Looking into getting a Ranger RT178 with a 25 HP. For those of you who are running this boat currently, I would like to hear your opinions. How does the boat do with the 25? What kind of speeds are you getting with one, two people? How does it do once the livewells are full and you have 2 people? I have seen several of these on Newton lake and would be interested in taking a ride in one at Newton to see how it does on the water before deciding if this is the boat for me.
Ive seen one out there before and he was plowing water.Personally i think custon builds are better for the 25hp
I don't have a ranger but I have the fiberglass stratos 176xt with the 25 etec. By myself I can get 22-24 mph and with a partner we get around 20. Two people and a livewell full we get about 16-18. If it's really windy and you are driving in to the wind with 2 people and a livewell full sometimes you have to sit on the front deck to get the front end down.
Thanks for the info so far. I see the Ranger 178 is about 200 lbs lighter than the stratos. That may help a bit but am guessing the numbers from the stratos will be fairly similar to the ranger. I don't expect the boat to be fast by any means but don't want it struggle to run and to get on plane. I wish Ranger made a 168 that would be closer to 17 feet that would run well with a 25. Still would like some more input from those who are currently running the 178.
Rangers website shows 20-23mph with a 25hp motor. They are pretty accurate on their advertised speeds that I've seen.
I have a V hull Crestliner. 20 with 2 big people. 22 with one. And it takes a bit to get there. But I predominantly fish no wake or restricted so I'm as fast as the guy sporting a 300.
Please release me,let me go.
When I was looking at Rangers, Hanks mechanic in Raymond said the guys who use them on coffeen get around 17 with 2 people and a full livewell with a 10 pitch prop on the etec. That's also considering they rig them with 24V Fortrexs there and the Ranger has a descent sized livewell.
Best motor for any of these restricted lakes are the old carbureted 3 cylinder 25 hp 2 strokes (Evinrude/Johnson, Suzuki, Yamaha). Those can be easily modified to 40 hp equivalents.
I've got a 175 tracker. When I had a 2 stroke mercury I would get 20-21 with 2 people. 17 or so with 2 plus a full livewell. I've got a 3cyl Suzuki now. Not totally set up and it's "stock" and I'm 25-26 with 2 people. I think it was 22 with the livewell full.
I have a 2005 Lund Rebel with a 25 and 3 batteries and two Big guys. We do Ok with speed if we put our heads down to draft the wind. All those tournament guys have had work done on their boats engines. Heck, I saw a Newton Bassboat with a 25hp pull 2 Skiers at one time.
Thanks for all the replies so far. I am interested in performance numbers but am not overly concerned about them I just don't want it to struggle all the time to get the boat up and run a little. Part of the interest in the RT 178 is comfort and how it fishes. It has the ability to offer a lot of things I don't have in my current Newton boat. Keep the reviews coming and let me know if anyone has experienced fishing out of the RT178. How did it fish? Stable boat?
Scuba Scott- did you get one?
No.....not yet but did have a chance to fish out of one. Very nice boats and run fairly well with the ETec engine. Nice and stable and plenty of room. Will definitely get into one when it's time to replace my current Newton boat.
Thanks, I have a g3 with a 50. Gonna sell the 50 to get a 25 for it.
A 4 blade prop would help with getting on plane quicker. Might lose a MPH or two but some have been known to gain a few as well.
Please release me,let me go.
Wanted to resurrect this thread as I continue to browse listings. Looking to upgrade my little tracker, but am hesitant to get more than a 25 for Newton's sake. For those with 17'+ tin boats and 25s, is it out of the question to consider a small outboard for something like this Ranger 178? I'm just assuming this thing will plow water, even with prop work. I could care less about top speed as I'm assuming these all get to about 20 riding solo and not weighed down. Just trying to weigh my options, otherwise I might have to move on and get a 60+ and possibly just keep my Tracker until Newton turns into a boring lake....
I have a 178 with a 25 2 stroke suzuki so it is probably more like a 30 . I sometimes plow a little on take off with 2 people and livewell . Top end is 21-23 with 1 or 2 people and 20 with 2 people and livewell . I have seen a number of 178s that do plow a lot of water but I suspect they haven't done much to correct it .
All I can say is try to avoid the Mercury 4 stroke. They are terrible. And preferably from my personal experience stay from the etec. I had an etec on my stratos and it blew up. So I got a brand new etec and that thing was nothing but junk. New injectors 3 times, new computer twice, and 4 new power heads and it was never right. All covered by warranty but still a real pain in the ass. We did everything we could to help it. Jack plate, different props, removed all batteries and went to all lithium and still didn’t help. I was getting 18-19 by myself and 12-13 with 2 people and 10-11 with 2 people and a livewell full. Finally I was tired of it and last Christmas got myself a Suzuki 4 stroke and have loved it. I get 23 all day by myself, 20- 22 with 2 people and still around 20 with 2 people and livewell full. Livewell full doesn’t really slow it down it has so much power just takes a little longer to get there. I know it’s not a ranger 178 but the fiberglass stratos is similar in weight and size if you look it up. I will admit the lithium batteries took out about 130 lbs of total weight and that’s a game changer I think. And I have cheap Amazon lithium batteries I’ve had for 2 years no issue so don’t think you have to go big fancy brand and spend a bunch of money on lithiums. Also, I run an 11 pitch stainless Solas prop. Depending on the day and weight in the boat I run 5700-6100 rpm. One last thing, a good friend of mine runs a ranger 178 and had the same etec problems so he got a tohatsu 4 stroke and has pretty much the same results as me and loves it but once again he runs lithium batteries. Just thought I’d put in my experience and opinions. I know a guy that has a nice stratos for sale but it has the mercury 4 stroke.
I believe all Merc outboards under 40hp are rebranded Tohatsu'sOriginally Posted by illinoisbassfishin
I was told by the Tohatsu dealer here that they make their own engines and don’t make engines for anyone else. Suzuki and Tohatsu were my 2 choices I did research on and called about before I bought a motor.
Where did you buy your Suzuki ?
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