[Hunter12345]

i just finished the paperwork on trading in my bayliner capri for mint 1998 mriah shabah 180 se. It has had a re power from its original 4.3l merc to a 5.7l 260 hp 350 (vortech) it has the bravo 3 duo prop set up.
Being the end of the season, im just getting it winterized and wraped until mext summer.

The dealer said she'll do 60 mph @ 4600 wot.
Im aware that there are hundreds of variables involved but just for giggles, what are some of rhe shabah owners getting for top speeds on their mariahs? And how do the 180's handle with that much motor in the back end? It is equipped with smart tabs. I had posted pictures in the gallery but only one made it.

Thanks for any replies!

[mikeyt]

I dont think anyone else here has been silly enough to put 260 hp on the tail of their 180 but i do remember reading a thread over at one of the other forums regarding that conversion. Added about 140 lbs to the boat, caused some chine walking at speed and I'm not sure what strength arms you have on your Smart Tabs (I'm assuming you have 60#) you may have to change out those arms for 80# ones....... and then there's the minor issue of insurance / liability and being in compliance with the coast guard tag... if that's important to you.

The one thing you did get right though was dumping that dammed Bayliner in favour of a Mariah.

[Hunter12345]

Haha! Tell me about it. That bayliner was nothing but issues for the season. 1st season ive owned a larger in board, but love boating. So the owner of the new dealer i delt with has a realtive who was the original owner of this mariah. He's the one who did the re power. He babied that boat. Its immaculate. He says the boat performs very well,
Thanks for the pointer on the smart tabs ive read and am still learning, there is a lot to know. Ive heard the older mariah's are the boats to own, nack then the hulls where lifetime warranty,
What is chine walking?
The original motor was the 4.3l
Thanks again for the info.

[Hunter12345]

Ive heard that that era ( the old mariah company) built some of the best quality boats even better than most built today. Is that true?

[Hunter12345]

Im just on this tap talk trying ro figure out how to post picture :\


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[mikeyt]

Originally Posted by Hunter12345

Ive heard that that era ( the old mariah company) built some of the best quality boats even better than most built today. Is that true?

Yes. Hulls were a bit heavier than most & the boat was well constructed. If looked after they make excellent used boats.

[Hunter12345]

Thanks mikeyt, i haven't water tested it yet, do you think the 5.7l merc in this size mariah is too much?
Ive been told the hull's are more than capable of handling the power upgrade, the previous owner says its amazing, older fella, with lots of money. Haha!


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[Paul F]

I think the boat can handle it, but the thought of going 60mph in my 18 footer makes my butt pucker. You haven't water tested it yet???

[Hunter12345]

Haha! No i have not. Its a city dealer. We don't have a 4 season cabin and being busy with work its all closed up for the winter ( canadian winters lol!) so the mariah has been winterized and stored. The old owner new the owner of the dealer, it was sold as new and had one owner. 231 hrs on the meter.
Im just going by what he told me, seems far fetched a bit, but i don't know of many boats that have that size merc, so i cant compare. Our lake is smaller, however the power would be nice to have if travelling through the lake of the woods in kenora ont. was more curious on handleing, the bravo 3 drive is way bigger than the alpha one i had before!!! Lol




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[Paul F]

So, we won't know how it runs until the ice thaws next July?