whipple 300 Verado upgrade

[bloodman]

Anyone know about this?
I know I know. Warrantee issues aside, I still want to know about this reprogram. They claim 40hp for $695
https://whipplesuperchargers.com/ind...product_id=276

[btsmbass]

Which verado do you have?

Also check out Simon Motorsports

He did my 225. Don't know what the new HP is. I did gain tremendous holeshot and about 11mph.

[bloodman]

I have the 300.

[btsmbass]

40hp is 40hp. I'd do it. You can't get 40hp with any other motor for that kind of value.

[EuropeanAM]

"If" I were inclined to do something like this, I would certainly go with someone that has an established record of success with this particular PCM line, and the specific Marine Engines that it's used on.

There are very few that I would trust to accurately "tinker" a calibration (safely). And since you would have (essentially) NO warranty (OEM or from the "programmer") to protect the engine... TRUST will be the only peace of mind you have.

When you cross the 300HP line on the Verado Engines... one little "improper tweak" can result in about 450# of scrap metal.

[bloodman]

"If" I were inclined to do something like this, I would certainly go with someone that has an established record of success with this particular PCM line, and the specific Marine Engines that it's used on.

There are very few that I would trust to accurately "tinker" a calibration (safely). And since you would have (essentially) NO warranty (OEM or from the "programmer") to protect the engine... TRUST will be the only peace of mind you have.

When you cross the 300HP line on the Verado Engines... one little "improper tweak" can result in about 450# of scrap metal.

That 450 pounds a scrap would suck.
But..........

[Wildcat Dude]

But..........

BUT its only MONEY - you got plenty of that right?

[EuropeanAM]

That 450 pounds a scrap would suck.
But..........

It would be a kick in the seat of the pants... while it lasted.

[btsmbass]

"If" I were inclined to do something like this, I would certainly go with someone that has an established record of success with this particular PCM line, and the specific Marine Engines that it's used on.

I wonder if that person is Eric Simon?

He did my motor, but with perfect premium 93 my motor was said to put out a little over 300. No different than your pro. That is all conjecture though, I need to get some fresh non E gas and run her on a dyno.

[speedlip]

FYI Whipple has a VERY informed Mercury tunner ......

[jshill2]

[QUOTE=bloodman;6064910]Anyone know about this?
I know I know. Warrantee issues aside, I still want to know about this reprogram. They claim 40hp for $695
https://whipplesuperchargers.com/ind...product_id=276[/QUOTE

I had been looking to upgrade my tired 225 Hondas on my 35' center console for about a year and was looking at Yamahas and Verados. I love Yamahas but they simply weighed too much for my application. I did extensive research on the Verados and found some good deals available on used engines since many owners of tripple 275 and tripple 300s were swapping for twin 350s when it was time to repower. Operating cost is way lower on twins vs. trips and most didn't lose much speed at all. I spoke at length with Billy at Pro Marine in Clearwater, FL - Billy is an extremely knowledgeable tech and former crew chief/guru for serious offshore racing boats that use the super high power inboard mercury engines etc. Pro Marine is a first rate shop with some very significant talent. Billy introduced me to Dustin Whipple and shared with me a lot of the magic that he's seen the guys at Whipple produce. Long story short, in my research, I learned that the 225 - 300 verados are all mechanically identical except for the ECU. Furthermore, the ECU mapping is identical up to about 80% throttle position. The guys at Whipple like to under promise and over deliver and I respect that. I was told that Dustin would remap any 225-300 ecu I sent him to whatever I wanted up to 345hp with the stipulation that I needed to run 91 octane on the 345 hp version. Billy shipped my ecus from a set of used 275hp verados to Dustin and we had him flash them to the 350 spec with 345 actual HP (research and you'll see that <1.5% below advertised hp is actually much closer than most factory engines produce). I had Prop Gods assist with prop selection (another top notch outfit - he ended up recommending I stick with a set of props I already had on hand and didn't try to stiff me for a sale) and I've been running the Whipple ecus for about 18 months on my boat and couldn't be happier. The ONLY concern you should have with going above 300hp is you need to have the heavy duty lower units on the motors - which mine already had so that wasn't an issue for me. As far as performance. My 35' center console is not used as a speedboat but depending on the load it can outrun my jetski at 55mph and I have some pretty rough bottom paint on it that Prop Gods calculations and Billy's were estimating is costing me 9 - 10 mph. Again, I'm not about all about top speed etc. so I haven't worried about the bottom paint. What is extremely impressive is the boat gets on plane in seconds with no trim tabs and if you're cruising at 25 kts and firewall the throttles it will literally break the props loose with a second or two of cavitation then throw you back in the seats as it accelerates. The real reason I had no reservations about spending the very low investment on the Whipple upgrade was for offshore fishing - we have to run far out to get to the gulf stream and it's not uncommon to have to skirt around weather on the ride home. With 225s on the boat, it was too underpowered to keep the hull on top of 4' swells and ride on top of them and the boat would end up going up and down, up and down for 50 miles back to the marina. With the Whipple ecus, I can throttle up and keep the hull on top cutting through up to 6' swells skirting along the top at 40 - 50+ mph when the weather is threatening. Of course we do what we can to avoid that but I've had to run full power through a narrow 5 mile wide gap between two thunderstorm cells that grew out of nowhere in the hot FL summer. While my kids were amazed at the weather surrounding us, we stayed dry (but cool due to the thunderstorms convection) and got home to safety without having to put my family through a torrential storm. I would have gladly paid $10,000 to Whipple for that option and peace of mind... I think he only charged me $1200 or so for both ECUs. I don't beat the crap out of my motors and spend about 97% of the time outside of the 80% + throttle range so they don't get any worse wear and tear 97% of the time than a 225 Verado would. NOTE - Dustin also updated my ecu flash for the higher fuel efficiency of the most recent Gen motors etc. and I get great fuel economy too (but they do suck fuel at WOT).
Research these guys - they know their stuff. Do you think someone would have them mess with the ECUs on $100K+ motors in the race boats if they didn't know what they were doing?

Send any questions to jamesshill2 at gmail

[EuropeanAM]

James:

Welcome to BBC!

You must be one happy guy... that was one heck of a long read!

A couple of things folks should be aware of:

1. The 300hp and up Verado Engines utilize a DIFFERENT GEAR RATIO. This can be detrimental to the gearcase, as adding TOO MUCH torque and horsepower to a lower ratio case CAN have adverse affects on the lifespan of the case.

2. There ARE two different POWERHEAD versions. You can't (and SHOULD NOT) use the later/leaner calibration from a Gen-2 Verado on a Gen-1 Version Engine. Substantial internal changes in the powerhead took place that reduced "windage" (oil channeling, pistons, and piston/connecting rod oil spray tubes). The windage changes (in and of themselves) made a significant power output improvement, allowing for the fuel curve changes that were made in the calibrations.

Keep those two items in mind when playing around with PCM's.

[bloodman]

Thank you jslhill. You provided some great info for me to think about. Seems sooooooo much can be done with this platform and nice to see someone is pushing it. Thanks again!!!!