Outdrives or inboards?

Someday Lady II

Someday Lady II

Member
Aug 12, 2010
301
RMYC, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Boat Info
1991 350 Sundancer
Engines
T-340 hp Bluewater 7.4 L
Bravo II I/O's
My first post. Hi.
I am considering moving up from my 270 Sundancer to a 340 or so but due to the varying water levels that we boat on I feel that I need outdrives as opposed to straight shafts or v-drives. There are not many Sundancers equipped like that so should I keep looking or just continue to enjoy the boat I have?
 
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SomedayLady, welcome to CSR. Great to have you aboard.

If you frequently boat in very shallow water it might be nice to have I/O's but as you've already found, they are nearly impossible to find in a boat that size.

In my opinion v-drives offer huge advantages over I/O's and some small disadvantages. The disadvantages are obvious when you're in skinny water and can't raise the lower units. I/O's also will give you a bit better fuel economy. How much is debatable and argued about but figure it would be 5%-7% better mileage with I/O's. I/O's will also turn in a tighter circle when you're on plane.

The v-drives will offer you much lower maintenance costs (no winterizing, etc.) and better low speed maneuverability. A big part of the reason for the better maneuverability is the location of the props beneath the boat. On an I/O boat the props are a couple of feet aft of the transom. A v-drive boat will have the props a couple of feet forward of the transom.

What this does is change the point around which the boat pivots when you put one transmission in forward and the other in reverse.

In a v-drive boat like my old 330, the pivot point was right behind the helm seat. On an I/O boat the pivot point will be roughly where the transom is. To visualize what a difference that makes, imagine grabbing a pencil in the middle and spinning it in a circle. The diameter of the circle will be the length of the pencil. This would be the v-drive boat. Now grab the pencil by the eraser and spin it in a circle. The diameter of the circle would be twice the length of the pencil and would represent the I/O boat. The difference between boats is probably not that dramatic but you get the point.

You'll also find that the shifters (and shifting) on a v-drive boat are much smoother. It's easier to bump an engine in and out of gear quickly on a v-drive boat than it is on an I/O boat. That's not to say it can't be done on an I/O boat, it's just easier, smoother and faster on a v-drive boat.

Unless boating in skinny waters represents a very large percentage of the boating you do, I'd pick a v-drive boat any day.
 
My 340 only draws 2' 8" with V drives... If you want a boat that is great for shallow water, get a late '80's early 90's 390 express... I believe they only draw 2'...
 
My 340 with straight inboards draws 2' 6". If your shallower then that, ANYWHERE, you have a few other issues to worry about.

Personally I would not touch V-drives again. I had a Cruisers with them. The first time I had to get to the stuffing boxes was the same day I put the for sale sign on her. True story. Unless your a kid or built like one, good luck getting down there to do any maintenance....
 
SeaRay typically goes with inboards bast the 32' length and the widely held view on this board is that inboard transmissions are superior when you get somewhere past 30' LOA. Other manufacturers like Rinker stay with Sterndrives even past 38'LOA. My friend has one of those big Rinkers with Bravo III. Despite what you hear on this site, there are *some* advantages to the sterndrive set-up on a larger boat. For example, with sterndrives, you get more room on the boat(cabin and engine room), more precise handling, better fuel economy as well as a few other less critical benefits.
 
gerryb said:
SeaRay typically goes with inboards bast the 32' length and the widely held view on this board is that inboard transmissions are superior when you get somewhere past 30' LOA. Other manufacturers like Rinker stay with Sterndrives even past 38'LOA. My friend has one of those big Rinkers with Bravo III. Despite what you hear on this site, there are *some* advantages to the sterndrive set-up on a larger boat. For example, with sterndrives, you get more room on the boat(cabin and engine room), more precise handling, better fuel economy as well as a few other less critical benefits.
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I agree with geryb.

Each setup has advantages and disadvantages.
 
gerryb said:
SeaRay typically goes with inboards bast the 32' length...
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The 2010 330 Sundancer (LOA 33'4"), 350 Sundancer (LOA 35'6"), 370 Sundancer (LOA 37'6"), 390 Sundancer (LOA 39') and 450 Sundancer (LOA 45'5") come standard with Bravo III I/O. Just sayin.:huh:
 
JV II said:
The 2010 330 Sundancer (LOA 33'4"), 350 Sundancer (LOA 35'6"), 370 Sundancer (LOA 37'6"), 390 Sundancer (LOA 39') and 450 Sundancer (LOA 45'5") come standard with Bravo III I/O. Just sayin.:huh:
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These standard stern drive configurations are with Axius carrying a price premium and a reliabilty discount!:smt043
 
I think the challenge is that you will not find many (if any) late model 340's (say, 1999 or newer) with I/O. And if you do, you better want to own it, because it will be hard to sell.

