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View Full Version : 22 Classic with a Volvo DPX drive



blackhawk
03-18-2006, 06:46 PM
A friend of mine is looking at a 22 Classic with the Volvo 385 DPX package. I know these drives are great but my concern is how well of a job Donzi did setting up the boat. X-dimension, prop selection, etc.

Has anyone on the board actually driven one? I know this has been brought up a couple times but I searched and couldn't find anything where anyone had any seat time.

Thanks :D

MOP
03-18-2006, 06:58 PM
I have seen the ads for one stating it was faster then a Bravo boat, not sure if it is true. There was a thread just a few weeks back by a gal I know here in NY that was hot to buy one set up that way, I am not sure if she did any testing.

Link: http://www.donzi.net/forums/showthread.php?t=43706&highlight=dpx

Phil

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 07:06 PM
I have seen the ads for one stating it was faster then a Bravo boat, not sure if it is true. There was a thread just a few weeks back by a gal I know here in NY that was hot to buy one set up that way, I am not sure if she did any testing.
Link: http://www.donzi.net/forums/showthread.php?t=43706&highlight=dpx
Phil

Phil,

I haven't heard seen anything on here from Sue since that thread and I see that boat is still for sale.

I know that the drive is a great drive. And I know that it should handle great if Donzi set it up right. But since they made so few I have no idea how well they set it up. :confused:

MOP
03-18-2006, 07:16 PM
When I was on the wrench's I worked at a large Grady dealership, I was the only Volvo tech out on eastern Long Island. We got one of the first dou's when they came out, we got to play with them a fair bit. I can say for a fact that a 25 grady with a single prop against the same set up in dou was a lot faster out of the hole and a tiny bit faster on top. All of us thought the opposite having to turn two props should take more power but it still did better a better then the single in that app. The drives have prover to be near bullistic and will hold a bunch more HP then most others.

Phil

DAULEY
03-18-2006, 07:22 PM
the boat sue was buying had some problems after it was surveyed
bad compression on 4 cyc and drive problems

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 07:23 PM
When I was on the wrench's I worked at a large Grady dealership, I was the only Volvo teck out on eastern Long Island. We got one of the frst dou's when they came out, we got to play with them a fair bit. I can say for a fact that a 25 grady with a single prop against the same set up in dou was a lot faster out of the hole and a tiny bit faster on top. All of us thought the opposite having to turn two props should take more power but it still did better a better then the single in that app. The drives have prover to be near bullistic and will hold a bunch more HP then most others.
Phil

Phil, you're saying the DP was quicker and faster, right? And you're right these drives are pretty much bulletproof! I have been in several DP-S boats and I know they holeshot and accelerate like a slingshot! :D

I can't believe no one from the board has driven one!

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 07:24 PM
the boat sue was buying had some problems after it was surveyed
bad compression on 4 cyc and drive problems

Do you know if she or anyone else drove it?

Thanks

MOP
03-18-2006, 07:25 PM
Scott I will call her on monday to see what she can tell me.

DAULEY
03-18-2006, 07:29 PM
she did drive it also she had the mech drive it

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 07:41 PM
Scott I will call her on monday to see what she can tell me.

Thanks Phil that would be great.

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 07:42 PM
she did drive it also she had the mech drive it

Did either of them comment on the handling?

Dr. Dan
03-18-2006, 09:43 PM
Did either of them comment on the handling?

:wavey: Well seeing as everyone but Sue is responding I might as well pile on?

Sue has never really had alot of Seat Time in a Classic so her comparison would be cryptic at best. The Boat in question GPS'd at about 68 mph with a bit of uncomfortable noise in the driveline. The other comments were accurate, Compression was not great and some other items, kinda a shame considering the age of the boat and its rarity.

She is onto better things currently, stay tuned........

Doc of Speculative Analysis :wavey:

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 09:57 PM
:wavey: Well seeing as everyone but Sue is responding I might as well pile on?
Sue has never really had alot of Seat Time in a Classic so her comparison would be cryptic at best. The Boat in question GPS'd at about 68 mph with a bit of uncomfortable noise in the driveline. The other comments were accurate, Compression was not great and some other items, kinda a shame considering the age of the boat and its rarity.
She is onto better things currently, stay tuned........
Doc of Speculative Analysis :wavey:

That is a shame about the compression being down with only 50 hours. I wonder about the driveline noise as I read a few threads that said the DPX has a certain sound to it. I guess it's irrelevant after you find low compression.

It looks like the DPX drive was mounted at the same X as a Bravo so that is a good thing. That means Donzi wasn't experimenting. I have to think the handling would be awesome. If my friend pursues this I may have to take a road trip with him and find out for myself! :D

BUIZILLA
03-18-2006, 10:43 PM
The DPX boat Sue had a deposit on, was in Florida..... I spoke to her for over an hour yesterday, she is moving on...

Not to be confused with the boat advertised in Indiana....

JH

blackhawk
03-18-2006, 11:32 PM
The DPX boat Sue had a deposit on, was in Florida..... I spoke to her for over an hour yesterday, she is moving on...
Not to be confused with the boat advertised in Indiana....
JH

Yeah I knew they weren't the same boat I was just looking for some input on the handling from someone.

sue
03-19-2006, 08:57 AM
Hi to every one! First of all, I would like to explain a few things. I did not post on this site because I thought that there was a chance that I might be still buying the boat. Jim at Bay Area Water Sports had taken the boat in on trade & I truly believe that he had no knowledge of anything being wrong with this boat. When Tommy from Top Cat Marine found problems, Jim assured me that every thing would be completely fixed at his expense. He is very nice to deal with & seems very upfront & honest. I feel badly about the whole deal. After allot of research I was very excited about the Volvo 385HP with the DPX package. I really wanted that boat but I do not know how much time it will take to find out every thing that is wrong & when it will be fixed. I had to move on. The boat had 120 hours on it & there just should not be that many things wrong with it. Some of the problems could have been caused by the previous owner letting it sit for a long period of time with no maintainance.

