Merc 600 upgrades ??

[Tattooedtrucker]

Currently looking into having whipple do the stage 1 flash to my merc 600. Was thinking about adding their flame/spark arrestor . Has anyone done the stage 1 and added their spark arrestor ?? Kinda curious if it’s worth it or not .

 

[02HoWaRd26]

Seems most just go straight to the stage 3.

 

[fastenuff3]

I did the stage 3 and at 200 hours pulled engine to update heads and valve train and put the stage 4

 

[Runs2rch]

Currently looking into having whipple do the stage 1 flash to my merc 600. Was thinking about adding their flame/spark arrestor . Has anyone done the stage 1 and added their spark arrestor ?? Kinda curious if it’s worth it or not .

Yes worth it. Pulley, tune, flame arrestor 725-750hp

 

[Teague_JR]

The flame arrestor wont do anything for you with a stage one. It is only for additional air flow in the upper RPM range of the stage 3 plus and without a cam swap probably isnt worth much HP just good looks... I would absolutely recommend the stage 2 instead of just stage 1 if youre going to be sending them the ECM, along with following the instructions to reroute/increase intercooler water flow that they provide. The stage 3 is just a stage 2 plus the nice arrestor, if youre on a budget the arrestor is not mandatory.
JT

 

[GreenEnergy28]

Just ordered the I/C fitting upgrade. Figured I would start by increasing water flow before upgrading to stage 2 or 3. Anyone know if Whipple actually changes the tune from stage 2 to stage 3? I know the stage 3 includes the flame arrestor as JT mentioned, just curious if they change the tune since they claim +20 hp with just a flame arrestor...? Same pulley? I know stock, I'm seeing 5lbs boost so assuming 7lbs with stage 2 and 3.

 

[Teague_JR]

Just ordered the I/C fitting upgrade. Figured I would start by increasing water flow before upgrading to stage 2 or 3. Anyone know if Whipple actually changes the tune from stage 2 to stage 3? I know the stage 3 includes the flame arrestor as JT mentioned, just curious if they change the tune since they claim +20 hp with just a flame arrestor...? Same pulley? I know stock, I'm seeing 5lbs boost so assuming 7lbs with stage 2 and 3.
View attachment 1190229

Not a bad idea either way. I would also use the polished stainless pushlock 90's that TCM sells. Do not use aluminum fittings on water plumbing. The inlet water feed to the intercooler should also be relocated to before the oil cooler instead of after.

Same pulley for stage 2 and 3. Same tune also I believe but whipple can confirm that for you if you call....

 

[GreenEnergy28]

Not a bad idea either way. I would also use the polished stainless pushlock 90's that TCM sells. Do not use aluminum fittings on water plumbing. The inlet water feed to the intercooler should also be relocated to before the oil cooler instead of after.

Same pulley for stage 2 and 3. Same tune also I believe but whipple can confirm that for you if you call....

Thanks JT. I will jump on your site and get those ordered. I'll likely do the stage 2 later so I will re-route the cooling lines at that time. Still a new boat so I wanted to put some hours on the engine before the tune. Once my 1 year warranty is up. LOL

 

[GreenEnergy28]

Kind of high jacking this thread, but I installed the Whipple -10 upgrade today. Whipple’s site states stainless steel fittings and at a $400 price tag, I figured they were. Teague JR mentioned buying the 90’s from Teague ($40 each) but decided to wait for these to arrive to confirm material.
Seem to be aluminum as mentioned due to weight but went ahead and installed for now. Heres how it went.

Merc uses SS 90’s that are similar to hydraulic fittings. They fit nice and tight behind the heat exchanger

kind of a pain to get the inlet line out. I ended up having to unscrew the 90 from the insert

side by side comparison

Got them swapped out in about an hour after climbing in and out of the boat a few times for tools. Had to be very careful because I didn’t want to scratch the paint so it took a little longer than it probably should have.

End result is, fittings are about 0.100" bigger on the ID, not the 1/4" that Whipple states. The inserts taper out quite a bit bigger. The 90"s have a nice flowing radius. Not sure how much these will actually improve flow over stock but figured I would give them a try.