Would you buy an IB for salwatwater?

S

sdiddy

New Member
Jul 7, 2016
14
la
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I live in LA and am really interested in the SPX 19 IB. I have been told by some people that the IB is a lot more maintenance, and will also cause a lot more problems then an OB. I have also been told by some searay dealers that it is more maintenance, but the IB are very good and as long as I service annually, it should be ok.

I get that an OB makes more sense obviously. But I love the form of the IB and the extra nice space of the swim platform, especially for our little toddlers and her friends to hang out on, without the giant loud motor right in the middle.

But I dont want to buy something that will truly be breaking down all the time and give us a ton of issues, if that is truly the case. What's your experience with these new IB motors??
 
The short answer is an I/O is going to require more maintenance than an outboard (fresh or salt water), and in a salt water environment the outboard package tends to shine even more. However, there are lots of boats with I/O engines that are run in salt water every day, just need to be aware of the maintenance issues - if you can keep the boat on a lift it makes things much better. Personally if I could not keep the boat in dry storage or on a lift, I would stick with an outboard in salt water. I'm talking about small boats with either an outboard or I/O, not large inboard or v-drive boats.
 
BillK2632 said:
The short answer is an I/O is going to require more maintenance than an outboard (fresh or salt water), and in a salt water environment the outboard package tends to shine even more. However, there are lots of boats with I/O engines that are run in salt water every day, just need to be aware of the maintenance issues - if you can keep the boat on a lift it makes things much better. Personally if I could not keep the boat in dry storage or on a lift, I would stick with an outboard in salt water. I'm talking about small boats with either an outboard or I/O, not large inboard or v-drive boats.
Click to expand...

Yes, it would be a wet slip.

Ive read on this forum that the OB dont steer as nimble as the IB. Is that true? Stiffer turning maybe?
 
IF SR offered Volvos as an option, I would be flipping a coin. They don't. Go OB. Actually, if you are going used, see if you can find one with a Yamaha or a Honda.

From the FWIW department, I'm shocked the 370 Venture didn't go gangbusters.
 
sdiddy said:
I get that an OB makes more sense obviously. But I love the form of the IB and the extra nice space of the swim platform, especially for our little toddlers and her friends to hang out on, without the giant loud motor right in the middle.

But I dont want to buy something that will truly be breaking down all the time and give us a ton of issues, if that is truly the case. What's your experience with these new IB motors??
Click to expand...

Neither the IO or the outboard will have a ton of issues if you maintain them as you should The IO will have more maintenance (whether in fresh or salt water). However, since you can tilt an OB totally up and out of the water, it's not subject to the same corrosion issues caused by sitting in salt water 24/7.

You'll lose the full beam swim platform on the OB, but you'll gain much more storage than the same boat with an IO.

Also, don't be worried about an OB being loud. Today's OB's actually run significantly quieter than an IO, both at idle and at speed.
 
The I/O will be fine but will require more than annual maintenance. You will have to be aggressive about it. The big thing will be the depreciation hit. If you choose to sell you will take a bigger than normal hit with a saltwater I/O.

Not sure if the seacore motor is an option but they are more durable in a saltwater environment. Also, a freshwater flush system would reduce the amount of corrosion.

The I/O does handle better than an outboard.
 
Just spoke with the searay rep and he said for about $2k, he can install a cooling system in the IB motor, which should protect it from corrosion. I don't know jack about this...what are your thoughts?
 
Cooling just means the internals will have antifreeze in them. The cooling requires heat exchangers which do have raw water flowing through them. Depending on the engine, it may have a flushing system to tend to this event. However, flush or not, constant observation is a must.
 
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