Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Going to check out a new pontoon boat tomorrow a Princecraft Vectra 19' it comes with a Merc 40hp, is it worth the extra money to upgrade to a 50 or 60hp, will I see a big difference

What is the max capacity of that toon? Myself I always try to buy the largest motor I can afford, ive never heard anyone saying "next time im getting the smaller motor" Just my 2 cents.

Yes.... I've got an 18' with a 60HP and I wish I had gone with a 75HP namely for when we have a larger group on board... When its just me and the wife the toon makes close to a comfy 20MPH now lets add a couple more adults onboard while I can still get up on a plane (so to speak) my speed is now closer to 15MPH... Throw into the mix that I'd like to be able to pull a tube with least enough speed to make the riders go "wheee" rather than "Zzzz"

Something that I never considered was that pulling a tube requires more energy than pulling a skier or wakeboard due to surface friction of the large tube...

75hp is the max

No question then, I would for sure go with a 70/75hp motor. You will be glad you did.

40HP seems pretty weak for a pontoon unless its only used for "bass buggy" type use.

Way cheaper to do it now before you buy

max it out for sure, prince craft are usually heavy for there size. built like a brick shit house.

I'd go for the 75 if that's the max, the new Merc 75 is a monster at 2.1L, bigger that any other 75 and just about every 115hp for that matter.

I would recommend getting the largest motor the "TAG" says you can. You don't have to use it, but when you need it it will be there. No I see no big difference in a 40 to a 50 but I would surly get a 75 and have the horses in the stable, so to speak. I went from a 70 Suzuki to a 135 Honda. with a additional center "log". Haven't regretted a minute of it besides dealing with a less than reputable dealer!

Nobody ever sat in their boat and said "Man, I wish I would have saved a few bucks and got the smaller motor"...

Tim

Go the biggest motor you can get. If it says max 75 stick a 90 on it lol... I made the mistake and now I'm into my boat for another couple years till I can pay it down and do an upgrade. Just as an example, my engine is 3 years old and has 90 hours on it, its a 115 yamaha and to trade it in this year on a 200 was gonna be my motor plus $13grand.... needless to say I am gonna suffer with the 115... lol... Get as big as you can afford or the boat will handle...