In reference to the sea trial which was on a very small lake: I got the boat up to 68.5 GPS with all of the problems including compression problems. My guess is that if the lake were bigger & the boat was running properly you would probably see maybe 72mph. I have run many boats but as Dan said, I am new to the Classic's. It was impossible to tell how fast she would take off because as soon as I hit it, I had to back off. I heard some cavatation, some noise that sounded like the drive & allot of vibration. I knew that some thing was wrong. Once I got the boat on a plane (which I did slowly to get thru the vibration etc.), it handled very well. I never touched the tabs, only the trim. The external steering was unbelievable. Very responsive. It was great! My opinion is that if I had my choice, I would prefer the dual prop. I am not experienced with the classic's, but I am experienced with many other boats. You can't beat the dual prop when it comes to handling the boat. If any one has any questions, I will do the best I can to respond appropiatly with my limited experience in the Classic's. Please excuse my spelling as I can not find a spell check.

Sue

MOP
03-19-2006, 09:25 AM
Hi Sue was going to give Joan a call to get your number which I miss placed, glad you popped in. Sorry the boat did not work out, the compression thing would stop anyone, the viabration from the drive sounds like what I ran into on the Blackhawk when I had it on my boat. The props were out of time by about 5 splines which made them air out and caused a fair viabration, once I correctly timed them it was glass smooth with a fantastic bite in the water.

Phil

blackhawk
03-19-2006, 10:08 AM
Hi to every one! First of all, I would like to explain a few things. I did not post on this site because I thought that there was a chance that I might be still buying the boat. Jim at Bay Area Water Sports had taken the boat in on trade & I truly believe that he had no knowledge of anything being wrong with this boat. When Tommy from Top Cat Marine found problems, Jim assured me that every thing would be completely fixed at his expense. He is very nice to deal with & seems very upfront & honest. I feel badly about the whole deal. After allot of research I was very excited about the Volvo 385HP with the DPX package. I really wanted that boat but I do not know how much time it will take to find out every thing that is wrong & when it will be fixed. I had to move on. The boat had 120 hours on it & there just should not be that many things wrong with it. Some of the problems could have been caused by the previous owner letting it sit for a long period of time with no maintainance.
In reference to the sea trial which was on a very small lake: I got the boat up to 68.5 GPS with all of the problems including compression problems. My guess is that if the lake were bigger & the boat was running properly you would probably see maybe 72mph. I have run many boats but as Dan said, I am new to the Classic's. It was impossible to tell how fast she would take off because as soon as I hit it, I had to back off. I heard some cavatation, some noise that sounded like the drive & allot of vibration. I knew that some thing was wrong. Once I got the boat on a plane (which I did slowly to get thru the vibration etc.), it handled very well. I never touched the tabs, only the trim. The external steering was unbelievable. Very responsive. It was great! My opinion is that if I had my choice, I would prefer the dual prop. I am not experienced with the classic's, but I am experienced with many other boats. You can't beat the dual prop when it comes to handling the boat. If any one has any questions, I will do the best I can to respond appropiatly with my limited experience in the Classic's. Please excuse my spelling as I can not find a spell check.
Sue

Sue, thank you very much for your input! Good luck with your search. :D

Jim@BAWS
03-24-2006, 10:11 AM
It is to bad that Sue was not able to get the boat. I am sure that she would agree that there was nothing to hide here at our dealership, Bay Area WaterSports. I am a MasterCraft Dealer and took the boat in on trade from a person in Virginia. All of Sue's concerns have been addressed and checked and or fixed. The head had 1 bad intake valve seat. A real fluke. It has been professionally machined and replaced to spec. The DPX drive seemed to have a SLIGHT vibration. The drive was removed at an authorized VOLVO PENTA dealer and checked...no problems found. The DUO PROPS have been sent out to be reconned and dynamic balanced. All is in perfect order and to say the least the boat is IMMACULATE. Like I said I am a MasterCraft dealer and would like to see some enthusiast pickup this boat. It has a Z-CARE extended warranty on the package transferable to the next owner and has NEVER seen a drop of salt. If anyone would like to speak to me about the boat please call (813) 996 2297 or email me at jim.baws@verizon.net The boat has been relisted in the classifieds of donzi.net

blackhawk
03-24-2006, 05:07 PM
It is to bad that Sue was not able to get the boat. I am sure that she would agree that there was nothing to hide here at our dealership, Bay Area WaterSports. I am a MasterCraft Dealer and took the boat in on trade from a person in Virginia. All of Sue's concerns have been addressed and checked and or fixed. The head had 1 bad intake valve seat. A real fluke. It has been professionally machined and replaced to spec. The DPX drive seemed to have a SLIGHT vibration. The drive was removed at an authorized VOLVO PENTA dealer and checked...no problems found. The DUO PROPS have been sent out to be reconned and dynamic balanced. All is in perfect order and to say the least the boat is IMMACULATE. Like I said I am a MasterCraft dealer and would like to see some enthusiast pickup this boat. It has a Z-CARE extended warranty on the package transferable to the next owner and has NEVER seen a drop of salt. If anyone would like to speak to me about the boat please call (813) 996 2297 or email me at jim.baws@verizon.net The boat has been relisted in the classifieds of donzi.net

Glad to hear the boat is good to go! I didn't think there would be anything wrong with that drive! :D