On 11/8/2017 2:20 PM, Tim wrote:

11:58 AMMr. Luddite
- show quoted text -
Isn't that the Pontiac "Iron Duke" engine? My first boat had it.

...
No. Actually it was based on half of a 460 CID Ford.like they cut one bank off. They did an alternator Staton similar to an outboard and put the really weak stator behind the harmonic balancer. When it toasted ( and they all did) you then had to pull off the balancer, pulleys, waterpump and brackets to change it.
Like a poster said, they had lots of low end torque and the engine was reliable, but the charging system wasn’t..
True, Mercuiser designed and built it. It was probably canned after three years because it was cheaper to buy somebody else’s engines instead of mess with their own..

BTWsomebody came up with a bolt-on kit to put a cheap self-exciting car alternator on the engine and a few years ago was getting a premium $4-700.00 out of the kit. That seemed outrageous. But was cheaper than a shop doing a single stator swap....



Interesting adaptations of automotive/truck engine for marine use.

The first ocean going boat I had was a 20 foot something or other with
the "Iron Duke" 4 cylinder engine. I can't for the life of me remember
who the boat manufacturer was. It was a relatively well known name ...
like Donzi or something and had a small cuddy cabin that I used to sleep
in. I wish I could remember who the heck made it.