Mercury Marine wins prestigious International Forum Design Award for V-6 outboard engine platform
by Lee Gordon 19 Mar 2019 04:01 PDT
V6 engines © Mercury Marine
Mercury Marine, the world leader in marine propulsion and technology has been recognized with an International Forum Design (iF) award in the Discipline Product category, presented to the company for its V-6 outboard lineup.
Among the world's most respected independent design organizations, iF International Forum Design organizes the iF Design Awards each year and has thousands of entries from close to 60 countries compete for the prize. Mercury's 3.4L, V-6 FourStroke outboard lineup was officially launched at the 2018 Miami International Boat Show and has been praised around the world for its best-in-class innovation, performance and design. According to its website, since 1953, iF has been active in the design community, issuing awards that are recognized and respected all over the world.
Mercury also won the iF design award in 2015 for its FourStroke outboard platform and in 2014 for its ERC (Electronic Remote Control).
"We are proud to be honored by iF with this prestigious design award," said John Pfeifer, Mercury Marine president." "The 3.4L, V-6 engine platform has been one of the most popular engines we have ever launched, and its success is a product of design thinking and innovations that sets this engine class apart from anything else on the market. To be honored globally for this product is a testament to our commitment to meeting the needs of our consumer."
Some of the many innovations that differentiate the 3.4L V-6 outboard are customer driven features that offer unparalleled comfort and convenience including a top cowl service door that provides easy oil check and fill (if needed) without removing the cowl an innovation that has been praised by consumers around the world.
The goal of the 3.4L, V-6 outboard platform was to introduce a new visual language reflective of the advanced technology that improves all aspects of performance and reliability. The engine includes a cowl design that is very tight to the package yet new and modern in its form.
"There's nothing else like that on the market today," said Tim Reid, Mercury Marine vice president of engineering. "When you open that door, in order to disengage the cowl, you hit a button and that turns into a handle; that's brilliant a simple idea executed well, a tremendous asset to the customer. We listen to our customers, leveraging technology and design to develop and deliver products that transform the on-water experience."
For all three award winning products, Mercury partnered with Designworks, a BMW Group Company, who utilized its more than 40-years of transportation design expertise to help create products that continue to lead the marine industry.
Additional information on Mercury's V-6 design can be found here.