RHuff Posted January 27, 2020 Posted January 27, 2020 Those of you with this motor, are you satisfied with it? I have been eyeing the Ranger rt198p and went and looked at one at a dealer but while I was there I also looked at the new rt188p that just came out this year. The boats are almost identical except the 188 is a foot shorter and has the 115 instead of the 150. I can get the rt188p for about $8,000 cheaper than the rt195p also. This would help greatly in adding better electronics and an ultrex in and still save some money. Are you satisfied with the amount of power you get from the 115? Is it good enough to fish at the local/regional level? I like fishing local club tournaments and regional tournaments, don't see myself fishing anything major for a while (if ever). Just looking for input by those of you with this motor. Quote
Super User A-Jay Posted January 27, 2020 Super User Posted January 27, 2020 Congrats on new rig shopping ! IMO - depends on where your priorities lie. Right off the bad, it's a ton easier to upgrade or change out electronics than it is an outboard motor. So I say - Do yourself a HUGE favor and put the Max HP the boats capacity plate lists. Then, you will never wonder if you are getting the best performance possible out of your rig, because you have the most you can get. Anything less, while it may not be too bad, Will Be Less. btw - dealers always under power rigs to lower the price - Which is fine Bassheads who purchase theses rigs often believe they got a deal - and that's great. However, these are often the rigs up for re-sale just a short time later. Search this forum - there's threads galore . . . . Good Luck. Now cue the other side of the fence . . . A-Jay 2 Quote
Dirtyeggroll Posted January 27, 2020 Posted January 27, 2020 12 minutes ago, A-Jay said: Do yourself a HUGE favor and put the Max HP the boats capacity plate lists. Then, you will never wonder if you are getting the best performance possible out of your rig, because you have the most you can get. Anything less, while it may not be too bad, Will Be Less. ^^^ this and it also applies to the length. It’ll probably cost you more than $8K to add a foot and 35 HP to the boat if you think that’s what you’ll eventually want. It’s a lot easier to incrementally add electronics and they will also not hold their value like a foot and 35 hp will. If you are planning to fish rain or shine in most wind conditions the bigger the boat the better. The 188 will handle many conditions but the 195 will handle more. Rarely on the water will you probably think “only if I had the 195.” Even more rarely and approaching never on the water will you think, “only if I had the 188” (maybe when trying to get in behind/between docks). 2 Quote
RHuff Posted January 27, 2020 Author Posted January 27, 2020 You make a great point A-Jay and I appreciate your response. Let me clarify. The Ranger rt198p has the 150HP (Max Rating) and the rt188p has the 115HP (Max Rating). The cost of the rt188p runs about $8,000 less than the rt198p. I could save some money by purchasing the smaller boat/motor. I just wonder if the folks that have the 115 are happy with the amount of power they get out of it. Again, thanks for the response! Quote
Super User A-Jay Posted January 28, 2020 Super User Posted January 28, 2020 30 minutes ago, RHuff said: You make a great point A-Jay and I appreciate your response. Let me clarify. The Ranger rt198p has the 150HP (Max Rating) and the rt188p has the 115HP (Max Rating). The cost of the rt188p runs about $8,000 less than the rt198p. I could save some money by purchasing the smaller boat/motor. I just wonder if the folks that have the 115 are happy with the amount of power they get out of it. Again, thanks for the response! You're Welcome and Thank you for the clarification. Perhaps one way to find out what each has to offer in the way of performance is to test ride them both. Then you'd know. Also @Dirtyeggroll (besides having a very cool profile name), as offered some solid advice. A-Jay Quote
Russ E Posted January 28, 2020 Posted January 28, 2020 I have a 2017 fiberglass ranger Z175 with the 115 pro xs four stroke. the boat is 17 foot 10 inches long and has a 92 inch beam. It weighs around 2500 pounds fully loaded. After a lot of research I chose this setup, because it was right for me. The largest lake I fish is 10,000 acres. Most are signifitcantly smaller than that. after 3 years and a lot of hours in the boat I have no regrets. I love this setup. the 115 pro xs is very smooth and responsive for its size. Very easy on gas also. My 115 has a command thrust lower unit, So I can run the bigger props. even though it is only a 115, I get a crazy hole shot with a tempest 23 pitch prop. It gets a top speed of 49-50 mph. the next step up was the Z185. It was a lot heavier and only gets around 52 mph top speed with a 150. to me it was not worth the extra cost. The mod v rangers may be a little different, but I have had this boat in nasty waves and never felt unsafe or under powered. 2 Quote
