manders500
New member
So I did my new intro in the wrong forum so I will re-intro here and tell my little story about how we joined the Formula family.
My wife and I have been blessed to have greatfriends around that have their own boats and we have been able to use them overthe past 2 years. We have been on boatsfrom a 19’ Sea Ray, a 2017 Monterey M45, a 2013 Regal 2700, a 2016 Cruisers 390and a 2018 Cruisers Cantius 60. Wedecided that we would like the option to go it alone at times so we started ourprocess of listing our requirements for what we would like out of a boat.
The two things that were a must are a space for our 3 yearold twins to take a “nap” and a bathroom that we could fit in. This really put us in a larger boat thenexpected for a first boat.
Over the past 2 years we lovedseeing the kids on the bow riders having a blast but we also love the idea of the “livingroom on the water” with the escape of bad weather or just a plain hot day. I originally thought that the bow rider wouldbe too small with no larger sleeping space but we did some homework and found the 350CBR.
I am a car guy and have a good foundation on mechanics but Iknow nothing about boats. We only have 1 Formula dealer around so I went downthere and got to see a customer’s 350 CBR and we were able to board it andcheck it out. We also saw a 37 Sun Sportand a 37 PC so we got to see a few options. Another dealer around the corner had a Sea Ray 400 and a friend waspushing us for the Cruiser 390. Itreally came down to the CBR and the Cruisers 390. The 390 has great living spaceand is a very open boat but the one that was offered to us has a V-Drive andgets .5 MPG at 24 MPH. That seems prettybad to us.
The dealer sent us information on this beautiful 350 CBRwith the Ilmor 483’s and once I saw that these engines are hand built and that Ilmor is part of Penske, I was sold. Some of my boat “experts” warned me of parts availabilityand that Mercruiser was the way to go but then I explained my theory. Ilmor and Penske build engines for Indy andNASCAR which rely on long high RPM usage as well as MPG concerns and they spenda tremendous amount of money, time and effort into finding the efficiency inthese types of engines. These are alsobased on the LSx, which are widely used in Drag Racing so I am less concernedthan others.
The outdrive was also a concern at first but then I learned that it was codeveloped with Yanmar and based on a strong diesel unit.
Now the OneDrive system is without a doubt an easy systemand makes this rookie look like a seasoned veteran. Our trip home from delivery was between 2storms with some decent crosswinds and going down a fairway and backing into aslip was new to me and I threaded the needle without touching a piling. My slip neighbors were very impressed. I took the Cantius 60 friend out for a test drive and he hadhis doubts about the Ilmor OneDrive but he is a believer now and actually has alittle boat envy .
My only issue with the boat is that it is too quiet for me! ��But I found that when the wife and kids are not onboard I can crack the enginehatch and hear the sweet music.
My wife and I have been blessed to have greatfriends around that have their own boats and we have been able to use them overthe past 2 years. We have been on boatsfrom a 19’ Sea Ray, a 2017 Monterey M45, a 2013 Regal 2700, a 2016 Cruisers 390and a 2018 Cruisers Cantius 60. Wedecided that we would like the option to go it alone at times so we started ourprocess of listing our requirements for what we would like out of a boat.
The two things that were a must are a space for our 3 yearold twins to take a “nap” and a bathroom that we could fit in. This really put us in a larger boat thenexpected for a first boat.
Over the past 2 years we lovedseeing the kids on the bow riders having a blast but we also love the idea of the “livingroom on the water” with the escape of bad weather or just a plain hot day. I originally thought that the bow rider wouldbe too small with no larger sleeping space but we did some homework and found the 350CBR.
I am a car guy and have a good foundation on mechanics but Iknow nothing about boats. We only have 1 Formula dealer around so I went downthere and got to see a customer’s 350 CBR and we were able to board it andcheck it out. We also saw a 37 Sun Sportand a 37 PC so we got to see a few options. Another dealer around the corner had a Sea Ray 400 and a friend waspushing us for the Cruiser 390. Itreally came down to the CBR and the Cruisers 390. The 390 has great living spaceand is a very open boat but the one that was offered to us has a V-Drive andgets .5 MPG at 24 MPH. That seems prettybad to us.
The dealer sent us information on this beautiful 350 CBRwith the Ilmor 483’s and once I saw that these engines are hand built and that Ilmor is part of Penske, I was sold. Some of my boat “experts” warned me of parts availabilityand that Mercruiser was the way to go but then I explained my theory. Ilmor and Penske build engines for Indy andNASCAR which rely on long high RPM usage as well as MPG concerns and they spenda tremendous amount of money, time and effort into finding the efficiency inthese types of engines. These are alsobased on the LSx, which are widely used in Drag Racing so I am less concernedthan others.
The outdrive was also a concern at first but then I learned that it was codeveloped with Yanmar and based on a strong diesel unit.
Now the OneDrive system is without a doubt an easy systemand makes this rookie look like a seasoned veteran. Our trip home from delivery was between 2storms with some decent crosswinds and going down a fairway and backing into aslip was new to me and I threaded the needle without touching a piling. My slip neighbors were very impressed. I took the Cantius 60 friend out for a test drive and he hadhis doubts about the Ilmor OneDrive but he is a believer now and actually has alittle boat envy .
My only issue with the boat is that it is too quiet for me! ��But I found that when the wife and kids are not onboard I can crack the enginehatch and hear the sweet music.
love the color too. you're going to love that boat...great boat for getting out on the water, and formula makes a top notch product.