210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Optimizing the performance of Boston Whaler boats
Ridge Runner
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2015 12:12 pm
Location: Florham Park NJ / Punta Gorda FL

210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby Ridge Runner » Mon Jun 27, 2016 1:37 pm

I am seriously considering moving up from my 170 Montauk rigged with a E-TEC 115 H.O. I have found a left-over 2015 210 Montauk at a dealership that is providing a very good discount--rare for this boat. The boat is rigged with the base engine, a Mercury 150-HP FOURSTROKE. The dealer is willing to give me a good trade-in price for the 150HP FOURSTROKE and a solid price to buy and install a new Mercury 200HP OptiMax. I wish I could do an E-TEC but that is not going to happen. All in this combination will be significantly less expensive than buying a model equipped with the Verado Pro FourStroke 200-HP.

Forum members that have reviewed my 170 re-power will know that I use this boat for a lot of water sports and pulling two skiers up from deep water starts. I spoke at length with the dealer and he agreed the 150HP FOURSTOKE or the Verado Four-Cylinder 200-HP would not provide the bottom end I need. I have read through the Boston Whaler performance charts for each factory installed engine option and I think the OptiMax would perform closest to the Verado Pro Fourstroke six-cylinder while also being 130-lbs lighter on the transom.

[Give me your] thoughts: how will this 210 Montauk and OptiMax combination perform against the other Mercury engine options for my purpose?

[Will it have] the ability to get the boat on plane quickly and pull up larger water skiers?

Also, what propeller might be a good starting point?

I have not read of a 210 Montauk that has been powered by an OptiMax before.

Engine Specifications:

Model            Liters  Lbs   Ratio  RPM Range
FourStroke 150 3.0 455 1.92 5000-5800
Verado 200 1.7 510 2.08 5800-6400
Verado Pro 200 2.6 635 1.85 5800-6400
OptiMax 200 3.0 505 1.75 5500-6000
Member since 2005
2005 170 Montauk, 2010 E-TEC 115 H.O.
2016 210 Montauk, 2017 E-TEC G2 200 H.O.

"Red sky at night, sailor’s delight - Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning”

jimh
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Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
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Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby jimh » Mon Jun 27, 2016 3:05 pm

My thoughts on getting an OptiMax 200: don't do it.

Boston Whaler has not sold any boats pre-rigged with an OptiMax for many years. You will be creating a very unusual rig. I'd stick with the stock Mercury 150 FOURSTROKE and just put on a low-pitch propeller when you need to pull water skiers. Get a four-blade low-pitch propeller and you will be able to pull anyone you like waters skiing.

You can change propellers in about ten minutes. That is a lot less work and less expense than changing engines.

Ridge Runner
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2015 12:12 pm
Location: Florham Park NJ / Punta Gorda FL

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby Ridge Runner » Mon Jun 27, 2016 3:37 pm

Jim, I completely understand your point. One of the things that worries me is the time it will take for the outboard to spin-up quickly and generate enough torque. The Mercury 150 FOURSTROKE is a large displacement in-line four cylinder engine, which in my experience, will be slower to spin-up then a similar displacement V6 two-cycle motor - both outboards are 3.0 liters. I imagine the torque curve's between the Mercury 150 FOURSTROKE and the 200HP OptiMax would be very different with the 200HP OptiMax making peak torque much sooner.

Ideally the super-charged Verado Pro 200 might be the best choice, but the price point is a huge obstacle. There is over a $13,000 difference between a 2016 boat equipped in the same configuration vs the 2015 left-over re-rigged with a 200HP OptiMax. The price difference between the 2015 210 Montauk with the Mercury 150 FOURSTROKE and changing that boat to the 200HP OptiMax is only an additional $1,500.
Member since 2005
2005 170 Montauk, 2010 E-TEC 115 H.O.
2016 210 Montauk, 2017 E-TEC G2 200 H.O.

"Red sky at night, sailor’s delight - Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning”

jimh
Posts: 11672
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2015 12:25 pm
Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
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Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby jimh » Mon Jun 27, 2016 3:42 pm

The dealer seems to be giving you a bargain on the swap to the OptiMax 200 from the FOURSTROKE 150. Those figures tip the balance of the scale quite a bit toward the OptiMax. Since the OptiMax is a direct-injection two-stroke-power-cycle engine, the boat should have excellent acceleration from a standing start at full throttle.

Ridge Runner
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2015 12:12 pm
Location: Florham Park NJ / Punta Gorda FL

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby Ridge Runner » Mon Jun 27, 2016 3:56 pm

Yes - I think it is a bit of a unique situation. The dealer has an OptiMax 200 on the showroom floor. From what I have seen out-right purchasing price difference between the FOURSTROKE 150 and OptiMax 200 is about $2,000 more for the OptiMax 200 in the market.
Member since 2005
2005 170 Montauk, 2010 E-TEC 115 H.O.
2016 210 Montauk, 2017 E-TEC G2 200 H.O.

"Red sky at night, sailor’s delight - Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning”

flymo
Posts: 189
Joined: Thu Oct 22, 2015 2:58 pm

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby flymo » Mon Jun 27, 2016 4:26 pm

Strongly recommend driving a boat with an Optimax before making the decision. Like the Yamaha HPDI, the Optimax is a transitional high-pressure fuel injection technology, and it was designed a long time ago so it is well behind the state of the art today. You'll find that it has good power and reasonable fuel economy, but it is quite noisy and smelly compared to a more modern motor.

