Carver Owners Forum

Long time boater now retired and looking at buying a CRV 405 or 406 aft cabin of the 1999 to 2002 vintage. Been perusing the CYO and seeing lots of good advice but not much on the 405/406.

Would love to hear from others who would care to share their observations pro and con with these particular models--gas vs diesel, V-drive maint, system issues, etc--any useful info for a new owner would be appreciated. Will be on fresh water near Atlanta.

I have no experience with this model. But I will say my gas 42 was pig of a boat. It could not get out of its own way. Some day I'll own another 42 but with 500 hp Cats.
Other than that, all of my Carvers have been easy to work on and rig as needed.

I hear ya! 28,000 lbs is a lot of weight for gas engines to push around.

I see most of these models have the Merc or Crusader 7.4 325HP(?) engines, altho some have the 8.1, which I would think makes a nice difference.

Hard to beat deisel but do you think maint is more or less/simpler or harder than gas? e.g I hear a deisel raw water impeller is about $250 vs $50 for gas engine impeller--and I am a very frugal (cheap) guy!

Diesels are easy to maintain, and way more economical over the long haul. You will hate driving the big boat with gas engines. That's why I sold the 4207 and bought Plain Vanilla. After six years of hell on water, I bought a boat with 2700 horsepower so I could enjoy driving a boat again.
Hopefully, the 36 will be ok with 350 hp crusaders. I have a friend with one and it should be ok.

I have the older model of the boat with 454 Crusaders but it is still built on the same hull.

My boat and the 405/406 are totally different animals than the older 42 Afts. I cruise at 21/22 mph right at 3200/3300 rpm and burn around 36 gallons an hour. I can top this pig out at 33 mph if I want to but rarely do.

The 405 which is the same hull as my 370 has the deeper V hull on it and is a very comfortable ride in many different conditions.

I just bought a 2000 406 with 7.4 Mercs and running it on Lake Lanier. Be careful with diesels on the lake, few places to fuel up (2), fewer mechanics, and you are not going very far so you'll be awhile saving on the fuel consumption. Also, you'll spend more time slowing down not to sink pontoons than you will cruising down the lake.

This weekend I was loaded with fuel, water, 6 people and all the fixings. 3200 rpm was reading 19.5 on the GPS.

I know my opinion might be contrary, but I did some research prior to buying on the actual performance (not fuel consumption) between the gas and diesel options and it boiled down to a knot or so. Maybe others have real world experience to the contrary, but on inland lakes the convenience and lower maintenance cost of the gassers can be a selling point.

All that said, if I still cruised the salt down where I grew up in Destin, FL I would want the diesels for longevity and resale value (see you guys thought I was crazy for a minute!).

Like I noted, I know nothing of these hulls, so they must have made them much more efficient or measuring differently; my 42 was actually 48+feet OAL.
I'd be lucky to get the 4207 to 18mph WOT with 330hp Mercs.
Cruising was around 13mph.
I was in one where the guy repowered with 500hp cats. He let me drive it. What a dream docking, and a fantasy driving. Rode so much better with big horsepower.

That's why I sold it and bought Plain Vanilla - the need for speed!
Wife hates it. So she gets the 36.
I keep Plain vanilla.

JPJones, I own a 2001 406 with twin 454 CID 380hp MPI engines and the boat moves very good across the water at a cruising speed of 15 MPH and a top speed of 23 MPH. The top speed between gas/diesel is almost the same but for me what it really comes down to is the cost of ownership. I did the research and the cost of gas engine maintenance AND repair is much lower than diesels and I know how to perform the work. Also consider the Generator as it will be diesel too. If you keep the boat long enough where the engines or generator engine need rebuilding you would wish for the gas version. I crawl across the lake with my feet up, rum in hand enjoying my BAB (Short for Big A%^ Boat). There is absolutely nothing wrong with the diesel power plants and there is nothing wrong with Gas power plants as this is a personal preference for anyone. I suggest you test drive a diesel and gas (they do not have to be identical boats just close) and make your call. Hope this helps. John

I have a 2002 406 with twin Cummins 330hp diesels. I wish I had the 370hp version, but even underpowered as I am, I can still hit 22 knots, and use less fuel than a similar gas engine. And as to the previous poster that stated that diesel raw water pump impellers are $250, that's bull. I can find them anywhere for $51-$58. Now maybe if you but genuine Cummins, or Volvo, or Yanmar parts, they might be outrageously priced.
I bought the boat in 2010 with under 300 hours, have put an additional 300+ hours on the engines (in salt water) and have only had to do routine maintenance/fluid changes, which I have learned to do myself. I don't see where diesels are more expensive unless you have serious problems. I hope by taking good care of it, I won't have to deal with any major issues until I'm up into the thousands of hours.