Sounds like I need to run a compression test. Like I said, I've only had the boat about 4 months now, I was told all maitenance was done and it was in meticulous condition. However, when we took it out, the ballast had a leak and we could not fill them up to test a full load. I talked to the mechanic that did all work on this boat for the last 3 months, who did a compression test, and said everything checked out. I do not remember the exact numbers now.

There is approx. 860 hours on the boat. I even talked to Indmar prior to purchasing the boat and they said the engine should be fine up to around the 1400 hr mark and even then may just need to change rings.

Just seems to me, that if the engine is getting tired, i would be able to tell from the sound or all around performance, not just at heavy loads. I could be very wrong though.