REAL WORLD RESULTS
Looking at some side-by-side factory test comparisons on a pair of Sportsman Heritage 229 center consoles, the slimmer (489 pounds) 2.8L F200 I4 holds her own against her heftier (608 pounds) 3.3L F200 V-6 sister. With the bigger V-6 hitting a top speed of 47.8 mph at 5900 rpm spinning a 19-inch pitch prop, with an optimum cruise of 26 mph at 3500 rpm using 6.3 gallons per hour for a net of 4.13 mpg, the family challenge was clearly established. The F200 I4 rose to the occasion with a top speed of 47 mph at 6050 revs swinging a 17-inch pitch prop, with an optimum cruise of 23.5 mph at 5.2 gph for a net of 4.52 mpg. Translated, this is a virtual “draw,” with the V-6 model squeezing less than a 1-mph advantage at full throttle and a slightly faster optimum cruising speed (+2.5-mph), with the I4 using 0.39 less gph at their best throttle positions for fuel economy. Both were equally as quick out of the hole from a standing start (3.42 seconds to plane with the V-6; 3.38 seconds to plane with the I4), with the burly V-6 a bit faster from 0 to 30 mph (5.95 seconds vs. 7.39 seconds for the I4) as one might expect from having two added cylinders. In a twin engine installation, a pair of F200 I4s mounted to the transom bracket of a Regulator 26 FS center console will turn a top speed of 50 mph on the GPS nav unit, with an optimum cruise of 30.5 mph at 4000 rpm while burning only 15 gph, for a net of 2.03 mpg.