One Big Bad Outboard: The Seven Marine 557

A lot of offshore performance boaters still refer to them as "eggbeaters," but there can be no doubt that for some applications--and for overall ease of maintenance, outboards may be the best way to go. One of the bigger stories at the 2011 Miami International Boat Show was the new monster outboards from Seven Marine. This 557 HP engine brings a whole new meaning to the term outboard power...but what else would you expect for a $70,000 price tag? They are especially good-looking engines, too; in fact, the red and black pair pictured here would serve nicely as the official [B3] versions!

The new engine is based on 6.2-liter V8, with an all-aluminum, supercharged GM powerhead that is basically the same engine used in a Cadillac CTS-V. It has closed cooling and a computer-controlled disc-clutch transmission with hydraulic shifting sourced from ZF Marine. The design is somewhat radical as well; the V8 powerhead mounted is horizontally, rather than in the usual vertical orientation.

PHOTO / VIDEO CREDITS: Seven Marine.

Reportedly the 557 will run on 89-92 octane pump gas, and other than the stainless steel exhaust and special computer programming, it's basically stock. The company is currently making some alterations to the design which will make the engine's final drive ratio more flexible. Sea trials are underway, and hopefully we will see this monster out on the water soon. If the design is successful, it may turn out that this egg-beater will be a world-beater...