Honda upgrade for increased boating safety

Providing exceptional service to Port Phillip boaters, the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard Association (AVCGA) VF07 recently fitted its primary rescue vessel with powerful twin Honda BF250 outboards.

An upgrade from twin Honda BF225s, the Patterson River-based 9.2m marine rescue vessel now has a top-end speed of 45kt to ensure it can be on the scene to assist boaters even quicker than before.

AVCGA Carrum Commander Matt Semmens said the new engines were also delivering exceptional fuel economy, which was important to any volunteer rescue organisation.

“We’re averaging 20-25L of fuel per hour, which is really impressive given the size of these engines,” Mr Semmens said.

“The BF250s perform exceptionally well… the BLAST system gets this big boat out of the hole very quickly and the engines are incredibly quiet at all speeds.

“We know from previous experience how reliable Honda engines are too, which is critical at all times and especially when people’s lives are at risk.”

In addition to the upgraded Honda engines, the high-tech marine rescue vessel incorporates a FLIR forward-looking infra-red camera, to assist during night search and rescue operations; an Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponder, which transmits position, speed, course and other vessel information to nearby vessels; a MOB ladder, to safely retrieve injured people from the water; along with a portable fire pump and fire fighting equipment.

Honda’s flagship BF250 was released late last year. It combines a 3.6L V6 EFI engine with the world’s first direct air induction system in an outboard to deliver outstanding overall performance and best-in-class fuel economy.

The BF250 incorporates exclusive Honda technologies including BLAST – advanced ignition timing control system that significantly improves hole-shot performance; ECOmo – sophisticated lean burn fuel control system, which contributes to the engine’s excellent fuel economy; and VTEC – variable valve timing technology originally developed for Formula One race cars to deliver incredible power.

Combining performance, reliability and the environmental characteristics for which Honda is renowned, the new BF250 is also backed by Honda’s five-year warranty.