I worried about the water depth problem and lack of ability to trim the props up when I moved from IO to inboard as well. As it turns out, it's never been an issue for me in 9 years with this boat. And our lake goes up and down about 60' at times.
 
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It would take an idiot to buy a 37, 39 or a 45 ft boat with outdrives.......your annual service would have to be done where there is a travel lift and you'd have to pay an additional $400-$450 just for the haul out.........just sayin'

The OP needs to look at the 89-90 390EC.......draws less than 28" and represents a heck of a value on the current used market.
 
Take a look at the difference in the engine compartment between V drives and I/O's. If you are very skinny then V drives are the way to go!
 
fwebster said:
It would take an idiot to buy a 37, 39 or a 45 ft boat with outdrives.......your annual service would have to be done where there is a travel lift and you'd have to pay an additional $400-$450 just for the haul out.........just sayin'
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Unless you live in the north where you haul out every year for winter storage anyway, whether you have sails, I/O, pods, or inboards. Just sayin'.
 
fwebster said:
It would take an idiot to buy a 37, 39 or a 45 ft boat with outdrives.......your annual service would have to be done where there is a travel lift and you'd have to pay an additional $400-$450 just for the haul out.........just sayin'

The OP needs to look at the 89-90 390EC.......draws less than 28" and represents a heck of a value on the current used market.
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I don't consider myself to be an idiot and I am fully aware of what it costs to service my boat in the area in which I boat. Just sayin'

The level of the river that we are based on is controlled by locks and for several years now, the shallows are treacherous and in place longer and longer. Many of the shaft and v-drive boats are unable to get out to the lake because of this.

I also think I said that I was looking for a 340 and not a 37, 39 or 45....also just sayin'
 
Our previous '02 340 had bIII outdrives and had a 45" draft when down. The majority of v-drive sea rays in this size draw 32-38". Of course, there is the adjustability and better top speed of the sterndrives vs the smooth shifting, reliability, and lower noise of the inboards at cruise. Docking the 340 with sterndrives vs the 360 with v-drives seems equally easy. Neither boat has a thruster.
 
I have a 340 with I/O's and I am happy with the boat. Yes people say it's easier to dock a boat with inboards but I don't seem to have a problem. The boat is kept on a lift and I'm in brakish water so I picked I/O's. It is nice having the option to raise the drives if needed. Plently of room in the engine compartment.
 
B-Fitting said:
I have a 340 with I/O's and I am happy with the boat. Yes people say it's easier to dock a boat with inboards but I don't seem to have a problem. The boat is kept on a lift and I'm in brakish water so I picked I/O's. It is nice having the option to raise the drives if needed. Plently of room in the engine compartment.
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Thanks for the info.
I have no problems docking my 270 at our club even against a river current and had always looked to moving up to inboards. However the adjustability of the I/O's moved up on the "must have" list this summer when here we are near the end of summer and all the shaft drive boats have been unable to make it out to the lake....or those out on Lake Winnipeg have been unable to navigate upriver to Winnipeg.
Any advice on best engine /drive combos to look for?
It seems like Mercs are the only option out there (fine with me) but I wonder if there are any other combos.
Thanks again.
 
I have a 35'5" 330DA with I/O on the second season. I like seeing 1.0 mph on the Smartcraft at 35 mph, having the ability to pull it up on the beach and lift the drives, walking it sideways at the dock, adjusting the ride angle with the drives to smooth out the ride, and being able to move around and store things in my ER. I can also easily inspect and clean my running gear.
 
JV II said:
I have a 35'5" 330DA with I/O on the second season. I like seeing 1.0 mph on the Smartcraft at 35 mph, having the ability to pull it up on the beach and lift the drives, walking it sideways at the dock, adjusting the ride angle with the drives to smooth out the ride, and being able to move around and store things in my ER. I can also easily inspect and clean my running gear.
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Thanks for summing up exactly why I am considering I/O's over shafts. Thanks to everyone for their input.
I will let you all know how the search winds up.
 
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