Mercury Racing likes to do big things and celebrate achievements and for their 50th anniversary party in Charleston South Carolina they went really big. The new 500R outboard is a game changing engine and the new halo product for Mercury Racing’s outboard line. Celebrating 50 years in the marine industry is special and so is a 500 HP outboard. Every lesson learned from the V8 platform was applied to the 500R. The entire event was incredible and a special milestone for the Wisconsin based company. After running the new 500R on some of the most amazing boats on the market, let’s dive into the details and some impressions from the water. (Full video below.)

Let’s start with the 500R itself and no this isn’t just 450R with more boost, this familiar 4.6 liter V8 was designed from the ground up to be a powerhouse that stands the test of time. Details include a new crankshaft, main bearings and a more robust driveshaft for the 500+ HP of output. Updated pistons, rod bearings and connecting rods are engineered for the increase in power and a low inertia flywheel allows for better acceleration reaching the 6,600 maximum RPM. The weight starts at 720 Lbs for the lightest version.

With significantly more boost from the supercharger a 92 mm throttle body is utilized. A really trick feature on the intake side is humidity compensation technology where the ECM can monitor the humidity of incoming air and make timing adjustments to accommodate; where this can see up to 30 horsepower harnessed from what would otherwise be lost in adverse conditions.

In order to accommodate so much power, Mercury Racing redesigned the mid section and created what is now call the the Advanced Racing Core and after talking to the team at Mercury Racing, the program used data from the 450R race and pleasure experience to inform decisions. This is a seriously robust midsection, featuring an improved transom plate with more adjustment, a revised trim system with twin rams and booster to assist precise trim adjustment. Heavy duty guide plates and stiffer mounts are used for stability and improved steering input.

For steering, the ram is not almost 20% more powerful, with a stainless steel tube design as opposed to aluminum. And as you would expect an integrated rear tie bar for twins and multi engine setups.

Delivering the power is the new R Drive and R Drive Sport. Both feature a massive 1.5” prop shaft housed in a 5.9” gearcase that is optimized for semi surface and surfacing applications. The R Drive can have both left and right camber to offset steering torque. Both have 1.60 gears and feature an intermediate spray plate that helps direct water to the prop. Another neat feature is the nose cap that can be removed and use two different designs, one for submerged, and the other for surface applications.

The R Drive Sport has a longer skeg to accommodate surfacing, and a wedge shape from the leading edge to the trailer edge. You can get a cambered skeg for single engine application. The Sport also borrows technology from the M8 drive in that it uses a special aerospace alloy for the propshaft. These are extremely robust gearcases built for the long haul.

How did they perform? I got the chance to ride in the Performance 360, which I’ve ridden in before so it was a good way to feel the new 500R. With 4 of us in the boat, you could tell immediately the mid range acceleration was incredible. And, planing and high speed tight turns showed no signs of cavitation, meaning the intermediate spray plate and overall R Sport design were doing it’s job. We ran up to 115 MPH effortlessly at only 6,200 RPM and with some adjustments the 500R on the Performance 360 should be one of the faster sport cats out there. The boat itself was really well finished, a new designed windscreen and revised deck on the latest 360 looks sharp.

With a massive Garmin display and an interior that has 6 plush and deep bucket seats, the 360 blends pleasure and extreme performance. Not many cats in this size are faster.

Also at the water test were the DCB M37R which is a stunning hull, beautifully done in white, gray and red gelcoat. With 450R power the DCB was very fast, seeing 132 MPH or more. I am looking forward to this one getting dialed in because it could be in the high 130 MPH range.

If you want the biggest and baddest sport cat out there, the MTI 440X was there as well. You have to hand it to the team at MTI, the 440X has exceeded expectations on the water. With 450Rs the 440X has clocked speeds besting the 390X, because of the tunnel and dynamics of the boat, it’s truly incredible. Personally, I really love the MTI designs, they keep their signature look and continue to dominate the high end cat market.

Because it’s hard to get back to back tests, I did get a chance to talk to Mike Howe from Howe 2 Live about his thoughts and he had incredible feedback as almost nobody has put more time in on the 440X than him and his wife Sarah. He was immediately impressed by the acceleration, no slip or cavitation on takeoff either. Overall, I got the impression he loved the benefits and the fact that it would be a faster while improving everything else. His current 450R powered 440X is running really fast, in the 130+ MPH range, so if he’s impressed you know the MTI 440X with the 500Rs is incredible.

I would guess most sport cats will see about 3 to 5 MPH improvement, and have loads of benefits in cruising and mid range. The extra RPM and HP bump will be really apparent. There were several large center consoles as well from Cigarette, Nor-Tech, Fountain, Midnight Express, MTI and Freeman whish all saw benefits from the 500R. Overall, Mercury Racing addressed every component on the V8 platform to handle the rigors of performance boating at speeds the 500R will be attaining. This is truly an outboard in a class by itself.