Engine Weight and Performance

[ykoutsaris]

Hi all,
I have a 20' Cigarette that I'm considering repowering. I have seen that there is a wide variety of power plants in many of the 22 classics on this site and could use the breadth of experience that this forum provides.
I was wondering, as the speed moves into the 80s and 90s, how important engine weight is from a ride perspective? More specifically, do the 200-250lb weight reduction offered by an Ilmor motor or steroid small block or 400lb reduction offered by an LS motor (vs BBC) really improve how the boat handles at speed? I run with an ITS/XR/Shorty combo so the boat already has extra weight right at the back. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Many thanks,
Yoryi

[gcarter]

I think the Cig 20 is a significantly different hull w/a lot of additional reserve buoyancy in the stern so that BBC's work well w/that hull.
I don't think that you can really compare the Cig 20 to a Donzi 22C.
I do know that 22C's do work well w/less weight in the stern.

[MOP]

If it is to light aft it will run to flat having too much wetted surface that will steal speed, yes you can compensate some with trim. You can also dial it in with ballast, you need to keep wetted surface to a minimum without over trimming.

[LKSD]

I have a few different early Cig 20's in our shop that we are redoing.

The hulls are kind of like a heavy cross between an 18c & 22c, but they are definitely their own hull and set up. The hulls are laid up quite heavily too.. They too have gone thur a few different generations of cig 20, but overall they still all have the same essence..

Bigger power is cool in them. Weight reduction is usually always a good thing. The were some small blocks that made it into some of them, but they do usually respond better bigger power & torque.. Enter the BBC... The 2 in my shop are going to be running bib blocks. 1 is getting a 540 put in that we just dyno'ed @ 650+hp / 660+tq.... The other cig 20 will be getting a big block as well, we just have not nailed down what flavor BBC is going in (502/509/540/572) and exactly what power level other than it will be at least 5-600hp..

We did look at possibly putting in a high HP SBC, but to put a big hp & tq sbc is still more costly than the BBC at this point to do right.. However there was one done recently that worked out pretty well, but it didnt yeild any huge speed #'s.. It was in the 70's somewhere if I remember correctly. Most of the Cig 20 guys want to see 80's or 90 if possible on a good day.. There have also been a couple that have crossed the 100 mark too.. That though IMO is a bit much in a 20' boat..

Jamie / Lakeside Restorations.

[gcarter]

I haven't seen a lot of Cig 20's, but when viewed next to a Donzi, they are really different!!!!!!
If you look at a 22C or a Minx, the widest part of the bottom is at about station 7 or 8, then it narrows a bit.
On a Cig 20, the widest part of the bottom is at station 10, right at the transom. This is to allow the 20 to have the buoyancy to support the weight of a BBC w/o the stern squat of an 18C w/a BBC.
To me, it seemed as though Cig took a 24' mold and put a 4' plug in the stern.
Who knows?
Maybe they did!

[LKSD]

Yes, indeed they are not the same as a classic.. They just share in the same Aronow family design heritage..

[Sweet little 16]

there have been a few modifications on the 20 cig over the years. the early ones were setup for small block power and had larger cockpit areas. Then they moved the rear seat forward and made the bilge area bigger for big block power. The next modification was adding a pad to the later ones.


There is a video( floating somewhere on the web) of a pad bottom 20 cig running at 100 mph it is rock solid and running on rails. whatever that setup is I would say would be " perfect".