CMD Expands Zeus Family to 715 hp, Adds Triple and Quad Applications
CHARLESTON, S.C. — The biggest idea in the history of marine propulsion just got a lot bigger. The Zeus® Pod propulsion system will soon be available with 715-hp engines, and in triple and quadruple installations.
Zeus technology will be the centerpiece of Cummins MerCruiser Diesel’s presence at the 2010 Miami (Fla.) International Boat Show, Feb. 11-15.
Cummins MerCruiser Diesel has made two huge additions to its Zeus 3000 Series lineup. First, the revolutionary Zeus propulsion system has been expanded to include QSM11-liter engines at 715 hp, currently CMD’s largest and most powerful engine. Secondly, the QSB5.9-480 hp, the QSC8.3-600 hp and the QSM11-715 hp Zeus models will also be available in triple and quadruple configurations. The new engines and multiple configurations mean that Zeus 3000 Series technology – complete with joystick control, autopilot and Skyhook® station keeping – covers everything from a total installed power of 710 hp (2 x QSB5.9-355 hp) up to a whopping 2,860 hp (4 x QSM11-715 hp). Consequently, myriad vessels from a small sportfish boats or cruisers in the 35-foot range up to fast yachts approaching 100 feet can now benefit from the most user-friendly propulsion system on the water.
CMD’s innovative Zeus pod drive system offers all of the best features of inboards, and it provides the incalculable benefit of joystick control at slow speeds. The joystick controls the drive-by-wire steering, throttle and shifting in an intuitive manner, so simple hand movements are translated into vectored thrust and complex boat maneuvers that were once impossible for all but the most experienced captain. Now, a novice boater can move even a 100-foot yacht dead sideways or diagonally, or spin it in the boat’s own length at will, making docking dramatically easier, even when strong winds and currents are present. The system also offers integrated autopilot functions such as waypoint tracking and autoheading as a standard feature. Skyhook, which maintains boat position and heading with the touch of a button, is also a standard part of the Zeus package.
Zeus pods are tunnel mounted, so the pods are largely shielded from debris in the water by the hull of the boat. Tunnel mounting also results in a much more shallow draft, in most cases, than traditional inboards and other pod systems, making more boating areas accessible to larger boats. In the unlikely event of a grounding or strike, however, Zeus offers superior protection. First, Zeus propellers face rearward, so they are largely shielded from debris by the gearcase and skeg. Secondly, the skeg is designed to break away from the pod if it strikes an object, leaving the pod intact and operational, so the boat can still get home under its own power. In the event of a hard collision directly to one of the pods, the gearcase is designed to shear away just below the hull, leaving the boat watertight and able to return to port using the other engine(s). Also, the integrated trim tab on the Zeus 3000 prevents damage to the hull as the pod breaks free.
Outstanding fuel efficiency is another hallmark of the Zeus system. Each pod is equipped with a pair of stainless-steel, counter-rotating propellers, mounted parallel to the bottom of the boat, so thrust is applied on the horizontal plane, rather than the inherently inefficient downward thrust of a standard inboard boat. The Zeus system also has far less hydrodynamic drag than a conventional exposed shaft, rudder and strut. The result for many boats, versus the same model equipped with traditional inboards, is up to 30 percent better fuel efficiency at wide open throttle and up to 50 percent greater range at cruise speeds.
Vessels with three and four Zeus pods may be equipped with up to three fully equipped helm stations, complete with joysticks, autopilot and Skyhook control, etc., plus up to four additional auxiliary joysticks for a total of up to seven joysticks. Twin Zeus applications have the option for one or two full helm stations, each with its own joystick. Regardless of how many engines, each helm station has a standard two-lever control head that electronically controls all of the engines and transmissions in concert.
Robert Mirman, CMD’s Zeus product manager, said the dramatic expansion of the technology is the direct result of feedback from boatbuilders and consumers.
“Zeus makes handling a boat so easy that people have asked for it in bigger and bigger vessels,” Mirman said. “Fortunately, Zeus was planned from the start to be an extensible technology, so we’ve been working on bringing higher horsepower engines and multiple pods into the equation since the original introduction.We’re very excited to bring these new options to market and look forward to seeing them in consumers’ hands in the very near future."
CMD has already installed three- and four-pod systems in OEM boats and is in negotiation with more development partners. Lazzara Yachts and CMD jointly announced the first triple QSC8.3-600 hp Zeus model, a 78-foot Lazzara motor yacht, at the 2009 Yacht and Brokerage Show in Miami Beach.
A quadruple Zeus boat, as well as two twin-Zeus Sea Ray boats, will be displayed and demonstrated at the Miami International Boat Show, Feb. 11-15, at the start of Pier 1 in Miami’s Sea Isle Marina. Other boat builders will be displaying Zeus boats in their own slips at Sea Isle Marina, and in the land-based portion of the show at the Miami Beach Convention Center.
More information on the innovative Zeus lineup is available at www.cmdmarine.com
About CMD
Based in Charleston, South Carolina (USA), Cummins MerCruiser Diesel is responsible for designing, manufacturing and providing reliable after-sales support worldwide for marine propulsion products. It offers a broad range of power, with available ratings from 115-715 hp for recreational applications and 150-715 hp for commercial use. Cummins MerCruiser Diesel is a joint venture between Cummins Inc. and Mercury Marine and can be found on the internet at www.cmdmarine.com.
For more information, contact: Clay Gaillard, CMD Public Relations Manager at (office) 843-745-1238, (cellular) 850-596-8271 or clay.gaillard@cmdmarine.com.
High resolution photography of CMD products can be downloaded from the CMD FTP site: www.cmdmarine.com/ftp.
