Bravo XZ.....

[Donziweasel]

This drive has been recommended to me if I decide to really push the power. Problem is, I can't find chit about it. Nothing on the Merc website or anywhere. I see them for sale, but that is all.

What is the HP rating? is the X the same as the Bravo? Wieght? Thanks.

Too be honest, I like the Bravo III XR.

[RedDog]

I think Jill (Roadtrip's better) had one on the 18 Scorpion - it broke at AOTH last year (as did my standard Bravo and Catch 22s Bravo something)

[BigGrizzly]

DW. My suggestion is drive what you have until it breaks. It may never fail, or it may fail tomorrow. Point is Sometimes the set up is incorrect or it hasn't been broken. Trust me Drives need to be broken in oe the tolerances get screwed up. There are guys that never have trouble and others that can't keep it together. Some times it just happens. Road Trip Lost his drive after 4 years, He will tell you he wasn't the nicest guy on the block to it. A friend of mine ( name excluded for fear of living in the past) Has a 24 Python with a 383 small block and a 1071 blower on it with well over 850 Clydesdales in it. He has been accused of being an old lady when accelerating even slower then me. He has NEVER had trouble with his BravoI drive3 with the shorty on it. Yet another guy with the sister engine of mine has eaten 11 drives in less then a summer. It is a crap shoot. At this point I have over 150 more HP then my drive can handle and broke it twice. The first time the trans let go at Cumberland and chipped a tooth then last year after 800 hours it happened again Trans let go and cracked a tooth ago. This is the best way I know on How to relate it to you. Save the coin and buy the twins something to wear in the boat.

[BUIZILLA]

Too be honest, I like the Bravo III XR. :yes: :yes:

[Donziweasel]

Randy,
Not looking for a new drive, going to run what I have. My Bravo is bradn new with only 18 hours on it. I am also pretty conservative with drives. I have owned 9 boats with Alphas and Bravos and haven't grenaded one yet. Just wondering about the XZ. It has come up a few times and I just want to info on it. It is not on the Merc website.

If I grenade mine, I will probably go to an XR upper and Imco -0 or -1 lower.

[LKSD]

The XZ is a HD bravo as well. The gears are cut differently in the upper end & they still use a 1.25" propshaft like an XR. If I remember correctly the xz has spiral cut gears like a reg bravo but heavier if I remember correctly. They were used for a while, but are not as common as the XR. The B1X is the slightly redisigned B1 performance Diesel drive with a different label and rear angular upper housing. It is heavier than the standard B1, but not as heavy as the XR.. ;) Jamie / Lakeside

[SilverBack]

The XZ is a step down from an XR. The XZ has spiral cut gears and the XR has straight cut gears. The XZ gears are supposed to have less drag. You get your gear ratio in the upper of an XZ and in the lower of an XR. IMCO used XZ gears for a while when they were having trouble with XR gears. That was the big problem with my boat... It had XZ gears in the upper and XR gears in the lower. Therefore we were changing the gear ratio in the upper and lower! Not good! I don't think that there is over 75 HP rating difference between the two!

[VetteLT193]

If I remember right the lower of the XR and XZ are the same. The uppers, like jamie said, are different with the XR having straight cut gears.

They don't make the XZ anymore. It seems that everyone that has had an XZ has toasted the upper at some point. I speculate that the lower was too beefy for the upper so it caused more problems than it was worth. The purpose of the upper gear difference was to cut down on noise. I remember the price tag wasn't much less than the XR so it probably seemed pointless to keep the XZ around.

I also agree it is worth keeping what you have for the time being.

[roadtrip se]

If I were going to pick from new, I would go XR...

XZ upper can be updated with a heavier gear set, which is what we did when Jill's let go, but why bother?

As for the B3, somebody has got to try it. Runs pretty good on the 20 Cigs.

[handfulz28]

The best of everything....Bravo III XR.

http://www.mercuryracing.com/drives/bravothreexr.php

What's the latest commentary on speed limitations of twin prop designs?