RHuff Posted January 28, 2020 Author Posted January 28, 2020 Thank You Russ.. If that thing handles the 175 well then it should certainly handle the aluminum rt188p well.. 1 Quote
Hower08 Posted January 28, 2020 Posted January 28, 2020 My dad has the rt188 with the 115 4s proxs boat jumps on plane instantly rides smooth very stable and will handle rough water. We have had it in 4s before and while not recommended it never felt unsafe. With two guys full tournament load full livewell dual 8 foot power poles and 3 batteries it will run low 40s. If it were up to me I would buy the 188 for $8,000 less and spend the money on power poles and upgraded electronics 1 Quote
RHuff Posted January 28, 2020 Author Posted January 28, 2020 Do you recommend power poles even with the ultrex? Quote
Super User A-Jay Posted January 28, 2020 Super User Posted January 28, 2020 5 minutes ago, RHuff said: Do you recommend power poles even with the ultrex? Maybe yes - Maybe no ~ A-Jay Quote
Super User gim Posted January 29, 2020 Super User Posted January 29, 2020 On 1/27/2020 at 4:46 PM, RHuff said: I have been eyeing the Ranger rt198p and went and looked at one at a dealer but while I was there I also looked at the new rt188p that just came out this year. I saw this rig at the Boat Show last weekend in Mpls and it’s a nice setup! I like that it has the pad hull instead of the standard mod v hull. Quote
Dirtyeggroll Posted January 29, 2020 Posted January 29, 2020 4 hours ago, RHuff said: Do you recommend power poles even with the ultrex? Ultrex is good for deep powerpoles are good for shallow. Some overlap but not much. If I had to choose one I’d pick the Ultrex, but that’s probably due to my style of fishing. I don’t do a lot of stationary fishing when shallow. Quote
Shimano_1 Posted January 29, 2020 Posted January 29, 2020 I have a Triton 18tx which is virtually identical to the 188. Love it. Went from a Triton 20x2 20ft glass rig with a 250 to this boat last year. It has the 115 4 stroke with command thrust. Are there times I wish it would run a little faster? Absolutely. Do I regret my decision...absolutely not. I fish a lot of local and a few regional tournaments. The only down side period is speed. In every other aspect I love it. Only you can decide if the 198 is worth it to you but obviously to me it wasn't. I looked at them when I bought mine. I can put mine in places big glass boats simply can't go. Much easier on my truck to tow. Fuel economy is literally 5 times better than the 250 2 stroke was. It has actually surprised me in a lot of ways. As for the talons or power poles and ultrex...I could see benefit for sure in both but I plan on putting the ultrex on mine and being done with it. 98 percent of the time that's all I need and 2 percent isnt worth the cost of poles. Good luck Quote
Goldstar225 Posted January 29, 2020 Posted January 29, 2020 I've had my tracker PT190 for two years, similar in size to the 188 with the 115 Pro XS 4s (Non CT). I don't fish tournaments. With that said I'm completely satisfied with the performance of the 115. With a Mercury X7 prop I hit 49 (GPS) with a good holeshot. I'm not a speed demon and cruise at 40 MPH @ 5,000 RPM. As to the size of the boat I have never wished for larger and have fished with three on board (two front deck, one stern) easily. You needs/wants may be different on boat/motor size but for me the extra 8K wouldn't be worth it. 1 Quote
SuperDuty Posted January 29, 2020 Posted January 29, 2020 I just can't fathom the thought that 12" and maybe a couple more mph would be even remotely worth 8k. Quote
Hower08 Posted January 29, 2020 Posted January 29, 2020 2 hours ago, SuperDuty said: I just can't fathom the thought that 12" and maybe a couple more mph would be even remotely worth 8k. It's really not but due to marketing people believe it is 19 hours ago, RHuff said: Do you recommend power poles even with the ultrex? Spot lock and power poles each has there place. If your in 3 foot of water fishing a bed do you want that trolling motor kicking on and off to hold position? On the other end if your in water to deep for poles spot lock would prove to be invaluable. I will have both on my next boat 1 Quote
WCWV Posted January 30, 2020 Posted January 30, 2020 I too have the Pro XS 115 4-S on my 190 and have been very satisfied with it. 1 Quote
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