St.Tropez needs new power

[Staffan Berg]

Hi Donzi Lovers

I just bought an old St.Tropez

Do any of you have an advice what power-setup is the best for an St.Tropez.
A small V8, or is that to heavy for the boat.

Pictures:
http://www.annonsborsen.se/baatar-3/donzi-19-st-tropez-324105.html

[vonkamp]

Congratulations, thats a nice boat. That Miami Beach plaque on the back is quite cool as well. With the Volvo 290, a V8 should be fine but I'm sure other St. Tropez owners will chime in on this. That trailer is pretty stylish in it's own way too!! :)
Cheers,
Barry

[superhatz]

Cool boat Staffan......you've got great taste.

On another note.....do you have any pics of your Magnum you can e-mail me?.......before the restoration would be great too.

aaron@flat6.com

:)

[Morgan's Cloud]

Staffan,
That's pretty cool ... other than a repower it looks like it has'nt been molested since it was made.
I've just put my St T over after a 5 and a half year complete rebuild.
I removed all the old black stuff and repowered with a Volvo 5.7 Gi / SX-A
package. I'm still in the early 'run in' stage but I'd say that unless you've got a death wish you would'nt need anything more than that.
Remember , I strongly doubt that any (if at all) St T's made it out the factory door with engines greater than 300hp , which is what we're talking about here.
If you have a forward tank make sure you check it out very carefully. It's up under the floor in the bow area and pretty much inaccessible. Also examine the hull around the full length strakes. If you see what appears to be stress cracks running along them (in the right angle corner) don't assume they are just 'cosmetic' .
Maybe a certain 'new' St T owner could post a picture of mine I sent him so you can see how it sits with the engine package I mentioned. :wink:
You there Tank ? ?
Steve

[Staffan Berg]

Superhatz
Thanks - I have pictures of my Magnum before the restoration.
I will scan them and mail you some day.(read september).

Morgan
Yes - It has a forward tank - its hard to inspect - the previous owner had no problems with the tank !!!

Do you think its a good idea to replace it.
I have read somewhere that there are some St.Tropez with a second tank ???

If there are "stress cracks" - what is needed to fix it ???
Is it a problem that will come up sooner or later ?

300hp is more than I need - I just want the sound from a V8.
So am I right - a small V8 is OK ?

[Morgan's Cloud]

Staffan ,
The issue of how many tanks the St Tropez's came with is a bit confusing. Mine definitely had two from the factory .. the other being under the console. But it seems some had only one large one.
My front one was no good when I first got the boat 21 years ago but I learned to live with just the rear one , as inconvienient as it was.
The only way to remove the front tank without butchering the boat is a deck AND floor removal. Does'nt get much bigger than that as on the other Classics you only need to remove the deck.
Maybe a good sniff around will give you some clues as to it's condition.
Any 'stress cracks' around the strakes , particularly in the rear third of the running surface should be carefully examined. A very highly regarded glass man assumed mine were just stress cracks in the gelcoat that would have naturally been a bit thicker in that area.
I later realised that they were structural and on the port side were actually weeping a tiny amount of water.
Once you see the runing attitude of this hull you'll understand why they might have difficulties in this area .
To fix them properly , again , amounts to a floor out restoration.
A 350c.i./5.7L engine will fit in there so you can get your V8 sound. The St T/Hornet hull is a bit easier powered than the other classic hulls as it has a shallower V so overpowering it gets a bit risky when factoring in the lift also provided by the very flared bow.
Someone else here just mentioned this to me the other day , so I'm glad it's not my imagination.
My old 351W was about 235 crankshaft HP and it was always fun to drive...
The new 5.7Gi might be more than I need.
Steve

[Tank]

Hi Staffan
Lots of good info here on the St T!
Yes Steve I will shear them.
Staffan yours looks in good shape!
I have seen many photos of them with sb ford or chevy.
I don’t think you can go wrong with a sb mine is a 68 with a 290 Volvo and chevy 350 275 hp at crank 245 at prop!
The stock boat came with an upgrade to a 200hp interceptor that was a v8 I think?
I spoke with Browny sounds like they had one in race trim with 427
And V drive quite the hand full he said, I am sure!
GOOD LUCK with your new boat!
Brian

[Tank]

HAY
I was just looking at your photos Tanks!!
But I think it’s the first time I have seen one with out deck vents?
I think I would add them .
Just my 2 cent.
Hay Steve yours two am I the only one with them?
tank

[Morgan's Cloud]

Nice looking boat Brian ...LOL


No , mine never did have deck vents ... The transom louver is fully functional though .

[Tank]

Hi all Just so there is no misunderstandings that
was not my boat I posted earlier one very nice restore!:eek!:
I posted them for MC Steve.
This is mine not to nice but strong.
Still laying glass in my spare time.:bonk:

[Staffan Berg]

Nice to look at all photos of these good looking St.Tropez.
They are all downloaded in my StTropez folder.

I am motivated to get mine in good shape.

Thumbs up for you all out there, for all your knowledge.