Victorian Boatie Benefiting from Switch to Hyundai SeasAll

by Freddy Foote on 19 May 2011 A Victorian boatie is one of the first to choose a Hyundai SeasAll S250 diesel sterndrive to re-power his boat – nearly doubling the vessels top speed.

Ross Ranyard’s Markline 800 was previously powered by a Volvo-Penta 165hp, 3.6L, six-cylinder diesel stern drive – installed 26 years ago. But it had come the time to source a new engine that would deliver economy, ease of service, reliability and performance.

'I’m a bit sentimental and really love the boat, but the old engine really was a slug. Fully laden the boat is well over 3000kg and the old engine generally gave the boat 16 knots flat out, 19 knots on a good day with a lighter load,' says Ross.

'I take the boat away on a lot of extended trips, and really wanted to get more out of the boat, a newer and more powerful engine, but yet reliable was going to be the solution.'

Since installing the new Hyundai SeasAll S250 engine coupled with a MerCruiser Bravo III sternleg and dual 22' propellers only a month ago, Ross says he has already accumulated 40 hours of running time and is stunned by the new performance of his boat.

'My top speed fully laden is now 32 knots which is really quite amazing – I never thought it would be that much. Acceleration out of the hole is phenomenal; it’s a totally different boat now. We can do so much more with the boat, we can go to places we’ve never been, plus we can tow tubes, knee boarders and generally get more enjoyment out of our time on the water.'

The cruising speed is now 21 knots at 2800rpm and using 25L per hour. On a recent trip away with the Victorian Family Boating Club, Ross and his family covered 212 nautical miles and used just 165 litres of diesel – much to the surprise of his fellow members!

'Going on trips further afield, the new Hyundai SeasAll gives me much more confidence that we can get home at reasonable speed and have power on tap to use if bad weather conditions present themselves, I couldn’t be happier with the new engine.''

Sealink Marine in Braeside, Victoria, is one of Australia’s first appointed Hyundai SeasAll dealers and carried out the install. Director Simon Carter says he is very impressed with the Hyundai SeasAll product and range.

'Hyundai in Australia now has a strong reputation for quality, performance and economy – the engines are certainly ticking those boxes,' says Simon.

'I’m very impressed with the S250 we installed into the Markline 800, particularly with the electronically-controlled variable geometry turbo for increased performance, which enables the engine to deliver such a broad torque curve.'

'The install was very easy to do. Hyundai have obviously put a lot of thought into installation and service of these engines, and the ease of access to service parts exceptional – I’m sold!'

'The fact that Hyundai SeasAll is also happy to see these largely ‘recreational’ engines going into commercial applications says a lot about the quality of the product.'

Hyundai SeasAll Business Development Manager, Mark Harrison says he’s pleased to have a high calibre dealer like Sealink Marine representing Hyundai SeasAll in Victoria.

'Simon has a lot of experience in the industry, and is just the kind of dealer we want to push the brand in this region.'

'It’s an even better result when the product exceeds the customer’s expectations too.'

This week, the complete range of Hyundai SeasAll marine diesels will be on display at the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show.