V-Drive Boats
Read this tip to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Power Boat Design and other Boat topics.
V-Drive Boats
The difference between a v-drive and direct-drive is the drive shaft itself. A v-drive is shaped like a V. The shaft goes from the motor to a transmission inside the boat and back toward the prop. A direct-drive has a straight shaft that goes from the engine out to the prop.
A direct-drive engine is located mid-boat, whereas v-drive boats have engines in the rear. Skiers like direct-drives because they have flat bottoms which create small wakes and handle well, but depending upon how the ballast tank of a ski boat is filled, a v-drive can maneuver a boat through the water, cutting the surface and creating a wakeboarder or skier's dream wake.
Comments
8/7/2011 11:03:09 AMnothappywithdescription said:
The difference is actually placement, orientation and extra equipment. Direct drives have engines mounted mid-ship and oriented with the output/transmission pointed aft, the shaft being driven directly from engine to prop. V-drives are mounted more aft, turned around so that the drive is pointed forward to a transmission and then to a transfer case that turns the power 180 degrees and down to the shaft, giving the "V". V drives, at least in larger boats, normally have a steeper shaft angle vs. direct drives because they are mounted further aft but have prop locations in the same place as direct drives.
