I am interested in these 2 engines, the E TEC and the OPTIMAX.
Merc has their Smart Craft where you can moniter alot of stuff. If you you hook a NMEA 2000 up, what is available on the E Tec?
And what could be viewed if you hooked NMEA 2000, type link?
Is BRP have anything else coming as far as monitering?
Kirt Hedquist
NPAA #292
Navionics Marine Specialist
See the May issue of Trailer Boats Magazine for a complete article on the E-TEC gauges.
http://www.trailerboats.com/im...H.pdf
The nice thing about NMEA2000 items is that you can use various makes and models of electronics that are compatible with each other. The Merc Smartcraft is propriatary, does not work with NMEA 2000, and only one or two companies make stuff that will work with the Optis.
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A Technical troubleshooter possessing more tools than talent !
moreyes,
NMEA 2000 is an open standard, whereas Mercury's Smart Craft is a Mercury only product.
If you buy an Evinrude E-Tec (115hp and upwards) you'll be able to use any NMEA 2000 compatible device with it. While 2000 is still new, it looks like becoming 'industry standard' for marine electronics.
If you go for the Merc, your only choice is Smart Craft and in a couple of years to come could be quite limiting.
From memory with NMEA 2000 there are 64 different readings a single gauge can give. Some examples are: RPM, MPH, Volts, Fuel Level, Engine Trim, Oil Level, Water Pressure, Engine Temperature, Engine Hours, Engine Diagnostics Fuel Flow... the list goes on.
This is my second E-Tec and I'm sure Mercury are great motors, but I just couldn't bring myself to buy one.
Barks
will any of these work on a 2004 225ho? it is not an etec.
The Etec is a lot further advanced technology than anything Merc has.
Moreyes,
It really is very simple to run this system for a do it yourselfer. Before buying into hubs, consolidators, etc. do some research into lowrancenet you can use their backbone cable and t's without all of the above mentioned components. It is so easy and simple to install. Once your done hooking it up the fun begins. You can customize the gauges to read whatever , wherever on the screen you want
Mako,
How do you tie the motor into an existing LwranceNet. From what I can see, the cable from the motor is not setup like the LowranceNet cabling.
Kenneth
emm harness , part # 763517
Did you buy Lowrance EP-50 memory module?
No, not yet available to the public but should be out real soon . your I-command digital gauges or lmf will monitor fuel burn but with this new ep50 you'll be able to track over a period of time . It's a memory device .
Did you buy I-command digital gauges or lmf ?
I-Command digital gauges, but let me tell you something, I'm pretty sure the only difference between the LMF-400 and the I-Command digital 3" gauges are:
1) the I-Command give you engine codes,
2) when the gauges fire up they have an E-Tec logo, and
3) they have sleep mode that turns the gauge off if the ignition switch is in the off position.
The 2" I-Command gauges ARE LMF-200 gauges...I ordered the gauges from BRP and the manual you get is an LMF-200 manual.
Here are my gauges.
I have order an I-Command like LMF-400 to se if there is any different.
You can use the LMF-200 as a fuel gauge, one of your earlier posts.
I've got the EP-50 but apparently, I still need a software update to get all of my fuel management functions. I have fuel flow from the EMM's but still can't track trip fuel, fuel consumed, fuel remaining, etc. Spoke with a friend at Lowrance just this evening who informed me of the software update. Still can't get engine trim to function properly but am told this is also likely a software issue.
I also have sensors for:
Water pressure on each engine
Fuel Level (EP-15)
Oil Level (EP-15) for each tank
Trim Tab Position
Water Temp (via an airmar ducer)
GPS Position
And probably a few more I'm forgetting about. I'm running twin 175 ETECs, 2 of the large I-Command/Lowrance Gauges and 2 of the LMF-200's. I also have LCX-111C head unit and a 4KW Lowrance Radar with the 5 ft array. I'm still learning but so far, this stuff is really neat.
Stwal--That is a beautiful helm. The NMEA-2000 gauges are a nice modern touch to a classic wood dash panel. Great work!
The biggest difference between Mercury SmartCraft and Bombardier I-Command is the proprietary nature of the SmartCraft instruments. They are only for Mercury and only made by Mercury or by licensed suppliers. Mercury's bought NAVMAN and NORTHSTAR a year or so ago in order to lock in marine electronics manufacturers that would have SmartCraft compatible devices. Now they announced they are going to sell NAVMAN and NORTHSTAR. That was quick. Who will make instruments for SmartCraft networks in the future?
I-Command is an open standard, NMEA-2000, and you can use the same network for many devices from many manufacturers. It is anticipated that HONDA, YAMAHA, and SUZUKI will soon be joining Bombardier with engines that are NMEA-2000 certified.
You may find it interesting to read this discussion in which there is a great deal of exchange between participants regarding SmartCraft versus NMEA-2000:
http://continuouswave.com/ubb/....html
--Jim Hebert
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