OXE Heading For Dusky

by admin

The first pair of OXE200 diesel outboards, sold in NZ are on their way to their new home in Dusky Sound.  

If you are going to keep your boat in Dusky Sound, probably the South Island’s most remote area, you aren’t going to find any petrol pumps. So when the owner of Seastar, an Image 10.5m CruiseMaster, looked for outboards to power his new boat, diesel outboards were the obvious choice. The fact that he already had access to diesel for his existing fleet of commercial vessels was also a bonus.

Seastar is the newest member of the SeaWorks fleet and is powered by twin OXE200 diesel outboards. These outboards were the first OXE diesel twin 200hp outboards to be fitted in NZ and were installed by the team at Image Boats.  During recent sea trial both the new owners and the Image Boats team were very happy with the performance of SeaStar. Comments were the boat had heaps of power and cruised between 20-22 knots with a top speed of 32 knots.

The diesel engine on the OXE Diesel has been adopted from the automotive industry. In relation to a vertically mounted outboard engine, a horizontally mounted engine reduces wear and improves heat dissipation. The power is transferred to the gearbox through the primary belt which can be positioned in either high speed or high torque setting. From the gearbox output a second belt transfers the power directly to the propeller shaft, eliminating the need for a conventional bevel gear system completely.

OXE200 has an in-line 4 cylinder powerhead that delivers 200hp and 415 NM (306ft-lb) of torque. With the high torque gear ratio on the primary belt, the unit delivers up to 900 NM (664 ft-lb) of torque on the propeller shaft. Overall weight of the OXE200 is 350kg.

Although initially based in Dusky Sound at the SeaWorks base, the boat will be used extensively outside the area and plans are for it even to be shipped to the Auckland Islands in the future to assist in finding an 1865 shipwreck.

www.imageboats.co.nz / www.powerequipment.co.nz

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