www.iFourWinns.com

258 VISTA PLANING TIME QUESTION,
I HAVE A NEW TO ME 2006 258 VISTA 5.7 GI F4 PROPS. IT SEEMS TO ME THAT IT TAKES FOR EVER TO GET ON PLANE. PLAYING WITH THE TRIM TABS HELPS SOME WHAT, BUT IF THE BOAT IS LOADED IT IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO GET ON PLANE, ANY ONE HAD THE SAME ISSUE? VOLVO DEALER HAS NOT BEEN ABLE TO LOCATE PROBLEM...
4 WINNS CONFIRMS THAT THE PROPS SHOULD BE F4 WITH THE 1.95 OUTDRIVE AND 5.7 GI ENGINE..
ANY SUGGESTIONS?

How many people do you have in the boat when this occurs?

That boat should plane quickly. My 268 planes quickly with no tabs applied, and
5 people,full fuel and water on board.

Are the props in good shape? Any carpet on the boat bottom? What are your RPM's
at WOT ?

_________________
One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

BOTTOM IS CLEAN, LOAD DOESNT SEEM TO MATTER FUEL FUEL TANK 1/4 FULL TANK, 6 PEOPLE OR 2 PEOPLE AND STILL IT'S A MONSTER TO GET ON PLANE....
WHAT KIND OF TIME FRAME DO YOU FIND IT TAKES FOR YOU TO GET ON PLAN, 8 -10 SECONDS 15 20 SECONDS.....I FIND IT CAN TAKE A MINUTE OR 2.....
PROPS ARE PERFECT, TOP RPM IS AROUND 4800 GIVE OR TAKE

Hmmmmm. Just a guess, because I have never timed it, but we are on plane in 10 to 15 seconds I would guess. Since you are getting the RPM's needed, it's not what I feared, head gasket blown. So, I'm not sure what it is.

I have several friends with the same boat as you, and they are on plane and gone before I am. I can't think of what it might be.

_________________
One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

As the Cap'n noted ..... our 268 with the 280hp Gi engine and D4 props planes surprisingly well. I was initially skeptical that this little engine would be enough for the 268V, seeing that we had the same unit (with F6 props) on our 245 Sundowner. On our first run, last night, we had full fuel, full water, two people. Planing was very quick, like just a few seconds, never touched the tabs all night. We have also been on this boat during test drives with 6 people and still no problems planing ... without any tabs.

I assume the obvious has been covered ...... such as making sure that the drive is trimmed all the way down, etc.

Perhaps the 268, while being heavier, is longer and more weight is forward and this may actually help the nose come down (?).

Either way .... you shouldn't be struggling to get on plane.

_________________
Gordon Arnold
New Hampshire

2003 268 Vista ..................................................................Prior: 97 245 Sundowner

THANKS FOR THE INTEREST, I HAVE BEEN THROUGH ALL THE OBVIOUS , I EVEN VERIFIED GEAR RATIO ETC.... IT'S AN ODD ONE FOR SURE.
THE BOAT RUNS GREAT ONCE IT GET'S ON PLANE IT'S JUST GETTING THERE...
I HAVE MOVED THE BOAT TO A NEW MARINA THIS SUMMER AND HAVE MADE ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE VOLVO TECH ON SITE TO TAKE THE BOAT FOR A RIDE AND SEE WHAT HE THINKS....IT'S A MUCH LARGER SERVICE CENTER THEN WE WHERE AT LAST YEAR, HOPEFULLY THEY CAN FIGURE IT OUT....
HEAD GASKET WAS MENTIONED, BUT WOULD YOU NOT SEE OVER HEATING ISSUES IF THE HEAD GASKET WAS POPPED.. NO SIGN OF ANY THING ON THE PLUGS EITHER...
I MONITORED THE ENGINE WITH A SCAN TOOL TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANY ISSUES WITH FUEL OR IGNITION SYSTEMS.........IT SEEMS TO BE FINE....
I APPRECIATE EVERY ONES IDEAS AND INTEREST AS EXPERIENCE IS USUALLY THE BEST TOOL...

