Joystick piloting is now available for vessels powered by Mercury V-6 3.4L 200hp and 225hp FourStroke outboards with DTS and V-6 3.4L 200hp SeaPro outboards with DTS. Mercury and SeaStar Solutions have collaborated to provide a fully validated joystick package for installation on Mercury’s new 200 and 225hp FourStroke outboard engines.
“This launch brings joystick piloting to a broader audience,” commented Ben Allen, General Manager for the Marine Leisure Division, E.P. Barrus Ltd, Mercury’s distributor in the UK. Previously, only customers with engines 250hp and above were able to experience the intuitive features of joystick piloting.”
In addition to joystick docking and manoeuvring, the system enables the driver to hold a boat in position, hold its heading, and hold its position and heading simultaneously.
In 2013, Mercury introduced Joystick Piloting for Outboards, the first of its kind in the marine marketplace. It remains the most precise system on the market and the only system from helm to stern designed to work with a Mercury engine.
V-6 Joystick System components include Mercury Digital Throttle & Shift, SeaStar Optimus 360 Joystick, SeaStar Optimus CANtrak Display, SeaStar Optimus Hydraulic Steering Pump, SeaStar Optimus Sport Tilt Helm and SeaStar Optimus SmartCylinder.