posted 07-20-2006 08:57 AM ET (US)        

--Press Release follows---

Mercury Marine Launches New OptiMax 250 Pro XS

FOND DU LAC, Wis. (July 18, 2006) – Mercury Marine today introduced the OptiMax 250 Pro XS, a powerful, fuel-efficient and durable Direct Injection marine engine scheduled to begin production in October.

“We are absolutely thrilled to bring another new direct-injected model to the market,” said Pat Mackey, President of Mercury Marine. “The 250 Pro XS will thrill customers with its remarkable performance and will delight them with outstanding fuel economy and an excellent warranty.”

The 250 Pro XS is based largely on its predecessor, Mercury Racing's popular 250 XS, which will remain in Mercury Racing's lineup in select model configurations. The 250 Pro XS will be available in 20- and 25-inch models, and will be outfitted exclusively with the Torque Master gear case in right-hand rotation. The 250 XS is available from Mercury Racing in right- and left-hand rotations in a 20-inch, Sport Master-equipped model, or in 25- and 30-inch configurations with the Fleet Master gear case.

The 250 Pro XS will be sold by Mercury's outboard division, and will be manufactured at Mercury's headquarter facilities in Fond du Lac . The 250 XS continues to be marketed by Mercury Racing.

J.D. Power & Associates presented OptiMax its award for “Highest Customer Satisfaction with Two Stroke Outboard Engines” in 2006. Mercury introduced its DI technology in 1996.

The 250 Pro XS becomes the second member of the company's “Pro XS” family of OptiMax engines. The 225 Pro XS was introduced in 2004. The 250 Pro XS will feature three years of standard warranty.

“With the past success of the 250 XS, we feel the 250 Pro XS is destined for comparable accolades,” said Mr. Mackey. “It delivers everything customers have been seeking from a 250 – performance, efficiency, reliability and now the warranty and competitive pricing.”

The target market for the 250 Pro XS is bass boats, with the deep-v walleye and saltwater bay boats secondary. Bass boaters typically prefer the excellent power-to-weight ratios of direct-injected engines. Hole shot is always a major concern, and OptiMax DI engines provide unmatched hole-shot power.

Mercury Racing's engineering team is overseeing engine testing and development of the 250 Pro XS, which is outfitted with many unique Mercury Racing-designed components, including carbon fiber reeds, solid billet aluminum mounts and special dome-shaped, coated pistons. In addition, the 250 Pro XS and its smaller brother, the 225 Pro XS, will feature improvements in noise, vibration and harshness.

“Our charter at Racing includes technology development for the greater good of Mercury,” said Fred Kiekhaefer, President of Mercury Racing. “When we push the performance envelope, lots of learning happens. The good stuff we share; the not-so-good stuff we learn from. That is how products like the 250 and 300 XS OptiMax find their way to high-performance consumers.

“Often, when our advancements are proven to delight, we develop more main-stream offerings – such as our Pro XS engines – for other Mercury divisions. Everybody wins except our competitors . . . and that's not my problem.”

The 250 Pro XS will benefit from Mercury's ultra-efficient OptiMax two-stage fuel-injection system. The OptiMax injection system uses a charge of fuel and air to atomize fuel droplets directly into the combustion chamber. This superior atomization process results in outstanding fuel economy and lower emissions.

posted 07-20-2006 10:33 AM ET (US)            

With respect to the newly announced 250 Pro XS, can anyone tell us what the differences are relative to the 250 XS?

From what I read in the press release, it seems that if I wanted to repower my 27 Whaler with a pair of Mercury 250 HP DFI 2-strokes I would still have to go with the XS from one of the limited Racing authorized dealers not the PRO XS from the regular dealers as it doesn't seem to be offered with a counter rotating gearcase.

Also, do they expect to get these and the 250 XS CARB 3-Star compliant like the Yamaha, Suzuki and Evinrude 250s already are so that folks in California can consider buying them for their Whalers in model year 2008?

posted 07-20-2006 02:42 PM ET (US)            

For the last two years, XS product has been avaliable to all OEMs (Whaler) and still is. If you want XS on your Whaler, talk to Whaler.

Also new is that any Mercury Platinum dealer can now handle Racing product.

And yes, the Pro XS is right hand only. I think they call it on these boards (BUBBA BOATS) (Bass and Walleye.)

You would want the Racing heavy duty clamp bracket for offshore use anyway.(My opinion only)

posted 07-21-2006 02:44 AM ET (US)            

It is based on the on a 3.2 liter V6 power head. The difference between the racing version of this engine (which you can buy today)is that Merc redesigned the pistons with a different shape as well as adding a composite coating on the pistons and rings for improved wear life.

Another new feature that will prevent carbon buildup at trolling speeds is the new Propulsion Control Module (PCM) which optimizes fuel, spark timimg and knock control for each cylinder independtly, enhancing the engines performance & running characteristics. The PCM also controls the electronic multipoint lubrication system.

Merc is saying the engine runs more quietly in the mid range rpm's than the 250xs. To accomplish this they added accoustically tuned foam insulation to the interior of the cowling and added an attenuator for the direct fuel injection air compressor and exhaust system.

What I've heard is the factory specs for the 20" and 25" shafts will fall between 5800 - 6300 rpms and the 30" shaft between 5500 - 5800 rpms. They also say it sill surpass the fuel economy of many of today's four-strokes.
You can also choose your gear case design i.e. Torque Master and Sport Master 20" shaft while the Fleet Master will be standard on the 25" and 30" models.

posted 07-21-2006 10:09 AM ET (US)            

The problem that I see with the 250 Pro XS is it still fails to fill a hole in Mercury's product line up. Here is the hole -- if I wanted to repower my Whaler with a pair of 250 HP outboards and required the 250s to have (1)one left hand and one right hand rotating gearcase, (2) keep the transom weight under 1,100 lbs (I'm under that weight limit now), (3) have a quiet idle sound signature, (4) have a 3-Star Carb rating (if I'm in California) and (5) come with a 3 year warranty, only one manufacturer has a product to offer to me and it isn't Mercury. If I raise the transom weight limit to 1,200 lbs while keeping all the other limitations the same, three manufacturers have a product to offer me but Mercury still isn't one of them. It's not until I raise the transom weight limit to 1,300 lbs (excluding weight of necessary oversized batteries to keep all of the electronic gizmos going) that Mercury gets to play in the game.

Perhaps this hole just isn't big enough for Mercury to worry about.

posted 07-21-2006 11:02 AM ET (US)            

Ok you win. Guess Merc lost that sale.