2008 Moomba XLV question

[CWCboater]

How often should I expect to fill up, We wont be racing around full throttle, but will do plenty of wake boarding and wake surfing?

[mmandley]

Well i haven't had to put fuel in my boat to often and i think you have the bigger engine then me. I have the Indmar 5.7 325hp and i have a 40gal tank. I got 6 hours on the break in and only used 1/2 a tank then filled it back up. I then ran another 3 at wakeboard and ski speeds to finish breaking in my engine and that used another 1/3 tank.

Lastly i went tubing with some friends and 2 hours of that used 1/3 tank.

So im guessing if your keeping it under 30ish and pulling things and people id expect a good 6 to 8 hours on a tank.

I get nervouse when mine gets under 1/2 when im headed to the lake so if its below 1/2 when i leave the house i fill it up. Haven't sen any gas at the water around my place yet and gas at the water always costs a ton.

[jester]

It really depends on what you are doing. if a person knows how to wakeboard then the amount you use is not that much. If the person is new to wakeboarding then you will spend alot of time turning around. If you pull tubers then your going to spend a lot on gas. If you really want to see the gas needle drop pull three tubs. I do not know about wakesurding. This is what i have seen from my OBV.

[Ian Brantford]

I find that fuel goes faster with experienced riders than beginners who fall a lot. Maybe it is because I return to a fallen rider at low speed, so as not to hit them with a wake. With beginners, I do not use ballast and the engine barely makes an effort at take-off. With more experienced riders, it's a 20 minute drive at half throttle. That uses fuel, especially with ballast.

Fuel consumption that you can expect (in U.S. gallons per hour):

During engine break-in: 10 GPH

after break-in...

Cruising (planing, say around 25-30 MPH and no ballast): 4 GPH
Pulling single wakeboarder with no ballast: 4-5 GPH
Pulling single wakeboarder with 1-2000 lbs ballast: 5-6 GPH
Pulling a tube: depends highly on your style, but it isn't cheap.
Running at high speed (over around 4000 RPM): watch the fuel gauge drop.

With the MPI engine, you can hear more ports opening with a bit higher-pitched whistling sound every thousand or so RPM. On the 340 HP engine, the last set of ports give you an extra few hundred RPM over the 325. If those last ports open, you hear the sound of money going straight into the water. :-) Seriously, I think that full throttle should only be used to avoid getting bogged down in a tight turn with full ballast. This boat simply is not designed to go fast. It is a good thing that this is not on your agenda.

Sorry, but I do not have experience with pulling a wakesurfer.