16' (or maybe even a 19') Cruiser HP suggestions???

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maineman

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Hi everyone,

I'm brand new to this forum and, actually, brand new to motorboating (but have spent a lot of years aboard sailboats). I've been spending way too much time reading past posts here and have already learned a lot from all of you. I'm grateful for the education.

We have finally decided to make the leap and buy a 16' (or a 19', if I get my way) cruiser. We'll use her in Casco and Penobscot Bays here in Maine, never far offshore and, never intentionally in a big blow. Oh, and we don't care at all about speed. More and more, with gas prices, we do care about fuel efficiency. What would be the smallest size engine (probably a Honda 4-stroke if we're given the choice) we could reasonably use on the 16' and on a 19'? Thanks for your suggestions.
 
The 16 can handle well with a 50 hp 4 stroke motor.

The 19 is a shortened 22, but requires at least 75 hp, maybe 90 if you heavily load it or want to outrun developing weather problems. The 19 is a shorted 22 by 3 feet, but has essentially the same power requirements as the 22.

The 16 and the 19 are very different boats.

To quote Dr. Bob Austin on Oct 2:

"The 16 should be OK for Ship Island on a calm day. The only concern would be how much speed you could make once it got rough. The 16 is a great boat--but it still is only a 16 footer, so you do have to watch the weather. The 22 is a lot more boat, and you can still tow it behind a number of vehicles. Some folks start out thinking that a 16 is what they want, then a 19 and finally end up with a 22."

Reference: prepurchase questions (It's the 8th post on the thread.)

Good Luck!

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
I suspose that you could put a 15 hp outboard on either of the 16 or 25 hp on the19 and run only at displacement speed. This much HP would be minimal to allow for handling any wind and being safe, getting home. (4 hp will move the boats at 3 or so knots, but no reserve for head winds)

The question is would you be happy at displacement speed only? The resale would be low, since most folks want to at least run at semi displacement speed.

incidently, many of us who currently own C Dories had sailboats most of our lives.
 
maineman":3p2pa2ht said:
Hi everyone,

What would be the smallest size engine (probably a Honda 4-stroke if we're given the choice) we could reasonably use on the 16' and on a 19'? .
Click to expand...

In my opinion the engines that answer your specific question are 40hp for the 16' and 75hp for the 19'.
 
my 2 cents I would get a 50 hp for the 16 for a few reasons , resale value , and better economy with a load .


As far as the 19 I might get a 70hp Suzuki lighter then a 75 honda or yamaha Go to Suzuki .com
 
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