2013 Sport 200 engine options, 343 vs 409

[mpc]

I am ordering a 2013 Sport 200 and I would like some help in deciding which engine to go with. Any feed back would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Surfsmith]

mpc,

I have a 2011 200 with the 343. For our family of 4, a couple extra friends along, factory ballast, and the usual gear the 343 seems more than adequate for surfing, wakeboarding and slalom. How much heavier is the 409? What is you primary use going to be? I try to stay on the light side to optimize the slalom wake.

Beautiful city you live in.

[mpc]

Surfsmith,

Thank you for your reply, I have been trying to find out the weight of each engine but have been unsuccessful. I cannot find that info on the Nautique and PCM websites. Does anyone know the engine weights?

[xlair]

I think the 409 is something like 30-70 lbs lighter due to aluminum heads.

[j2nh]

409 is 20 lbs lighter than the 343. PCM used to put the weights up on their website, I just checked and they are not there anymore.

The 343 is a great, bullet proof engine. The 409 is also a great engine and yes the extra HP can be felt. If money is not an issue, HP is king.

[mpc]

409 is 20 lbs lighter than the 343. PCM used to put the weights up on their website, I just checked and they are not there anymore.

The 343 is a great, bullet proof engine. The 409 is also a great engine and yes the extra HP can be felt. If money is not an issue, HP is king.

Yes I checked their site and no weights -Thank you! HP is king and too bad they do not offer the ZR450 like in the 200-OB/CB.

[mcinmylo]

I have a 2012 343, works great even when fully load, we've had 9 people and 1500 lbs of ballast and it pull a wakeboarder or surfs no problem

[mpc]

I have a 2012 343, works great even when fully load, we've had 9 people and 1500 lbs of ballast and it pull a wakeboarder or surfs no problem

I sure sounds like the 343 is a great engine for the boat, I was just thinking of a bit more excitement when cruising - it may not need it. I hope you are not out wake boarding and surfing at this time of the year in Winnipeg, it may be a bit chilly.

[Quinner]

If you plan on doing any barefooting with it, could be a challenge with the 343 for anybody over 150lbs.

[mpc]

If you plan on doing any barefooting with it, could be a challenge with the 343 for anybody over 150lbs.

Thank you for your input, I believe I am too old and too wise for that.

[81nautique]

It's not a great barefoot boat anyway so to me the $5000 for the 409 was not wise money. We have the 343 in our 2012. Loaded up we carry factory 750 lbs plus 1200 lbs extra and it handles it fine.

[Mikeski]

One other minor thing to consider is the difference in the technology of these motors. The 343 is based on a Chevy truck motor that has not been used since 1998, the 409 is based on the current LSX Chevy motors. The LSX motors have much stronger bottom ends, 6 bolt main bearings versus 2 bolt mains on the 343. I have seen a MasterCraft with an Indmar Monsoon 340 throw a couple rods through the pan. The Monsoon is similar technology to the 343 so it could have the same weakness. The 409 also comes with closed cooling through the block and heads so you could run it in salt or heavy minerals with less concern. Most guys running salt choose this option over a closed cooled 343 for this reason.

I have given some consideration to buying a new 200V myself and would highly prefer the 409. I am a barefooter so it matters to me but that is not my only reason. My 2005 SV211 with the EX330 did fine on the test drive but I have found myself begging for more power on more than a few occasions. These V drives don't do that well pulling up a heavy slalom skier on a small ski. The 409 power would be much better if you were challenged by a full boat in this scenario.

I wish the price difference was not so much, last time I checked it was something like a $5k option.

[mpc]

One other minor thing to consider is the difference in the technology of these motors. The 343 is based on a Chevy truck motor that has not been used since 1998, the 409 is based on the current LSX Chevy motors. The LSX motors have much stronger bottom ends, 6 bolt main bearings versus 2 bolt mains on the 343. I have seen a MasterCraft with an Indmar Monsoon 340 throw a couple rods through the pan. The Monsoon is similar technology to the 343 so it could have the same weakness. The 409 also comes with closed cooling through the block and heads so you could run it in salt or heavy minerals with less concern. Most guys running salt choose this option over a closed cooled 343 for this reason.

I have given some consideration to buying a new 200V myself and would highly prefer the 409. I am a barefooter so it matters to me but that is not my only reason. My 2005 SV211 with the EX330 did fine on the test drive but I have found myself begging for more power on more than a few occasions. These V drives don't do that well pulling up a heavy slalom skier on a small ski. The 409 power would be much better if you were challenged by a full boat in this scenario.

I wish the price difference was not so much, last time I checked it was something like a $5k option.

Great information - Thank you!

[swc5150]

If money is not the deciding factor, go 409. You'll notice the difference on the top end, and if you have a loaded boat. I ski behind a 343 and love it btw.

[Mikeski]

mpc,

I little more detailed information. You may get several replies to your inquiry from guys with ski boats running the 1.23:1 transmission ratios, not 1.5:1 V-drive units. The reason why I bring this up is that there is a significant difference when you are comparing these two motors in the different configurations. The stall speed (rpm you motor would spin when floored and the boat "stalled" was pushing against a solid object) of the V-drive is significantly higher than it is for a direct drive. For example the stall speed of my boat is about 3400rpms running the factory team prop. I believe the stall speed for a direct drive is about 2800rpms (needs to be confirmed). The difference in power between these motors is not as recognizable at holeshot when the comparison is made in the direct drive configuration.

Here are some power charts from the GM marine motor website. The PCM tuning raises the peak horsepower rating but I am guessing the shape of the curve is somewhat relative.

Can't seem to get the images resized but here is a link to the website where you can compare the 5.7L based 343 to the L96 based 409: http://gmpowertrain.com/MarineEngine...Portfolio.aspx

You can see the L96 based motor builds power and torque at slightly higher RPMs than the 5.7L motors.