's a great package. Light, good on gas, and will run for a long time if you take care of it. I would dump the oil injection system though and go with premix, the oil injection system is the only weakness.

The 210 SJ is also a carbed motor, it's the same as the 175 but has larger carbs on it (I belive). The 175sj will push my 20ft TJ to just shy of 50mph with just me and a full tank (48gallons) of gas. Also as others have said, the SJ is an axial flow pump. It's doesn't have inefficeny of the OB Pumps.

I don't know where your at, but if you want to go for a ride let me know.

Chris

Lured In · 08-04-2009, 09:19 PM

Its a great powerplant and i can't believe they have not released a four stroke version yet.

baitsauce · 08-05-2009, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lured In

Its a great powerplant and i can't believe they have not released a four stroke version yet.

It is a great package. But they probably won't because of the weight "penalty" four stokes have. The main advantage of a two vs four stroke is the weight savings. Two stokes have a very high power to weight ratio compared to four strokes. That is why they are so desirable in "weight sensitive" applications, such as chainsaws, boats and even R/C airplanes.

Lured In · 08-08-2009, 08:02 AM

Baitsauce....very true.

But a 200hp 4 stroke outboard head is still a bit lighter, and can be mounted further rearward that a small block.

stryker 19 · 10-28-2009, 07:45 PM

I just bought an Alumaweld Stryker with a rebuilt 175 in it and I went up the Kalum River with 4 men over 200 lbs and a full tank of gas(39) gallons and was doing 45mph. Awsome motor so far

Intruder175 · 10-28-2009, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snoslyder

I am looking at purchasing a boat that uses a Merc Sportjet 175 and was wondering if the sportjet series motors suffer from the same 1/3 hp loss to the pump...ie:300 hp rated marine V-8 only produces 200 hp at the pump.

I have an 18' Alumaweld Intruder with the 175 SJ and I love it. I was told that the SportJets are rated at the nozzle, so the 175 is true power. I believe it! It is plenty fast and very easy on the gas. 4 adults with all the fishing gear and will do 44 mph at 5100 rpm. It had more power left, but I try to keep it around 5000 rpm max when running. The book says 5500 rpm is max, but I figure why push it that hard. I haven't ran it with just me in the boat, but I imagine I would gain a few more mph with just 1 person vs. 4.

MattPark · 10-28-2009, 11:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intruder175

I have an 18' Alumaweld Intruder with the 175 SJ and I love it. I was told that the SportJets are rated at the nozzle, so the 175 is true power. I believe it! It is plenty fast and very easy on the gas. 4 adults with all the fishing gear and will do 44 mph at 5100 rpm. It had more power left, but I try to keep it around 5000 rpm max when running. The book says 5500 rpm is max, but I figure why push it that hard. I haven't ran it with just me in the boat, but I imagine I would gain a few more mph with just 1 person vs. 4.

The bass boat guys run the 2.5 V6 motors (same as 175 sportjets IIRC) to 7000rpm plus for hours on end and they are very reliable. I run my 2.0 V6 to 6000 on a regular basis for long periods of time, and it's rated to 5600. Two strokes have very few moving parts compared to the 4 strokes, many of which redline above 6000. I wouldn't sweat it (unless you are concerned about fuel consumption).

I am trying to blow mine up so I can justify a new, more fuel efficient motor (mine's carbureted), but this one is just too fun to beat on. I don't think I could blow it up if I tried.

cmb1998 · 10-29-2009, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MattPark

The bass boat guys run the 2.5 V6 motors (same as 175 sportjets IIRC) to 7000rpm plus for hours on end and they are very reliable. I run my 2.0 V6 to 6000 on a regular basis for long periods of time, and it's rated to 5600. Two strokes have very few moving parts compared to the 4 strokes, many of which redline above 6000. I wouldn't sweat it (unless you are concerned about fuel consumption).

I am trying to blow mine up so I can justify a new, more fuel efficient motor (mine's carbureted), but this one is just too fun to beat on. I don't think I could blow it up if I tried.

The limiting factor is the pump. If you somehow get enough power out of a 2.5 to exceed 6000rpm's its going to do bad things to your pump.

Later,

Chris

Jedcraft · 10-30-2009, 02:33 PM

Had a new 2001 20' sled with 175 SJ. Ran the nuts off that thing. Would take it easy until it got warmed up then full throttle for long runs. Never had a lick of problems with it. It's still going strong.