January 2026 Column IS YOUR BOAT A CANDIDATE FOR REPOWERING? PART 1 By Capt. John N.Raguso
The Big Question…is it Time for Repowering? With new boat costs rocketing upwards each year in a never-ending trajectory, more recreational boaters and anglers are considering a popular and financially sensible alternative…repowering an old favorite. If you don’t have the budget to purchase a new boat, the best alternative is to look for a quality boat brand that’s 4-to-8 years old that might still have some time left on the original owner’s engine warranty. If you can find one with
potentially tired outboards that are coming off or just past their warranty period, you can likely negotiate a good deal on the boat’s final asking price and then consider purchasing fresh power to replicate the“almost new”boating experience, but at a fraction of the cost. The added bonus to this strategy is getting a fresh 5-to-7 year warranty on the new engines, protecting your investment and limiting many future unplanned major out-of-pocket costs. I have been involved with a total of 20 outboard repowering projects since the late 1980s, with four over the past six years. My experiences, both good and bad, have given me the vision to create a realistic repowering checklist. Each prospective boat owner that’s considering repowering his/her ride needs to answer some tough and thought- provoking questions, detailed below.
Is Your Boat a Candidate for Repowering? This is the big question that will determine the success or failure of your potential repowering project. To determine the answer, this generic question can be broken down into a number of smaller queries: • How old is the boat? •What is the current physical state of the transom? (Are there any soft spots, water intrusion issues or rot?) What is the physical state of the rest of the hull and deck? •What is the boat’s capacity plate’s transom weight limitation for the powerplant? •Where are the boat’s scupper locations when
wet with the current engine and where might they be with the new powerplant? •What is the horsepower limitation of the transom, as detailed on the boat’s safety/capacity label? •Will the current steering system be compatible with the new outboard? Once you generate some honest answers to these questions and analyze the data and the inherent costs, you will be in a much better position to determine if your planned repowering project is a go or no-go.
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