Motor size for Mac 22

[Joseph Bellotti]

I'm looking at a 20hp Suzuki motor that weighs 130lbs. for my Mac 22. Is that too much motor and weight? Thanks for the comments in advance.

 

[john dawson]

Happy with a 9.9hp

I'm sure you will get more authoritative advice about hull speeds, etc. but I will give you my opinion. A 9.9hp motor seems fine for driving a v-22 at just above 5 knots without working too hard. I suspect thats close to diminishing returns, although this will be exceeded under sail while semi-planing. In stiff winds, it has been quite adequate, but a little more power (12-15) would be plenty. Being a light boat, you don't want unneeded weight back there. Also many lakes place a max of 10hp for erosion control. If you travel, you may run into limitations. I found the motor bracket for 10hp to be kind of wobbly, so I went to a 20hp bracket that works great.

 

[Bill Morr]

22 motor

I used to have a 22 and did fine with a 5 horse 4 stroke. I sailed lakes and never had huge swells to deal with. When I bought my 26 I am sorry I didn't keep the 5, it was smoother than the older 9 that came with the 26

 

[Doug Rodrigues]

Weight Vs Hp

Depends if you want a 2 stroke or 4 stroke. My old Johnson 6 hp 2 stroke used to push my (past) old Venture 2-22 up to hull speed. That motor was so light that you could carry it around like a suitcase. Then came my Johnson Sailmaster 8 hp 2 stroke at 47 pounds. It was more than enough push for a Mac 25...almost too much push. It really seemed to strain the engine mount. Then came the required 4 stroke single cylinder 6 hp Nissan, because 2 strokes were outlawed in Lake Tahoe. The Nissan weighs 57 lbs., vibrates like crazy, but only uses half the gas. Plus, it isn't necessary to mix in oil. My recommendation is this: If your area doesn't require 4 stroke engines and you want lots of power, get a two stroke. If you don't want to concern yourself with oil mixtures and extra fuel containers, get the 4 stroke.

 

[Dave]

20hp? Why so much?

Maybe I'm picturing the wrong boat. 22' daysailor, right? Not the old design small morotsailor, right? Not the 26X, right? I'm pretty sure the 22 is a pure displacement hull. 20 HP is FAR too much, in reality you only need 5-6 HP. I did the calculatins on my Catalina 30, in calm water with a clean bottom, it needed 6.5 HP to reach hull speed assuming a 100% efficient prop, which we know is impossible, most props are 50-60% efficient. So that mean it really needed about 12 Hp to reach hull speed. Even realtiely new Catalina 30s came with 18 hp diesels. Your 22' will be fine with 5-6 hp...

 

[john dawson]

5hp? why so little?

You are quite right that 20hp is far too much; even 30' keelboats have 15hp inboards. But I run into people all the time who get used boats that come with 4-5-6hp motors who have a 'marginal' experience and decide they need to move up despite the expense. On reading the archives, looking at the specs, and recalling some hairy conditions, I would now say about 7.5hp and not more than 10. Less is fine for flat water, docking, lakes with little current, etc. Calling the 22 a displacement boat is a little misleading as it is incredibly shallow; its grip is minimal and steerage depends solely on thrust in some conditions. Since you are here on the Bay, you may have been caught out against strong current, punishing wave action and adverse winds simultaneously with a less than clean bottom, possibly motoring while all-standing thru a narrow channel. Its about margins of safety, too.