NEW BOAT STEERING/THROTTLE ISSUES

[dgreene62]

I took my new 2018 Bennington 22SSRX w/ Yamaha F150 out for our maiden voyage yesterday. Albeit the Sunday before Memorial Day on Lake Keowee here in SC has a lot of boats on the water making for cautious boating. The water was choppy so understandably I couldn't expect a perfectly smooth ride. The tritoon, which is new to me, seems to stay up on top of the waves pretty well. My boat doesn't have the full power hydraulic steering but it does have the SeaStar Hydraulic Steering (not sure of the difference). The SeaStar Hydraulic still requires 2 hands to make sharp turns. I had to work a bit to pull my son on the tube yesterday, but that isn't really a huge complaint and I chalked it up to the busy lake. Does anyone have the SeaStar Hydraulic system on their boat and does this sound normal?

The other thing that bothered me more was when we were just cruising up the lake at 15-20 mph (no tube behind) it seemed I had to keep my hand on the throttle or it would keep moving back and the boat would slow down. Maintaining a steady speed without my hand on the throttle to hold it wasn't happening. Is this normal??? Again it was a bit choppy on the lake, but is it normal to have to hold the throttle in place?

Last question: when cruising what tilt is best for the motor. Full down or 1/4 tilt, 1/2 tilt, etc...?

I will say the Lord held off the rain for us despite the weather forecast; my 17 year old had a look of joy on his face; my wife looked happy and relaxed; our dog was happy; my friends loved the boat and were happy; we were worn out when we got home.... It was a great day!

[yardbird]

My throttle/shift control has a knob on the front for adjusting how much effort is needed to move the lever. I would guess yours has something similar.

I'll have to let someone else answer the steering question as I don't have hydraulic, but that seems unusual to need 2 hands to turn the darn thing.

[ron nh]

I have sea star, I don't need 2 hands to turn but when tubing it is harder, I assume because im making sharper turns while trying to maintain speed. As far as the throttle, It has to be adjusted, It shouldn't slip back. The tilt is harder to explain, It's really feel for each boat rather than a rule. You should feel it "take off" when it's perfect.

[dgreene62]

My throttle/shift control has a knob on the front for adjusting how much effort is needed to move the lever. I would guess yours has something similar.

I just did a youtube search and found a video that shows how to adjust the throttle. It looks simple. THANKS FOR THE TIP!!!

I have sea star, I don't need 2 hands to turn but when tubing it is harder, I assume because im making sharper turns while trying to maintain speed. As far as the throttle, It has to be adjusted, It shouldn't slip back. The tilt is harder to explain, It's really feel for each boat rather than a rule. You should feel it "take off" when it's perfect.

The steering is great in a no wake situation, but tightens quickly once I get going. Do you know if perhaps there is a way to adjust the hydraulic steering or check to make sure they have installed all fluid correctly?

[ron nh]

I don't really know much about it, It's hard to tell without driving another one with the same system.

[steve1313]

There are three common type of steering on a boat with an outboard. Cable (or mechanical), Hydraulic, or Power Assisted Hydraulic. Sounds like you've got hydraulic steering, but not power assisted hydraulic steering.

These links will explain them in detail.

https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/ ... c-Steering
https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/ ... l-Steering

My previous boat was a stern drive and had a power steering system with a pump much like a car. When I first started test driving boats with outboards, I noticed how much difficult the steering was for most outboards. Not unreasonably so, but certainly not the "steer with a finger" control that I was used to (and what's typical in a car). The Pontoon I bought had the hydraulic steering that is pretty typical on most new boats, but I had the dealer upgrade it to the power assisted steering to give me that fingertip control. They simply added the power assist pump under the helm.

Congrats on your new boat.

[dgreene62]

Thanks guys. Good info.

Does anyone have an idea how much of a cost upgrade it would be to move from the basic SeaStar Hydraulic Steering to the SeaStar Hydraulic Power Assist Steering system? Just wondering if this might make the whole experience better.

[steve1313]

Thanks guys. Good info.

Does anyone have an idea how much of a cost upgrade it would be to move from the basic SeaStar Hydraulic Steering to the SeaStar Hydraulic Power Assist Steering system? Just wondering if this might make the whole experience better.

The power assist pump is about $1,500 and it's typically about a $2k upgrade on most boats build sheet. My dealer added it for free to close the deal.

[Kramfam]

Before investing in an upgrade of your steering system, you may want to make sure you have optimized your trim for the speed you are towing at. You note that you don't know at what level to put the trim and that makes a big difference in steering. I know that having the motor straight down at 20mph makes it very hard to steer.

[dgreene62]

Before investing in an upgrade of your steering system, you may want to make sure you have optimized your trim for the speed you are towing at. You note that you don't know at what level to put the trim and that makes a big difference in steering. I know that having the motor straight down at 20mph makes it very hard to steer.

Very good to know. I will definitely do a little more experimenting before I do anything.