Zr6 or excaliber in 2008 which one

[west coast slayer]

I'm buying a boat soon and would like to know what are the pros and cons of each motor in a 2008 ski nautique 196. I'm trying to decide between two boats, one has zr6 and other has excaliber. What are the differences besides closed cooling?

[firefighter]

I would go with the 6 LTR with all the emissions on the motors in CA if given a choice, the 6 LTR is an awesome motor. If price or hours are an issue you really cannot go wrong with the smaller motor. All the promos have the 343 and they have no performance issues.
good luck

[shag]

I have driven both and imo I don't think there is significant difference. I only noticed slightly more power, and I just feel it more mechanical maintenance. Again, just my opinion.

[gride]

Zr6 is lighter, closed cooled, has strainer, and being more powerful and brackish/salt ready the resale will be easy for any part of country.

[west coast slayer]

I am worried about fuel consumption somewhat, I hear the actual fuel used would be slightly more than the 343 but not a huge difference. My biggest concern is how does the boat affect a skier skiing in the course? Does it feel like a firmer pull than the smaller motor or is it about the same feeling?I have had two ski nautiques in the past and both were more than adequate with 330 hp range. Not really looking for anymore power but have a chance to get a sweet boat and it just happens to have the zr6.

[skiinxs]

I am worried about fuel consumption somewhat, I hear the actual fuel used would be slightly more than the 343 but not a huge difference. My biggest concern is how does the boat affect a skier skiing in the course? Does it feel like a firmer pull than the smaller motor or is it about the same feeling?I have had two ski nautiques in the past and both were more than adequate with 330 hp range. Not really looking for anymore power but have a chance to get a sweet boat and it just happens to have the zr6.

I have had six 6-liters and two 5.7's in 196's ('02 thru '09). My experience is that the 6-liter's used slightly less fuel than the 5.7's. I believe that this is due to being a more modern engine with much more efficient head design. If you ran both boats wide open, the 6-liters would certainly burn more fuel, but that is not the way I run my boats. The 6-liters were good for 3-4 more mph at top end, had a much stronger mid-range punch, not a lot of diffeence out of the hole. I couldn't tell any difference from the slalom handle end, although there are people who are convinced that it is a firmer pull. THe 409 version in my 2011 200 seems a lot stronger than the 343 in last years 200, I think it breathes a lot better than the 390 hp version and has a 5600 red line vs 5300 in the 390 hp version. I have always liked the 6-liters better, but they are a lot more expensive.
Dave

[jjackkrash]

I am worried about fuel consumption somewhat, I hear the actual fuel used would be slightly more than the 343 but not a huge difference. My biggest concern is how does the boat affect a skier skiing in the course? Does it feel like a firmer pull than the smaller motor or is it about the same feeling?I have had two ski nautiques in the past and both were more than adequate with 330 hp range. Not really looking for anymore power but have a chance to get a sweet boat and it just happens to have the zr6.

With ZO you are holding on to the throttle when you ski. I am a big fat f***er who likes to yoke it. Behind the boat, I'd rather have the 343 until I learn how to ski correctly. Other opinions may differ.

[tdc_worm]

I have extensive experience w/ both the Excal and the Zr6 in 210s, 220s, and 236/230s.

resale---didnt see a single penny out of the resale on my 220.
weight---aluminum heads are on the order of 50lbs lighter than iron heads. negligible in a 4000lb boat in my opinion. In 2006 the 196 tipped the scales at 2640 lbs before fuel, gear etc. 50lbs would be a 1.9% weight increase.
power---out of the hole, no difference...top end, the Zr6 will outrun the Excal in similar setups. Prop your boat accordingly.
fuel consumption---if i am worried about that in a 4000lb, $80k boat, i probably cant afford the boat to begin with (advantage does go to the VVT on the exhaust stroke of the Zr6)
strainers---both engines have strainers and need to be protected from lake debris.

Buxton marine in Dallas is the #1 dealer by volume in North America. They spec all of their shop builds (correct me if I am wrong) w/ the Excal (up to an including the 230). If the Excal were not sufficient, neither CC nor Buxton would lead with that engine, and Buxton's volume would certainly suffer.

Barefooters and people 4000 feet above sea level are sure to be the exception to the norm....

[rv6fly]

I have a 2008 220 with ZR6 (45 hrs) and with the factory ballast, 2 x 750 lb vdrive sacs, 750 lb bow sac, and the 650 lb arrow sac. I only use the 1 aft sacs (all other ballast full) when surfing, but in messing around I had all ballast full with only one other person in the boat and it seems very slow to come out of the water so slow I don't think I could have pulled a rider up does this seem right (too much aft weight)? Not that I'd ever even need to ride with this much ballast.

For wakeboarding I use the hard tanks and the bow and ski locker sacs full and its still pretty sluggish to pull a 240 lb rider is this what you guys would expect?

I have dinged my prop (acme 1234 I think) before twice to be exact, but have alway used a reputable shop to fix it. I'm wondering if I need to have them recheck it for the pitch and cup?

[NautiUT]

+1 for ZR6. It is needed for higher elevation. Sea level not the case. We travel to some mountain lakes over 6k.

[AllianceBJJ]

Buxton marine in Dallas is the #1 dealer by volume in North America. They spec all of their shop builds (correct me if I am wrong) w/ the Excal (up to an including the 230). If the Excal were not sufficient, neither CC nor Buxton would lead with that engine, and Buxton's volume would certainly suffer.

FWIW, this is true.

I've had the 343 in my last 3 boats and have not ever wished I had more....