There are a lot of traditionalists in that market.. Cleaning also maximizes efficiency of the pods contrarotating propellers. A couple of tanks of fuel? They also dont have cutlass bearings or shaft seals to monitor and replace, nor separate rudders and steering systems to maintain, saving money on those items over the long haul. In fact, shafts and struts have been driven through the hull by groundings and collisions with floating debris. Then Zeus offered Sky Hook, a station-keeping device that combined data from a GPS and an electronic compass to keep the vessel perfectly still within a yard or two. Spencer Yachts builds an 87-footer with ZF pods, and Smith was integral to the development process. Volvo has one zinc hidden, but accessible, on the drive itself. In the past decade, high-tech pod drives have changed the face of powerboating, and for the better. One described his skepticism like this: Its just too good to be true. (Volvo Penta soon followed suit.). Controlled at low speeds by a joystick rather than wheel, shifts, and throttles, pods take most of the angst, the apprehension, and, sometimes, the sheer terror out of close-quarters maneuvering. International service is also a concern for pods. With its forward-facing counter-rotating propellers, Volvos IPS pod-drive is a unique system. We recommend consulting with a licensed physician before using a vaporizer. Comfort Onboard comfort is improved too. Click to enable/disable _gid - Google Analytics Cookie. The biggest thing marketed to promote the system was its efficiency compared to a regular shaft and prop system, as well as joystick maneuverability. But conventional wisdom no longer applies. You can also change some of your preferences. Todd Anderson recently ran a 50 Viking powered by ZF 4000 pods. All rights reserved. Use Volvo or Cummins zincs too, which arent zinc at all. The ZS-3000 is Snell M2005 certified in the small shell size (XS to M). How Fuel-Efficient Are Pods, Exactly? At Volvo Pentas IPS rollout in Mallorca de Palma, identical inboard and pod-drive boats were pitted against each other. Pod access aboard the Riviera 43 is through the cockpit sole. Zeus Pod Drive Transmissions. At that time, the company boat was a 38-foot express cruiser with a pair of Volvo D6 370 hp diesels matched to IPS 500 series drives. All told, figure $500 per engine annually, plus haul-out fees. Inboard props slip in both forward and reverse. Definitely good value for the price and performance these offer. The 390 with Volvo 600 IPS drives was absolutely one of the most fun and outrageous-performing boats I have ever driven. It seems like this new tech gadgetry would have been off-putting to the salty captains, and it was, particularly among the sport-fisher crowds, who already had their docking and fish-fighting skills well honed. Use of Cookies: ZF Friedrichshafen AG uses cookies to continuously improve the website and optimize its design. On Cummins drives, standard-equipment MerCathode system anodes emit a tiny electrical charge opposite the damaging electrical currents that normally flow through metal parts in seawater, actively protecting pods from galvanic corrosion. Great contribution Blue Magnolia..that rings true and honest. We are not early adopters. Not a lot of guys know pods yet. $44 MediaLight Mk2 Flex 4m D65 6500CRI98 Bias Lighting USB powered ComputersTablets & Networking Laptop & Desktop Accessories USB Lights & Gadgets All up, pod owners can expect to pony up something like an additional $2,500 for scheduled maintenance. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Neither Health Canada nor the FDA have evaluated the vaporizers, blends and/or statements displayed on this website. When checking transmission oil level, give it a sniff. Siebert removes all loose paint from the drive, sanding down to shiny metal with 100-grit sandpaper, and then applies primer and two thin coats of Trilux 33 or Pettit Vivid copper thiocyanate anti-fouling paint. I have personally ruled out any boat with PODS, IPS or ZEUS, for those 2 main reasons. But how do you compare boats? They tasked ZF Marine to bring them a transmission that would mate with their Zeus pod, electronic controls and joystick steering. Siebert puts annual maintenance for pods roughly $2,000 above what straight shafts cost, not including extra haul-out fees for boats that exceed 250 engine-hours per year. Capt. That could make billing a fish tough if you have to strain to reach the water. Are the Zeus drives still being produced today? Painting pods will cost a bit more too. I rarely say this but if your dead set on a pod option I would put Volvos in. Pods are something new, he said. How much of the additional initial cost will you get back at trade-in time? When a 42-foot pod boat can replace a 46-footer, savings add up fast. