Nothing beats lots of grunt

In the racing game, whether it is on land or water, there is one cardinal rule -- nothing beats grunt.

So it is hardly surprising that demand for Mercury's most powerful engine to date, the amazing nine litre, twin turbo, quad cam V8 1350 sterndrive, has outstripped supply. Even the $200,000 price tag was no draw-back to the competitive ski racers who flocked to Mercury's showroom to snap up the monster mills.

"When Mercury Racing released the new 1350 earlier this year we never expected to see the level of demand we have," Mercury's director of service and quality, Guy Williamson, says. "The engines are breath-takingly good but they sell for approximately $200,000 so we thought they might sit on the shelves for a little bit -- but they have been snapped up."

Mercury Racing designed and built the engine from the ground up. It was not the usual truck engine re-jigged for marine use. The finished engine proved to be so powerful that Mercury Marine had to create a new sterndrive unit, hydraulic transmission and propellers to ensure all the grunt got to the water.

The new drive package can cope with 35 per cent more power than Mercury's legendary No 6 drive.

The engine itself incorporates a pulse tuned exhaust system, the first for a four-stroke, that will allow racers to get instant power across the rev range. The 1350 redlines at 6500rpm.

The power is controlled by a propulsion control module microprocessor that provides seamless integration.

"The engines were designed to perform everything else out there and that has been clearly recognised by people who know their engines -- and that's why we have sold out," Williamson says. Check out Mercury Racing.com for more details.