Thoughts on Horizon 8.1S with DTS?

R

rmr911

New Member
Jul 10, 2007
47
Bellevue, WA
Boat Info
2008 330 Sundancer
Engines
8.1 Horizons, v-drives
Considering a new 330 Sundancer (on the floor at the Seattle Boat Show).

My current boat (280 Sundancer w/single 496MAG and BIII) is difficult to maneuver, especially when you add a little of the Seattle winter, a wicked slip placement and the noises a nervous wife makes when docking.

The 330 is equipped with twin Horizon 8.1S (v-drives) with the Mercury Digital Throttle (DTS), and a bow thruster. Since IPS/Zeus is out of my range for the time-being, I'm hoping this new configuration gives me a much higher level of control than what I have in my current setup.

Questions:
1) Thoughts on the level of control this package gives me?
2) DTS is new to me...while I like the electronics vs. cables design, I was looking forward to having gear and throttle shifters. Anybody using DTS, thoughts on it?
3) V-drives. I've read several comparisons with stern-drives and I'm okay with the trade-offs, though the cramped engine compartment is a huge issue. Thoughts on desireability of v-drive in a boat like the 330?

Thanks all!
 
they are great engines..and v drives make it very easy to dock and maneuver and if you are keeping the boat in the water, less maintenance. You really don't need a bow thruster so you might want to try to tell that to the dealer and have him discount it more.

Good luck and send photos when you make the deal!!

Barry
 
ER is extemely cramped in that boat with those engines. We have to clean our Gen strainer daily when we're out on the hook. Try it once in that boat.
 
I am concerned about the er access.

Getting antsy to get out of my 280 (the task of docking it makes us not take it out at all). The v-drives and DTS are a curve ball. I've gotten my head around them. Love the boat and the configurated options, but the placement and space usage in the engine room make the decision harder. Isn't it funny how there's always this one thing that makes these decisions harder?

I'm going back down to the show again tomorrow to crawl over the boat. I'll make a decision then.

But I have to walk by the Four Winns V378 to get there...that's a hard boat to walk past...with its big bronze IPS props...that boat talks to me. Now, if it could just talk about $100K cheaper! :)
 
Went back to the show today...
Raised the MASSIVE engine hatch on the 330 and saw a huge compartment with wall-to-wall mechanicals!

Yep, the generator requires super human monkey moves to get to.

But, the rest of the package swayed me...bought the boat! :)

I'll have to teach my kid how to do maintenance on those hard to reach items. What else are kids for?
 

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Congrats on the new purchase! I have an 89 340DA with 7.4s and that ER is not made for a guy 6'2" and 230 lbs. And i have 5" more beam. I'd suggest you find a skinny friend that will work for beer.
 
congratulations!!! So any photos, description of all the goodies? Also did they budge a lot or at all from the "boat show" price? It would be helpful if you could let me know about what the bottom line price is.

When do you take delivery?

Good luck and enjoy!!
Barry
 
Best of luck to you on your new boat purchase. What options did you get besides your engine package? You will have a much easier time with docking the twins vs a single prop from your 280.
 
Rmr911

Congrats!! I'm considering moving up from our 260. Were you able to do any better than the show price, did they throw anything of value into your deal? I'm heading down to the Miami boat show in a couple of weeks and will be seriously looking at a few boats including the 330.

Enjoy your 330, she's a great boat. Love the rear facing seat. BTW did you get V drives?

Mike
 
Just ran my new 36 with the 8.1 DTS...love the DTS controls, that is the way Sea Ray is building all new boats forward with digital throttle and shift. It has an auto synch built into it, not sure which controls they put on yours, but I can scroll through my smart craft screen which is a bit out of arms reach when driving with buttons on the control unit (see photo). On the 36, the 8.1's turn relatively big four blade props that have a lot of bite when manuvering around the dock.

