What’s not to like about Diesels!

H

hack4alivin

Active Member
TECHNICAL Contributor
Apr 18, 2008
2,518
Joppa, Maryland
Boat Info
320 Dancer
Engines
Twin 350 V Drives
Well if I was not sold before last week I am now. Going to New York last week, one of the boats going with me was a 1998 Sea Ray DA400 powered by twin Cat Diesels. On the first part of the trip I followed him up the Chesapeake Bay and while he was just cruising along at 2200 RPM’s I was doing almost 4000 to keep up. Now we covered over 450 miles on the trip and I burned over 650 gallons of gas at $3.00 a gallon. Now I don’t know exactly what his totals were but I know he burned less than I did and was paying 2.74 a gallon. So now we have a boat 8 foot longer, 2 foot wider, god knows how much heavier, and running just as fast, in not faster than mine, and costing less at the same time! What's not to like??


I am sold, I want one!
 
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hack4alivin said:
Well if I was not sold before last week I am now. Going to New York last week, one of the boats going with me was a 1998 Sea Ray DA400 powered by twin Cat Diesels. On the first part of the trip I followed him up the Chesapeake Bay and while he was just cruising along at 2200 RPM’s I was doing almost 4000 to keep up. Now we covered over 450 miles on the trip and I burned over 650 gallons of gas at $3.00 a gallon. Now I don’t know exactly what his totals were but I know he burned less than I did and was paying 2.74 a gallon. So now we have a boat 8 foot long, 2 foot wider, god knows how much heavier, and running just as fast, in not faster than mine, and costing less at the same time! What's not to like??

I am sold, I want one!
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...and it's safer :wink:
 
Likely he burned about 400-450 to your 650.

Now you understand...

It's not always about the "payback" for the higher cost of diesels. It's also about being able to wave, as you pass the fuel dock.
 
You also don't worry about putting hours on your engines. 500 hours and the engines are just breaking in.
 
keeps the greenhead flies away.
 
Turtlesboat said:
You also don't worry about putting hours on your engines. 500 hours and the engines are just breaking in.
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Good....mine are just broken in this season....I now have ~525 hours on my 2003 CATs...my 4th season and lovin'em more every year!!!

I went from a gas 380DA to a Diesel 410DA. ~ 2 ft longer and a ~ 1 ft wider...heavier, more room and an extra head.....yet, I run about a knot or so faster with the 410DA and burn about 25% less fuel....fuel, by the way, that I pay 15% less for.
 
When my buddy pulls up in his 540 and someone comments on that smell, he just smiles and says it is the smell of money :) I have to agree.
 
It costs more to buy a diesel powered boat than the same boat with gas engines. But then when you trade it in you get more for it and it'll depreciate less since, as pointed out above, several hundred hours on a diesel is a tiny percentage of it's useful life.

Best regards,
Frank

P.S.
Unless you buy a Rinker dinker stinker. Diesel Rinkers, Carvers (and other similar chea... uh value brands, do not depreciate less. The dealers of those brands tell me that buyers want the lowest priced boat for the size. They don't put any value on diesel power. I think, however, that they do look for important features, such as a built-in blender.
 
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I just made the switch from a 330 with 5.7's to a 550 with 580hp CAT 3406's. I'll let you know how much I enjoy them.

Thus far, the only three times we've started 'em up (all on sea trials) there's only been some smoke for about the first minute. Then it's all gone. The exhaust is under water so there's no diesel smoke, no smell, they just run. Ya gotta love 59,000 pounds of boat moving at 30kts.
 
hack4alivin said:
Well if I was not sold before last week I am now. Going to New York last week, one of the boats going with me was a 1998 Sea Ray DA400 powered by twin Cat Diesels. On the first part of the trip I followed him up the Chesapeake Bay and while he was just cruising along at 2200 RPM’s I was doing almost 4000 to keep up. Now we covered over 450 miles on the trip and I burned over 650 gallons of gas at $3.00 a gallon. Now I don’t know exactly what his totals were but I know he burned less than I did and was paying 2.74 a gallon. So now we have a boat 8 foot long, 2 foot wider, god knows how much heavier, and running just as fast, in not faster than mine, and costing less at the same time!.....
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Bill,
I've learned the same thing last year from our trip to AC. We had a great cruise among two 410DAs and others. They had used about 25%+ (comparing roughly .8gpm to 1.1gpm or so) less fuel than me. That part rang the bell. But, obviously there's a lot more to it than just fuel economy. So, just like you we have a future boat on the radar...but it'll be a while.

Whitenights said:
When my buddy pulls up in his 540 and someone comments on that smell, he just smiles and says it is the smell of money :) I have to agree.
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I like that comment very much :thumbsup:
 
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Bridog said:
Gas at 3.00 a gallon? You must have done some homework for your trip.
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I did do my "homework", all the gas I bought was 3.09 or less, 2.89 home, 2.99 in Cape May and I paid 2.99 one time in Brielle and 3.09 another. When you are covering that much ground it does pay to do some planning.
 
hack4alivin said:
I did do my "homework", all the gas I bought was 3.09 or less, 2.89 home, 2.99 in Cape May and I paid 2.99 one time in Brielle and 3.09 another. When you are covering that much ground it does pay to do some planning.
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Must be nice to have competitive fuel prices. We are on an inland lake and all the marinas are fixing the prices and gouging us terribly. We pay at least $1.00 more per gallon than road price, and to make it worse, they keep the road tax rebate so we can not apply for that.

I did have the boat out a couple months ago for bottom paint and got to fill it up at around $2.75 and was very happy to pay >only< that.
 
Luke come to the dark side.
It's a pretty simple equation gas versus diesel. Why do they put diesel engines in trucks and heavy equipment that need to last a long time with minimal break downs. I have gotten 10,000 plus hours out of well maintained dozer engines.
I think they should offer diesels for even the smaller boats. The benefits of diesel over gas are far outwiegh the extra cost.

Jack
 
It is in the farther out future for us. But when we finally get our "big" boat it will be diesel for sure! Diesel trucks have been my hobby for a long time. I have been making my own bio diesel for about 8 years now. I have over 130K miles on just one truck. All on 100% home brew bio diesel. I have another truck I bought used and an old diesel Mercedes I have roughly 60k between the two of them all on my home brew as well. Thus where I am going is I already love diesels, and plan to run our boat on bio diesel as well. It's better for the environment, cleaner, non toxic if spilled. And costs me 14 cents a gallon to produce it!
 
My 454's each burn right at 17 GPH running 3300 rpm pushing my 16,000 lb boat about 22-23 mph.

My friends 540 with twin Mann 700's ( I think, or maybe 800's) is a quick boat for the size, gets up way quicker than my little gas hog. And so smooth. If I get a larger boat it will have diesels.
 
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I now know the real difference......keep the same boat but only upgrade engine I could tell on my boat the saving is a way more than 50%

The most I could do before with a 200 gallon tank was 8 hour! now I could do over 22 and cruise a way faster, more silent, safer and mine don't smoke even when cold. Diesel are no brainer on a boat I don't even understand why like in Europe it is not standard on all boat
 
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