During its media event in Charlotte, N.C., this week, Mercury Marine demonstrated its new patented Active Trim system that—according to a press release from the company—“automatically delivers instant, effortless trimming of boat engines.” The system will be available for new Mercury Marine/Mercury Racing outboards up to 400 hp and MerCruiser stern-drive engines up to 430 hp equipped with the Fond du Lac, Wis., company’s SmartCraft computer management setup.

Mercury Marine’s Active Trim system will be available for outboard engines up to Mercury Racing’s Verado 400R outboard, as well as MerCruiser stern-drive engines up to 430 hp. Photo courtesy/copyright Jay Nichols/Naples Image.

Unlike other “auto trim” systems that use engine speed (rpm) to control engine trim, Active Trim is a GPS-based system that controls engine trim based on boat speed and engine speed. According to the release, this feature “solves problems with the engine or drive trimming up instead of down, if the propeller breaks loose in hard turn and also solves issues with the engine trimming up too early or too late while the boat is getting up on plane.”

The system has also has five selectable “trim profiles” to accommodate a variety of boats, even those with “high-performance applications,” according to the release. Drivers can customize each profile to their own driving style/preference, as well as load (passengers, fuel, etc.) and weather/water conditions. Drivers who want to return to manual trim can override the system at an time by using the manual trim buttons. Re-engaging the Active Trim system is simple and easy, according to the release.

Full production of the Active Trim system, which also will be available for retrofitting SmartCraft-based engines already in the field, is planned for early 2016.

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