Marine Testing Center in Bridgeport, Alabama
by Richard Simms
posted May 2, 2007
If you're a Yamaha outboard fan, you need to go hang out at the Sheraton Read House Thursday night. Everybody who is anybody with the Yamaha Marine Division is there for the unveiling of some of the latest and greatest Yamaha products.
It is officially called the Yamaha New Motor press introduction. Besides the mover and shakers with Yamaha, they've dragged in outdoor press from all across the country.
Thursday and Friday everybody heads for Bridgeport, Al. to Yamaha's "super secret squirrel" Yamaha Marine Test Center.
Yes, whether you knew it or not... nearly every new marine motor developed and released by Yamaha gets tested on the Tennessee River in little old Bridgeport.
Do not expect to walk up, knock on the door and walk right in however. Usually the stuff they're doing there, they don't want anybody to see... yet.
This week however, they're showing off the testing center AND their new F350, the boating industry’s first V8 5.3-liter, four-stroke outboard with yes, 350 horsepower. These bad boys are intended for offshore use… don't start thinking about sticking one on your 16-foot bass chaser.
The F350 was first announced in February at the Miami Boat Show, but Thursday is the first time they've let anybody "touch it" on the water. Photo Courtesy: Yamaha
Yamaha says the F350 provides up to 45 percent more thrust than 250-hp class outboards. Photo Courtesy: Yamaha
“The F350 will allow our boat builder partners to make outboard-powered boats that could reach 40 feet or more in length,” said Phil Dyskow, Yamaha Marine Group president. “At the same time, it’s a great power solution for a lot of existing boats. The F350 will be the choice for anyone who ever wished for more off-shore outboard power and thrust.”
For us freshwater folks they're also bragging about their latest and greatest engine you CAN drop on the back of your new bass rig... the Yamaha F225TLR. It's a high-power V6, sports-style four-stroke outboard with a 20-inch shaft.
The Yamaha marketers say the F225TLR provides all the benefits of a high-power Yamaha V6 outboard, with a 20-inch shaft that makes it an excellent match for many of today’s most popular boats. Photo Courtesy: Yamaha
“A number of bay boats, pontoon boats, and “fish ‘n’ ski” boats are designed for large horsepower 20-inch shaft engines. It’s also for Bass boaters who prefer four-stroke power,” said Phil Dyskow, Yamaha Marine Group president. “I like to think of this F225 as the sport model; it gives customers all the power they need in a four-stroke package.”
I don't know what all this stuff means, but the Yamaha press release says, "the heart of the new Yamaha F225TLR is a compact 60-degree, 3.3 liter (204 c.i.) block. It’s equipped with Variable Camshaft Timing, which dramatically increases low and mid-range torque. A redesigned air intake system, coupled with proven Yamaha multi-point electronic fuel injection, delivers easy, instant starts, fast acceleration, and maximum top-end speed. An electronically controlled single throttle valve feeds individual long intake tracks, which increases hole-shot, acceleration, and mid-range performance."
Don't expect to see the new stuff right away. It'll be a few months before they arrive on the showroom floor.
But the outboard motor elite are putting them through their paces this week right here in the Tennessee Valley.
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