Is the 5.0 big enough on a 260?

T

TrailsEnd

New Member
Aug 17, 2010
15
Sacramento area
Boat Info
2004-2006 Sundancer 260
Engines
Boatless
Found a boat that has almost everything, including trailer and genset, but it has the small engine. Anyone have any opinions if this is underpowered? It is a 2004 260.
 
TrailsEnd said:
Found a boat that has almost everything, including trailer and genset, but it has the small engine. Anyone have any opinions if this is underpowered? It is a 2004 260.
Click to expand...

Let me prefice this by saying I have never owned a 260 but I have been on and driven a couple with the 350MAG. I also had a 225WE (smaller than a 260) with a 5.0MPI. My comments are based of this experience.

I would say the 5.0MPI could be considered underpowered unless you plan to just motor around. The 350MAG seemed like it did just fine. The difference is 40hp

My 225WE was roughly 2200 lbs less than the 04 260. The 5.0MPI worked fine for the 225 but I wouldn't have wanted less.

These type of questions always come down to a few basic suggestions-

The power package may be fine for what you are trying to do but others may not feel that way. How do you plan to use the boat?

Do a Sea Trial and see what you think.

I know I have not seen many 260s around with a 5.0MPI. The vast majority seem to have the 350MAG. Are you sure it is not a 350MAG? It just seems strange to me that a 260 would have been ordered with base power and a generator from the factory.
 
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i'd be all over the first 2004 260. before considering this package

if it has a gen set then most likley air. all = more weight and your under powered to start with.
 
My 19' ski boat had a 5.0 - it was overpowered.
My 250 had a 5.7 - it was NOT overpowered.
I would not consider a 260 with a 5.0.
 
We owned a 260 with 5.0 for 5 years. Ours did not have a genny or a/c. The boat worked well for us. We generally had 2 adults and 2 children as well as our dog. We ran full of fuel and water all of the time. If you learn to use your trim tabs you will be fine. The 260 is a pocket cruiser and not a speed deamon. We did run with 8 adults one time and it was like waiting for paint to dry while getting up on plane but we eventually got there.
 
Move on to the next one. There are plenty of nice 260s out there with larger engines.
 
On paper, that just seems too small to me. I remember when the late '80s sea ray 230 had a 350 standard and a 454 as the option. A 260 with a 305? No wonder people seem to think gas engines are only good for 1000 hours...
 
It would probably work on a lake boat, but since you are near the ocean I would go with a big block.

I can tell you for sure that a 496 MAG would definitely make you happy (except for the fuel bill - cha-ching!).
 
I have a 2003 240DA with a 5.0mpi B3 and it has plenty of power. Cruise at 23kts at 3300rpm all day. PLenty of power out of the hole, even with a full fuel tank. I will say that I am all over the trim tabs all the time. If I have 4 people on the boat I use the tabs heavily, it makes all the difference in the world.
 
just going by trailering my 230 5000 mi a year the first thing i see is; that 2 axle trailer is going to be up against max weight. if you plan on using it for short hauls or just to store the boat on not a problem. if you plan on trailering in the summer.............hot roads, free way speeds will take a toll on tires.

it says its at mead. is that where your going to test it? at least mead is around 1000 ft ele. so if it would plane there you stand a chance at sea level.
the add might have said but i wonder what pitch props it has on it now?

even if all you want to do is anchor out, you still have to get there. if you dont mind going slow you might consider a displacement type hull rather than a under powered planing hull.
i wonder why the boat has so few hours on it in the first place?
also if you get the tire brand that offers life time warranty for trailer tires PLEASE POST.
another thing you need to consider. as a lake boat, your going to loose even more performance as you go up in elevation.

a year ago there was a dealer in las vegas with a new 2 year old maxum 24 equiped just like your ray there. it came with full factoy warenty ect. it had been knocked down in price to lower than the boat your looking at.(reason--not enough motor)

when you decide to move on your going to find this boat a hard sell and chances are take a beating to get rid of it.

your looking at a dock queen. if that's what you want go for it.
 
Easy with the assumptions Garry.

The trailer is custom built for the boat, and the E range tires have plenty of capacity.

The boat came with the standard 20" pitch props, I had them reworked to 18" pitch. It planes easily loaded for the weekend. Its not any slower than other small block 260's with 20" props. (OK 2-3mph slower due to the change in pitch)

The tire warranty is by the tire retailer (Discount Tire) NOT by the manufacturer. Lifetime is the life of the tire not YOUR life. That means if it separates or blows out while it still has tread they will replace it.

I purchased the boat 2 seasons ago with 55 hours, it was not a dock queen, but a cove queen. The previous owner only ran about 5 miles to his favorite cove and anchored for the weekend. If you do the math you'll see I put almost 60 hours on it over the last 2 seasons. I've probably spent double that amount of time in cleaning and maintenance.


garryowen said:
just going by trailering my 230 5000 mi a year the first thing i see is; that 2 axle trailer is going to be up against max weight. if you plan on using it for short hauls or just to store the boat on not a problem. if you plan on trailering in the summer.............hot roads, free way speeds will take a toll on tires.

it says its at mead. is that where your going to test it? at least mead is around 1000 ft ele. so if it would plane there you stand a chance at sea level.
the add might have said but i wonder what pitch props it has on it now?

even if all you want to do is anchor out, you still have to get there. if you dont mind going slow you might consider a displacement type hull rather than a under powered planing hull.
i wonder why the boat has so few hours on it in the first place?
also if you get the tire brand that offers life time warranty for trailer tires PLEASE POST.
another thing you need to consider. as a lake boat, your going to loose even more performance as you go up in elevation.

a year ago there was a dealer in las vegas with a new 2 year old maxum 24 equiped just like your ray there. it came with full factoy warenty ect. it had been knocked down in price to lower than the boat your looking at.(reason--not enough motor)

when you decide to move on your going to find this boat a hard sell and chances are take a beating to get rid of it.

your looking at a dock queen. if that's what you want go for it.
Click to expand...
 
Is the 5.0 sufficient? Yes. Is it what you will want and will it handle multiple passengers and full fuel loads? No.
 
There are two 260DA's with the 5.0 that go on trips with us and dock at our marina. Will they out run other boats that go on our trips?? NO ! Will they keep up with the pack fully loaded with fuel, food and stuff for a 4 day overnite trip ?? yes !!!!
 
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