boat/motor upgrade

[Matt C]

I am trading my 06 trophy for an 09. I currently run a F150 (4-stroke), they are selling me and telling me I want the Z200 HPDI vs the 4-stroke F200 due to weight, performance and cost.

Anyone have any insight on the 09 200 HPDI vs a 4-stroke 200 Yamaha?

[PerchJerker]

A buddy has a 200 HPDI on a Skeeter, I think it's an '07 motor. Really nice motor, I like it a lot. I've been in another boat with one a couple of times, that's a little bit older 200 HPDI with a lot more hours on it, and still going strong.

I have a 175 Opti on my boat, also a DFI motor.

For big outboards like that I think DFIs are a better way to go than 4-strokes, especially if you have a 4-stroke kicker for trolling.

With a HPDI vs. a 4-stroke you'll of course have the oil tank in the boat, plus a louder motor. The 200 HPDI seems quieter than my 175 Opti. As long as you're okay with those items, I'd go with the HPDI.

Hope that helps.

[Matt C]

Thats does help, thanks PJ.

How does it do trolling? I am not putting a kicker on it yet....wife would have a conniption fit.

My F150 on 'low' will do a nice 2.5-2.7 trolling speed, and quiet as a lamb.

[PerchJerker]

A DFI motor should idle down to lower rpms than a 4-stroke motor, but that's only part of the story.

A 200 will have a big prop with a high pitch of probably 21 inches, so the end result of the nice idle from the motor will be a fast trolling speed for the boat due to how far the prop moves the boat with each revolution. The gear ratios in the lower unit will affect it too, but a 200 (whether 4-stroke or DFI) is probably going to troll faster than a 150 due to those factors.

The DFI motor will be louder at idle than a 4-stroke, but I think the HPDI is a pretty quiet motor (compared to my Opti it's quiet).