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WATERSKI MagazineThere are deep rumblings coming out of Little Mountain, South Carolina, and they're resonating all the way out to the West Coast. PCM president Chuck Thurman has given his tech team the green light to go ahead with a high-horsepower V-8 that will blow the gaskets off anything else in the inboard market: 425 ponies wrapped in wrought iron.
“We weren't going to jump into this race unless we knew we could build an engine with significantly more horsepower than what already existed [MerCruiser's Scorpion 377 and Indmar's Callaway-enhanced 400 hp Corvette boat engine]. We're not a 'me too' company. We lead, and this new engine is proof.”
The proof will be in the pudding. At press time the engine was still being tested in South Carolina, with further tests planned for Florida. Initial dynamometer readings by an independent testing firm list the yet-to-be-named monster at 425 hp. It is based on Ford's 5.8 HO GT-40 block, as opposed to the GM Vortec iron used in MerCruiser's 377 and Indmar's Corvette. The trick to getting the extra horses out of the Ford, says Thurman, lies in creating horsepower and torque through interior changes and exterior performance enhancements.
“We're putting an inter-cooled supercharger and blower on a standard 351, plus making very, very fine adjustments to the cam shaft, high-performance forged pistons, etc. – all being done by PCM,” he says.
Still, working within the tight parameters of a standard engine block isn't easy. PCM engineers have had to shift paradigms to make the design work, something they've done well since the company's inception in 1977. The energy-efficient and lightweight Power Plus transmission, anti-vapor lock Fuel Control Cell (FCC) and vibration-reducing Adjust-a-Flex engine mounts are three examples of innovations that redefined standards – and customer expectations. The 425 likely will do the same.
“If anyone can do it and do it well, it's Chuck and PCM,” says Larry Meddock of Correct Craft, which uses PCM engines exclusively.
We should see finished product by the November issue. Until then, we'll be in the gym – getting ready to hold on to the rope.
