International Boat Industry - June-July 2018

86 JUNE–JULY 2018 | International Boat Industry http://www.ibi-plus.com

MERCURY MARINE | Q&A

TECHNICAL

WORDS: ED SLACK

How significant is the V8 launch?

This is the single biggest outboard launch in our almost 80-year

history from investment to opportunity in the marketplace.

The development program started in 2013 with initial concept

selection. The first year of the project focused on narrowing down

the engine and midsection configurations to meet the customer

requirements. This involved trade-off studies on all major outboard

systems with a goal of delivering all customer attributes while

hitting cost and weight targets.

We not only invested in product design and tooling but also in

major manufacturing equipment. This also had an influence on

the development schedule. To manufacture the cylinder blocks

Mercury invested in the largest die cast machine in the US in

addition to a new machining and assembly line. These capital

investments take years to design, build and validate.

What are the major modifications on the new outboards?

Essentially almost every component is a new design. In general, we

followed a design philosophy similar to the 75hp-115hp and 150hp

models – large displacement, naturally aspirated engines with an

extreme focus on minimising unneeded weight.

Which markets do you see as the main ones for FourStroke, Pro XS

and Verado?

FourStroke is becoming the most popular application in the marine

industry. We see these new engines on aluminium fishing boats,

MERCURY MARINE’S PRESIDENT EXPLAINS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE ENGINE BUILDER’S
LATEST V8 OUTBOARD LAUNCHES, CHINA POTENTIAL, AND THE IMPACT OF TRADE TARIFFS

pontoons, larger outboard-powered boats, racing boats, saltwater

boats – these engines will be a good fit for just about any outboard

boat application.

What about investment around the engine – on 'smart-boat'

technology, for instance? What can we expect from Mercury on

that score?

We’ve been investing in both advanced engineering and product

development in ‘smart-boat’ technology. It doesn’t matter what

product field – customers want their boat to be as intuitive and

as easy to use as their smart phone and want to be electronically

connected similar to their home or car. Joystick control is available

on our sterndrive, inboard and outboard product that enables

precise control of the vessel. In addition, Mercury recently enabled

downloadable content to enable additional control features on its

Skyhook technology such as DriftHook and BowHook that work

with Mercury’s joystick systems. We introduced VesselView mobile

in 2016 which enables a close interaction between the engine and

the customer’s smart phone.

Over the past few years, we are averaging one new product

launch every six weeks, some are engines, some are parts and

accessories.

Is your understanding of the consumer evolving, becoming

more sophisticated?

Customers’ expectations have and will continue to shift as they

John Pfeifer

President

Mercury Marine

It was at its Lake X facility in April that

Mercury Marine unveiled for the first time its

new series of 4.6L V8 outboards, including

the 250hp and 300hp Verado, 250hp and

300hp FourStroke, and 200hp, 225hp, 250hp

and 300hp Pro XS, as well as the 3.4L V6

175hp Pro XS and the V8 Mercury Racing 250R

and 300R, completing the largest product-

development program the engine builder has

ever undertaken. It followed the launch at

Miami in February of a range of V6s as well as

the breaking of ground on a new two-storey

NVH (Noise, Vibration, Harshness) facility at

its Fond du Lac headquarters, marking the

culmination of more than US$1.1bn invested

by Mercury in manufacturing, expansion and

R&D since 2009.