First Twin Yanmar ZT350 Drives fitted to Aussie Boat

by Bob Carter on 15 Feb 2010 The first pair of Yanmar's new ZT350 diesel sterndrives have been installed to an Australian built boat, the luxury Sea Quest 3600 Sports Bridge.

According to John Young of Sea Quest the new model Yanmar ZT350 and Sea Quest 3600 are an ideal match.

'At Sea Quest we strive to deliver the most modern and intelligent technology in the engine room for our Sea Quest customers,' John said.

'Our selection of the new Yanmar 6BY2-260 / ZT350 package was made after significant research, and now that we have concluded extensive sea trials with Yanmar prior to hand over to our customer, we are absolutely delighted with the outcome.'

The Sea Quest 3600 is a big, beamy luxury cruiser. The sports bridge configuration determines that a transverse bunk is slotted in under the helm station, the consequence of which is a more compact engine room. This is where the modest installation envelope of the Yanmar 6BY2-260 / ZT350 engine really comes to the fore.

The Yanmar 6BY2 engines are close coupled to the ZT350 transom assembly. They also fit neatly alongside one another with readily available servicing points. A big feature of the engine room is that the entire rear (teak laid) cockpit floor is raised on hydraulic rams to provide unsurpassed access to the engines.

'Quite apart from the lean fuel consumption, low noise and lack of diesel smoke offered by the new common rail equipped BY2 series , we are won over by the new ZT350 hydraulic clutch design that makes gear shifting smooth and quiet,' John Young said.

The new hydrodynamic ZT350 Sterndrive from Yanmar boasts a multi-plate hydraulic clutch that provides for a positive and smooth gear change combined with quiet operation. The inclusion of precision forged gears brings stern drive durability to a whole new level. Two counter-rotating propellers are used to maximise acceleration and enable tight-hold tracking in rough conditions.

When viewed from the bank, the sprightly performance of the big Sea Quest cruiser belies the size of the boat. From the stem to the rear of the boarding platform, this is almost 13m (42') of boat. The twin Yanmar 6BY2-260 / ZT350 packages throw the 6500kg Sea Quest boat up onto the plane more like a ski boat.

At wide open throttle the Yanmar engines peaked revs at 4200 rpm for a recorded speed of 34 knots (63 km/h). The optimum cruise speed was achieved at 2800 rpm with a speed of 17.0 knots (31 km/h) with fuel consumption of 19.3 litres per engine per hour. These impressive performance figures were recorded with a fuel load of 850 litres of fuel and 330 litres of water.

'This new ZT350 sterndrive is a breakthrough product for Yanmar in Australia,' said Power Equipment National Marine Sales Manager, Michael Blair.

'While we have already supplied quite a number of our ZT350 stern drive units for re-power use ( both single and dual engine configurations) and several new single engine installation's in Australian boats, the Sea Quest is our first dual engine installation in a new, Australian built boat.

The feedback by John Young in his Sea Quest 3600 echo's what we are hearing from other Yanmar ZT 350 stern drive owners so we are confident of an exciting future with this new product as we continue to roll it out in the local marketplace.'

The Yanmar ZT350 sterndrive is designed for the existing Yanmar range of both the 4BY2, 6BY2 and the 6LPA Series of diesel engines which cover the power range of 150mhp to 315mhp.

Power Equipment is the exclusive and authorised Australian, NZ, PNG and South Pacific distributor of Yanmar Marine and Industrial diesel engines importing product from Yanmar plants in Japan, Asia, USA and Europe. With an extensive marine dealer and branch network, Power Equipment has the expertise and experience to assist boat owners and boat builders for both new installations and repowers. Power Equipment also distribute the Yanmar powered MASE diesel marine generators range, JCB Industrial Engines and Gori high quality folding sailboat propellers.