On Mon, 28 Mar 2005 20:49:37 GMT, "Peter Aitken"
wrote:

Also what about noise? It seems that having 2 turbocharged diesels right
under you would be a lot noisier than having a couple of 4 strokes hanging
off the transom.

That is true with regard to noise. The only really compelling reason
to go diesel is fuel range as far as I'm concerned. For the same
tankage you will be able to go about twice as far. I'd also tend to
agree that the ride would be somewhat better with the weight in the
middle but the advantage of that is hard to quantify.

As others have mentioned, the outboards will be faster and probably
easier/cheaper to maintain. Diesels probably have the edge on
longevity and resale value. The argument between 2 stroke and 4
stroke outboards usually takes on a religious tone but there is no
question that the 2 strokes are lighter.