Nugget gets new outfit

Queensland's leading fishing identity, Dave "Nugget" Downie, has teamed with Honda Australia to completely revamp his 16-year-old fishing boat.

The result was unveiled recently at Brisbane's Northside Marine by Downie, who hosts the top-rating Talking Fishing program each weekend on Brisbane's radio 4BC. Downie choose Honda's BF150 engine to repower his old fibreglass rig and he was anxious to get it into the water for a real test.

"The hull is actually 16 years old, but we totally gutted and reinforced it and then added custom storage areas such as live bait tanks, kill tanks and other functional features," Downie told the Boatsales Network.

"Set up with everything I need for my fishing interests, the powerful and reliable Honda BF150 was the only outboard choice as far as I was concerned – nothing else came close."

Based on the same engine that powers the very popular Honda Accord sedan, the BF150 incorporates all of Honda’s modern technologies to provide increased power across the entire rev-range. The power-to-weight ratio rivals that two stroke engines in the same class.

The BF150 features Honda's variable valve timing and lift electronic control that was originally developed for the company
s high performance sportscars. The system gives smooth, stable idling and the increased valve lift at high revs broadens the torque curve and provides better top-end power.

The engine also has Honda’s low fuel consumption and reduced periodical maintenance.