DSC04387.jpg
 
Some of those electronic throttles have a docking mode, where they act as shifters with little or no throttle function. So around the dock they act like conventional shifters, leaving the engines in idle. You can move beyond idle a little by moving the levers further but they limit the throttle range.
 
In docking mode it cuts power by 50% i believe. Nice feature to have around the docks with those shiny new boats.
 
Thanks all for the good wishes.

A few things:
1) I was shocked how many boats sold at the Seattle show. Recession, what recession? :) Almost every Sea Ray in the show, and there were a ton, had a sold sign on it 4 days into the show. And it wasn't just Sea Ray. Talked to quite a few dealers and mfg reps, everyone said they were doing good business.
2) "Lone Star", as she'll be named, has, in addition to the standard 330 DA kit, 8.1S Horizon v-drives, generator, bow thruster, spotlight, 2 extra TV's (total 3), cockpit refrigerator, Sirius receiver, rod holders, central vac, cockpit cover, grill (gunwale, not cockpit), sunpad, blue hull, maybe a few other things I can't recall. We're adding aftermarket the nav/GPS gear and fish finder (E80, DSM300, 2KW Radar), Smartcraft VesselView, camper canvas and extended warranty. Wish it had power assist on the steering, anchor washdown and icemaker, but...it's already optioned out of my price-range anyway!
3) No, I didn't get anything more off of the "boat show price". I thought I got a fair price for the boat and for my trade. They helped get some back on the warranty I'd bought last year. Although, it looks like my wife and I'll get new watches out of the deal.
4) The DTS looks interesting. Love what I read. The "docking" mode especially. On my 280, with the single 496, the shift is sticky and hard to engage without giving it too much juice. Lovely memory of dumping my wife off of the swim platform with it this past summer! Hand rails babe, hand rails. DTS, dual engine, v-drive and a bow thruster...it ain't IPS, but it's got to be a step in the right direction.

We got some pictures at the show, I'll figure out how to post them here shortly.
 
I think dual engines . . . .regardless of the throttle control system. . . will make all the difference in the world.

Although I admit I may be biased because my boat has "split" throttles and shifters: you can't change throttle while shifting gears (although that could be really bad, because you can shift gears without throttling down)
 
When I first saw that the dual engines were controlled by a single set of shifters, I was really disappointed. We timeshared a Meridian 368 for a year before we bought our 280. It's really amazing what you can do withi 4 levers. And, what you can do with just gear shifts, without throttle. That Meridian would do 5 knots with no throttle. Making way through the marina with just the shifter and no steering was a snap.

After some research, I'm excited about a more "modern" drive by wire setup, instead of the drive by cable. It's going to take some practice and time though. As pointed out above, the "docking" button, where the levers actually become gear shifts with only a bit of power, ought to give me what I need. (Realize that I don't know what the heck I'm talking about here though, not having driven this thing yet!).

And to your point, I've witnessed folks shifting without throttling down...not pretty. :)


Ought to make for an interesting year.
 
Great picture of the new shifters, I'll take a closer look at one when we make it to a boat show. One question - would it not be better to have the bow thruster to the left of the steering wheel so you could control it with your left hand, and not have to take your right hand of the DTS? Love my separate shifters, don't know of any other mfgr. who puts them on an I/O boat.
 
The bow thruster is a nice thing to have but you really shouldn't need it on that boat with inboards. You will be able to spin that boat on a dime just from shifting one engine forward and one reverse as opposed to your 260 where you needed to use the wheel. The twins will make a world of difference.
 
Also congrats on your new boat. I'm late adding my opinion of the bow thurster option. Your description of docking is similar to ours, tight & windy with no post to pivot on. Without a thurster to keep the bow from swinging into damaging objects we'd be looking at lots of dings or worse. To date, not a scratch on BON DIA. Everytime I see a boat bang into something, whether it be poor seamanship &/or forces of Nature I know the thurster was worth every $ we paid plus when we sell we'll recover most of the cost.
 
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