We have a 2007 258 w/ 5.7 OSXi drive and it came with F4 props. We had a similar issue and took a test drive with our dealer. When it was just me and my wife, the boat planes nice and quick. If we had 5-7 people on board (all sitting in the rear) we had a hard time getting on plane or if I was pulling a wake boarder (we have the tower) it was hard if we had more than 3 people on board. We ran thru the same stuff and it was determined that we should try a new prop. An F3 prop made a big difference.

This change to the F3 cut our planing time to around 7 seconds from 11 seconds with using some tabs. At WOT we do not exceed the top RPMs as listed by Volvo. One other thing we realized is that the tower does change the center point on the boat. We are definitely stern heavy when we are full. Does your dealer have a set of F3 props to try?

_________________
Jnizi

2007 Vista 338 "Better Yet"
Previously:
2007 Vista 258 " Just Right"
2005 Horizon 230

I WILL DEFINITLEY ASK THE QUESTION ABOUT PROPS, IT'S WORTH TRYING BY THE SOUNDS OF IT.... YOUR SITUATION SOUNDS VERY SIMILAR.
STRANGE THAT FOUR WINNS WOULD SPEC A F4 PROP
I HAVE TRIED TO FIND OTHER 258 OWNERS IN MY TRAVELS SO I COULD ASK THESE QUESTIONS, UNFORTUNATELY I CAN NEVER GET OUT OF THE HOLE FAST ENOUGH TO CATCH THEM......I DO HAVE MUCH MORE CONFIDENCE IN THE VOLVO DEALER AT THE MARINA WE ARE STAYING AT NOW, AND I''M CERTAIN THEY WILL HELP ME GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THE MATTER,
ONCE AGAIN I THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR EXPERIENCES...IT'S GOOD INFORMATION TO HAVE IN MY POCKET....

Good luck Cuda. And, there is no reason to YELL. (Caps Off Please)

Edit: I forgot to mention. You will not be able to tell if the head gasket is on it's way out with a scan tool. You will need to do a compression check to verify any issue with the head gasket. That will tell if you have a problem. It's a long story, but I learned that the hard way,. Also, a comp check is much cheaper than a new set of props. Worth a try IMO.

_________________
One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

What kind of boat did you have before? Could it just be that you aren't used to a larger express cruiser? My 248 takes a while to plane to compared to a wave runner. Just curious.

_________________


"Where Da Go"
2002 248 Vista
Lafayette, IN
http://blueoceanlife.worldventures.biz

I have owned several boats over the years, off shore boats, other express cruisers,8 in all over 25 years..... they all react and handle different of course but they all got on plane within a reasonable time.....this one acts like a displacement hull...

Good morning Cap'n,
sorry about the cap's ,"Cap" I promise I was not yelling. just much easier to read what I write when the letters are larger...... an old age thing...
We did check compression last summer, as I recall all cylinders where 145 to 150 all with in ten percent of each other......and the cylinder balance test with the scan tool revealled no significant difference in performance between cylinders...
If it where a car, I would suspect a torque convertor with incorrect stall speed...it 's like your start off in second gear going uphill in a car .....thats the best way i can describe it...
thats why we physically verified the outdrive gear ratio....1.95

I'm glad you have adequate compression. I don't know if this could be the issue, but what about the drive coupler ? Failing maybe and not giving full performance under acceleration?

Hopefully not, as you would have to pull the motor to replace that.

_________________
One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

that's a thought...gosh i hope your wrong.....but if the coupler is seperated it might create the same sensation as i described....the boat only has 31 hours on it, but i guess at this point anything is a possibility....
what about an exhaust restriction?..... do you think I would still reach top rpm if the exhaust had a restriction ..... perhaps it only affects performance under heavy load, once on plan and cruising it doesnt hinder performance noticably.....maybe i'm reaching...

Volvo did have issues with internal exhaust flappers melting and obstructing the exhaust passages. Not sure what year(s) this affected.

My 248 (7K Lbs wet) with a 5.7Gi gets on plane readily, and this is from a guy who's last boat ran 70Mph GPS.

It's no Cigarette but I am by no means disappointed in the performance.

_________________
Brett DiMichele