Nitro 175 with 90HP carb mercury

[mike daniels]

I'm looking at a 2000 nitro 175 sport and was wondering what I should look for as far a wear points.



The NITRO emblem on the seats has already fallen off leavign teh glue behind ( any way to replace those?) and there are a quite a few boat bruises where it hit the dock but nothing major.



Other than the emblem falling off the seats look good. Carpet looks good for 10years old. Gellcoat has some spider web cracks were theboat hit the dock a few times.



The 90 hand a 23P stainless prop.



I see the transom saver has a Y block that is cracking. Is there a repalcement for that block or just get a new transom saver for ~$40.



Any other spots that these boats have problems with?

 

[Dan J.]

I'd grab that 90 while trimmed out and give it a good shake and look for ANY give in the transom. If it shifts or rocks on the transom, you might want to walk (or run) away from it. The prop on it is waaaay too big, unless someone has really worked the guts on that thing or you see a little bottle with a hose attached to the block that has NO2 written somewhere on it. :lol: The other items mentioned are cosmetic and solely in the eye of the beholder. Check it good, especially compression on all three cylinders within 5 lbs. +/- between them. Good luck!

 

[Dan J.]

I'd also recomend a good clamp style, roller mount transom saver over the cheap rubber V type.

 

[mike daniels]

The guy selling it says that nitro hulls are all 100% fiberglass. I thought the stringers on nitro hulls were wood.



I got in the boat (on the trailer) and stood between the seets with one foot in either side of the ski door. As I rocked my shifted my weight (265lbs) from one leg to the other, I could feel the floor deflecting a little and see the seat change angle slightly.



I did some light bounces and the deflections were slightly bigger but I didn't feel like in danger of going through the floor board.



Is this to be expected from 175 sport floor or shold I expect the floor to be solid as a concrete slab. I do realise a 265lbs is quite a load on one #12 shoe so I wasn't too supprised about the flexing. I put him on hold for now.

 

[Dan J.]

Your seller is VERY mistaken regarding that boat you're looking at. Transom, stringer, knee braces, and some, if not most of your decking is a wolmanized, fiberglass coated wood. The solidity of the floor is minor in comparison overall to the the strength and rigidity of the transom. If the floor flexes or has weak spots it will not be as harsh as a crack or engine seperation off the back. The transom should hold tight with the trailer bouncing to absorb your load. If there's ANY flex or movement in the transom itself, I'd look elsewhere. Good luck!

 

[mike daniels]

I'll check that next time I see it.



So just grab the motor just below the cowling and pull away from the transom then push it toward the transom. The trailer will rock back and forth so I think it woudl be hard to see.



Would it be obvious?



Would a transom saver like this be better:




http://www.amazon.com/Attwood-Corpo...e=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1271538412&sr=8-6

 

[Berry Lindley]

Second on the transom advice, I've done one of those before and it is better to avoid the mistake I have made. If the floor is soft, that will be work. You should be able to tell if it is bad. If your transom saver is the BPS one you can get the rubber insert at BPS, but you can get one at Wally World for around $25.

 

[mike daniels]

I yanked like hell in the transom on the next visit today and the transom didn't move. Motor was on there solid.



I still complained about the floor board beind soft and advised him about the amount of wood in the boat.



Hopefully that should soften the price some too.



He took me out for a ride in it and I really have no complaints about the performacne of the boat. The Speedo said 50MPH at 5200 RPM. (GPS is probably a few MPH slower). Not bad for a 17 foot sport boat with only 90HP and two full sized bubbas in it.



If the 90 is modified for higher performance, is that necesarily a bad thing? I didn't see a name on the prop but it was marked 48 72760A4 23P. any ideas?



thanks for all the responses so far.

 

[David Sailer]

Mike:



My 2001 175 sport has had that soft spot in the floor, since the day it was new. I think the floor is solid, but it is the lid for the ski locker that shifts and gives. I once thought about going inside the ski locker and bracing it somehow, but lazy kicked in, and it hasn't gotten any worse.



I also think the 23p stainless may be a little big on the prop, as most stainless props also have a larger diameter. This size prop may give a great top end, but slow hole shot.

This boat/motor combo comes standare with a 12.5 x 23 prop. Over the years, I have spent an obscene amount of money trying to make this little boat go fast. This is a 45mph, boat, on it's best day. After many tries and failed attempts, I settled on a 12.75 x 21

alum prop, which provides the best all round performance.

 

[mike daniels]

Thanks,



I did some googling and the prop number came up for ths some 90 older sized mercuriser motors. My main concern is that it wasn't so big of a prop that it was loading the motor and causing damage to it. BUT I did see more recommendations for 19 - 21 pitch props on 90 motors.



Which props did you try on this boat? You have a 90 on it right?

 

[Berry Lindley]

If it maxes out at 5200 the pitch is too much. There is a Merc performance web site where you can play with this. I don't know what kind of modifications you would do to this, but the 90 is pretty much a tank. I had an oil line bust on one years ago and ran it without oil for 10 minutes. Unbelieveably it didn't hurt it. I'm on my second boat with a 90 Merc, and maintenance has been plugs, and impellers, (it is garaged).