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. He gives even higher praise to the Clean Wake exhaust feature. Re IPS: Volvo is well regarded for their innovations with IPS. Theyre a whole different animal, Siebert said. are zeus pods still being manufactured. Before, maneuvering required forethought, logic, coordination, and strategizing; after, it became mere intuition: Look where you want to go and point the joystick that way. My experience is that they will work with their Cummins/Mercury dealers to lend a hand in unusual situations. Pods have taken certain segments of the cruising-boat market by storm, and now big-game charter captains who were once fixed-shaft aficionados are embracing this new technology. Having the ability to move sideways, spin and dock raises the comfort level, especially for an inexperienced boater who wants to weekend but doesnt want to train on an 18-foot vessel, Meissner says. The aft placement of pods has added to usable space on board. Check the status of an existing order here. Cummins says you dont have to haul, but it takes a lot more time to suck that heavy oil out than to just drain it from the bottom, Siebert said. Ask to see the service records for the boats first year. Its like a orange and all they work on is apples. Robin Buckley captains a SeeVee 39 with IPS 600s, named Kimbuktu. But, the lids. Volvo includes neither a water alarm nor a clear reservoir, so check the single transmission and gear oil dipstick for signs of water. Zeus Arsenal has always made only reliable, well-performing devices that go beyond just being the perfect daily driver. They have shafts, they have props, and they can get more if they need them. Inboards props are angled downward, diminishing the power directed toward forward motion. One drive had a. We didnt have to touch it until we got back to San Diego.). When pods vibrate, propellers or jack shaft bearings are the likely causes. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Great Product. Using a fresh arcpod lid enables you to visibly see which one of your pods is used and which ones have been depleted. The Zeus ArcPods are the convenient method of preparing, loading, and transporting your dry herb for use with your Zeus Arc GTS or Arc S vaporizer. But its also highly dependent on the application of the vessel. The engines are in their normal spot, but then you jackshaft to pods, so you lose space in the lazarette, he says. Whats going on here? Allow $450 per IPS pod, $350 per Zeus. That said, the pods are a bit more in annual maintenance. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. A frequently overlooked benefit of IPS is this new stateroom, made possible by the compact power installation. If we have to go searching or put divers in the water, thats another story. To prevent later claims of piracy, come to an agreement beforehand, Little said. Finger pointing is worse in any situation when it is out of warranty, then you are left on a deserted island. Check the condition of the seals by inspecting the drained oil for water; the best way is to have the oil analyzed, said Petzold. Gear, people, supplies, fuel and water lug a boat down, and the more it settles in the water, the more impact it has on your speed. Click to enable/disable _ga - Google Analytics Cookie. Nevertheless, pods are making inroads. You must be at least 19 years from Canada and 21 years from USA to buy and/or use this website. Can anyone speak to when there were evolutionary changes in the Zeus pods? Somewhere in between the cost of straightening conventional shafts and rudders, and possibly even repairing transmissions, the advantage shifts back to pods. I often hear stories about Mercury paying for expensive replacement parts when their Zeus units need work out of warranty. Review Images (jpg, jpeg, png) Max 3MB file size allowed. Take the props off, grease the shafts, and check the seals, Fessenden said. When you back down an inboard, the rudder posts start vibrating, and the boat sounds like its coming apart. The bill to undo the resulting carnage came to $46,000, a figure that couldnt have been much worse if pods had been involved.). Petzold uses Propspeed, or some other antifouling paint formulated for underwater metals. Corrosion can cause expensive damage, and quickly, too. Being new to power boating, I selected this configuration for ease of docking and it has been fabulous. Each pod has 2 props and they are different. While builders debated the benefits of the different pod designs, many new boaters were simply seduced by the joystick maneuvering system. Cummins Marine Diesel Repower Specialists Forums Cummins Marine Engines Zeus Pods: Good, Bad, Ugly?? Cummins QSC 8.3 Zeus pods long term support, https://www.yachtforums.com/converszeus-pods-long-term-support.17232/#navigation, https://www.sabreyachts.com/motor-yachts/fly-bridge-sedan-48/fly-bridge-48-performance-data, (You must log in or sign up to reply here.). The drive can be simultaneously connected to electric propulsion too. IMO, Zeus, or any POD drive, would not even be a close 2nd. It turns out that if I went with the new Cummins 550s and straight shafts, the IPS is a little cheaper., Sport-fish mode. Inboards are virtually maintenance-free, while pods require lots of servicing. Mark their location any way you can, with a waypoint or a buoy, said Steve Little, president ofTowBoatU.S. We do a lot of high-speed trolling for wahoo at around 16 knots, and all the exhaust is under the water, so you dont smell diesel fumes.. Much more service options down there. Most studies show that maximum rpm only accounts for about 10 percent of the total running cycle of most boats and engines. Our mentality could be considered the opposite of todays kids in relation to new technology. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website.