Mounting arrangement for a drive unit of a boat, and boat with mounting arrangement for a drive unit

A boat comprising:

• a hull, the hull having a wall and an opening extending through the wall;
• a drive unit comprising a mounting plate having an upwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface;
• a hold down plate having a downwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface;
• and
• a mounting arrangement for mounting the boat drive to the boat hull, comprising a mounting collar comprising a first plate having a first opening therein and a first wall extending from a top surface of the first plate around the first opening and defining a first cylinder, the first wall comprises a peripheral flange extending around an inside of the wall, a clamping collar comprising a second plate having a second opening therein and a second wall extending from a top surface of the second plate around the second opening and defining a second cylinder, an external shape of at least a top end of the first cylinder substantially matching an internal shape of at least a bottom end of the second cylinder;
• wherein the peripheral flange comprises a downwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface arranged to face the upwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface of the mounting plate of the drive unit, and an upwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface arranged to face the downwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface of the hold down plate.

A method of mounting a drive unit to a hull of a boat, comprising:

• positioning a mounting collar comprising a first plate having a first opening therein and a first wall extending from a top surface of the first plate around the first opening and defining a first cylinder, the first wall comprising a peripheral flange extending around an inside of the wall, so that the top of the first plate faces a bottom of the hull and so that the first wall extends upwardly through an opening in a wall of the hull;
• positioning a clamping collar comprising a second plate having a second opening therein and a second wall extending from a top surface of the second plate around the second opening and defining a second cylinder, an external shape of at least a top end of the first cylinder substantially matching an internal shape of at least a bottom end of the second cylinder, so that a bottom of the second plate faces a top of the hull and the first cylinder is at least partially received in the second cylinder;
• positioning a mounting plate of the drive unit so that an upwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface of the mounting plate faces a downwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface of the peripheral flange;
• positioning a hold down plate so that a downwardly facing, substantially frustoconical mounting surface of the hold down plate faces an upwardly facing substantially frustoconical mounting surface of the peripheral flange;
• and
• fastening the hold down plate to the mounting plate via fasteners.