Rated for 150 but it has a 175...the 175 has the same displacement as a 150!

I'm looking at a nice boat but it's got a bigger than rated motor.

Would I be able to tournament fish in it?

I would say no. It is going to be hard to get insurance on it.

Probably ok in local club stuff, but not the bigger tournaments. Mostly because of inability to insure.

Here is the language used by B.A.S.S. for the Opens. Most larger tournament organizations will have similar language in their rules.

8. HORSEPOWER REGULATIONS:

Maximum horsepower for all outboard motorboats used in official tournament practice and in tournament competition will be 250 HP. Horsepower cannot exceed the limitations set by the U.S. Coast Guard. When required, each boat must have a U.S. Coast Guard horsepower-rating plate attached to the boat by the manufacturer. The horsepower of the outboard engine must NOT exceed the rating specified on this plate nor the horsepower maximum set by B.A.S.S. Each competitor agrees to submit, by their signature on the official entry form, the boat and outboard motor used in the tournament, to an inspection by factory-trained personnel, if there is reason to suspect the horsepower is in excess of the rating. Normal maintenance of engines is allowed. Changing or altering standard factory parts of a competitor�s engine to increase the horsepower over the factory horsepower rating, is forbidden and will result in disqualification. Falsifying information on entry forms, or altering the horsepower-rating numbers on the engine, is also cause for immediate disqualification from B.A.S.S. tournaments. Posted speed limits and those imposed by B.A.S.S. must be observed and all boats must be operated in a safe manner. Violations of speed limits shall result in loss of competition hours and not limited to disqualification.

www.bassmaster.com

most tourney rules say no over power. and yes insurance will be a problem.

The only hiccup I see would be the insurance. Some boats like an Allison have a rating for the 2.5 Liter block. It doesn't matter what the horsepower is as long as you don't put a motor larger than the 2.5 liter.

To my knowledge, they are one of a very few boat manufacturers that rate their hulls like that.

I'd probably pass if I couldn't get insurance.

You may be able to find a few local open / jack-pot tournaments that you could fish, however any of the larger tournament trails all have rules against motors bigger then the rating for the boat. And then there is the insurance issue.

HORSEPOWER REGULATIONS: No motors may exceed the maximum Coast Guard rating. This rule is to prevent an altered or factory motor from exceeding the boats horsepower rating. Copied directly off of BLT RULES

It matters if one wants to tournament fish out of that Allison. 99% of tournaments have a 250 maximum h.p. limit.

There are a few trails that have a maximum HP but definitely not 99% of them. To my knowledge no trails on Rayburn except FLW have a HP limit. It just can't exceed the max size for the boat per the manufacturer.

+1

[quote=fouzman]Probably ok in local club stuff, but not the bigger tournaments. Mostly because of inability to insure.

Did you miss my first post? I meant 99% of the bigger trails.

There is a formula for bia ratings to bad Ranger doesn't go by them rather rate some boats via marketing.The z518 is rated at 200hp but the z118
With the exact same specs is rated 150 hp. The 188v prerunner to both these was rated 175 then dropped back to 150 the last couple years it was in production.I would not even consider a z118 for this reason way underpowered.

I've always wondered about that rule. When you rebuild an engine, and bore out the cylinders to oversize....don't you increase the horsepower?
For instance...if you have a 150 on a boat that is rated for a 150, have it rebuilt and they put oversize pistons in it....at that point, is it no longer tournament legal?

"Changing or altering standard factory parts of a competitor�s engine to increase the horsepower over the factory horsepower rating, is forbidden and will result in disqualification."

From the bassmaster link I posted.

If the boat is a good deal I don't think finding someone with a boat rated for 175 but has a 150 on it to trade and give you a little cash.