I am always suspicious when a dealer tells you that the perfect choice is what he happens to have on the showroom floor, gathering dust. Ask the dealer how long the Optimax has been sitting there - I'm betting that it's been quite a while and he's been waiting for a sucker to come along so he can unload it. I had a similar occurrence at a Yamaha dealer; they refused to even order me an F70 as they wanted to dump the 70 2-stroke they'd had in their front window for years - at the same price as the F70, mind you. Run away!

Personally, I'd take the new Merc 150 in a heartbeat - supposedly very strong for its power rating, and much quieter. Save the $1500, spend some of it on a ski prop, and you'll be a happy camper.

F

russellbailey
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Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2015 11:03 am

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby russellbailey » Mon Jun 27, 2016 10:34 pm

Are you pulling up two slalom skiers or just two skiers or wakeboarders?

My understanding is that the 150 four-stroke roughly matches the 150 Optimax. I have twin 150 Optimax on my Outrage 25.

We mainly ski and wakeboard. Early on after getting up on a slalom ski the boat was not going as fast as I wanted and the wake looked funny - I realized the driver had only turned on one engine and was dragging the other - it still yanked me right up on a slalom ski even not propped for single engine operation.

It is hard for me to imagine what watersports you might want to do in an easy-planing boat like a Montauk 21 where the 150 4-stroke would not be ample power. Well, if you are trying to barefoot I could maybe see needing more power, but we don't do that.

My Optis are impressive, but they are also not nearly as quiet as a 4 stroke at idle, and you do notice the difference.

Can you test out the boat or a similar one with a 4-stroke 150? I'd just be surprised if it did not have the pulling power you want. I can easily get two wakeboarders up with a single engine on mine even propped incorrectly. As an Optimax owner and active watersports person, I'd really aim for the 4-stroke 150.

Ridge Runner
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2015 12:12 pm
Location: Florham Park NJ / Punta Gorda FL

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby Ridge Runner » Tue Jun 28, 2016 12:05 am

Thank you for the response,

I pull two 225lb slalom skiers from deep water starts. My 170 Montauk with the V-4 ETEC 115H.O. can barely do this running an extremely light load and underpropped turning a Power Tech Prop SCD-4 13x17 Propeller. The skiers really have to pull themselves out of the water. I am trying to configure a 210 Montauk with a T-Top, RPS livewell while carrying a few passengers that would perform much better for my use - and I think the Opitmax 200 would be a good solution for the price point. Close to the performance of the Verado Pro 200 with less weight and a lot less money.

I have owned a few Optimax's in the past, first generation twin 225's on a Conquest 295 and a Pro XS 115 on a Montauk 170, so I am familiar with the outboards. Although the Orbital technology used by Mercury and Tohatsu's in the TLDI series is aging it still provides a viable option in the market place, arguably with a differentiated value proposition.

The current versions of the V6 Optimax's are noted for good reliability, hole shot and acceleration which meet my requirements right now. I would imagine, in 12 years or so, repowering with a moderate 150HP four stroke as my needs change to much less water sports use and more cruising and fishing. The long term value is in the BW hull not the outboard.

I should also note that this boat is lift kept and not having to do oil changes is also a plus for me, as I stated I would put an E-TEC on the back of the boat in a minute, sad to say that's not going to happen.
Last edited by Ridge Runner on Tue Jun 28, 2016 1:08 am, edited 2 times in total.
Member since 2005
2005 170 Montauk, 2010 E-TEC 115 H.O.
2016 210 Montauk, 2017 E-TEC G2 200 H.O.

"Red sky at night, sailor’s delight - Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning”

russellbailey
Posts: 99
Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2015 11:03 am

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby russellbailey » Tue Jun 28, 2016 1:01 am

Switching to the Opti 200 makes sense if you want to pull two big slalom skiers up at once - that is a lot of load.

I know you are not looking at one, but regardless I'll mention that the twin Opti 150s on our Outrage 25 have incredible pulling power - they will literally yank the handle out if your hands if you give it too much throttle. I've never found a watersports load that can take a full throttle start. I think the grip of two big propellers with the torque of the Opti results in takeoff power like a powerful ski boat.

Ridge Runner
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2015 12:12 pm
Location: Florham Park NJ / Punta Gorda FL

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby Ridge Runner » Tue Jun 28, 2016 9:58 am

I bet that the twin Opitmax's pull extremely strong. That's a good amount of blade area so I would understand the comment about you being able to pull the handle out of the skier's hand. My 170 Montauk with the E-Tec 115H.O. will do that with one skier.

The 150HP Optimax's have always been rock solid - the first generation big block 3.0L Optimax's were prone to a "few" problems. Knock on wood mine circa 1998 never had any problems.
Member since 2005
2005 170 Montauk, 2010 E-TEC 115 H.O.
2016 210 Montauk, 2017 E-TEC G2 200 H.O.

"Red sky at night, sailor’s delight - Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning”

flymo
Posts: 189
Joined: Thu Oct 22, 2015 2:58 pm

Re: 210 Montauk OptiMax 200

Postby flymo » Tue Jun 28, 2016 4:17 pm

Ridge, you seem more than familiar with the qualities of the Optimax, the good and the bad, so if it's a dedicated ski boat and you don't care about noise, go for it!

I'm still suspicious the dealer is looking to unload a motor that's been hanging around a while, and thinks he's found a live one. I'm sure the Optimax will perform very well, but with the same displacement at a lighter weight, the FourStroke 150, propped correctly, might not be a bad choice either. I agree that the Verados don't make sense, financially or otherwise, and the Optimax would likely outperform even the V6.

Any chance you can find a 210/150 combo to try before you buy?

Flymo