‘92 Formula 357 Winter Project
#1
Registered
Thread Starter
‘92 Formula 357 Winter Project
Hey everyone!!
First time posting on here. Been reading these forums for years and they’re always helpful.
Going to re-power my baby over the winter. I currently have a pair of 502BBC with Bravos. Top Speed is 72mph.
My biggest goal it to equip the boat with power big enough so I can cruise in the high 70s and maybe Top Speed in 87-92mph area!
Is this possible? How??
I know it’s a heavy boat without a step in the hull but there’s gotta be a way!
Anything you guys got for me is much appreciated! Would love the conversation.
First time posting on here. Been reading these forums for years and they’re always helpful.
Going to re-power my baby over the winter. I currently have a pair of 502BBC with Bravos. Top Speed is 72mph.
My biggest goal it to equip the boat with power big enough so I can cruise in the high 70s and maybe Top Speed in 87-92mph area!
Is this possible? How??
I know it’s a heavy boat without a step in the hull but there’s gotta be a way!
Anything you guys got for me is much appreciated! Would love the conversation.
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357 SR1 (01-14-2024)
#2
BEACH PARTY
Platinum Member
Running in the 70s with a 357 is an accomplishment in itself. They’ve got to be making 550-600hp a side to run those numbers. Cruising in the 70s with speeds in the upper 80’s/low 90’s is going to be a huge undertaking.
Big cubic inches. Superchargers. Drives (and if TRS… transmissions) that can handle the power and weight. Big boat!
Will be interesting to see where this goes!
We love pictures!
Big cubic inches. Superchargers. Drives (and if TRS… transmissions) that can handle the power and weight. Big boat!
Will be interesting to see where this goes!
We love pictures!
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badmonkey (10-06-2023)
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357 SR1 (01-14-2024)
#6
Registered
FWIW, make your big power engines reliable and refrain from making so much power that you’ll be replacing drives regularly. Using the boat is so much more enjoyable than constantly wrenching on it.
The following 4 users liked this post by sonicss42:
#7
21 and 42 footers
Platinum Member
You'll need roughly 1,000hp each to hit 90 mph........no way in hell those Bravo drives last more than a couple hours behind that. Surface drives would survive the HP and also help you achieve faster speeds.
Now you've spent a stupid amount of money to make a slow boat still slow by today's standards.
The best way to "cruise" around at 70 is to run the boat WOT knowing you're going to be rebuilding the existing motors much sooner.
Now you've spent a stupid amount of money to make a slow boat still slow by today's standards.
The best way to "cruise" around at 70 is to run the boat WOT knowing you're going to be rebuilding the existing motors much sooner.
#8
Registered
Thread Starter
Would it be more sensible to have a goal of doing 80ish for this project? If I go with a pair of 540s that make somewhere between 650-700hp do we think that the Bravo 1 drives that I have now can handle that? What causes a drive to break? Is it too much HP and Torque or is it more of someone just spinning the drives when they get airborne?
#9
Registered
Without a stepped hull it takes large increases in power for small gains in speed. I've had 3 Formula SR-1's (272,311,357) and while they are great boats in the rough they are not designed for top end speed.A 38 Fountain, for example will run 85 mph with HP500's, which is about 20 mph faster than a 357 will do with the same power. Keep the Formula reliable and enjoy it for what it's made for.