ok My 2cents
#1 ( Also take a look at most guys that run charters in smaller boats and they all run outboards. I am sure there are many reasons for this)
The commercial boys Know something...The weakest drive unit made is an outdrive..for rock solid reliability run an inboard...even a V drive is stronger longer than an out drive...that said will you put enough hours on yours for it to matter? Will you be running more than 2-400 ft-lbs of torque? Most guys run 50 or so hours per year, If that will be your average then an outdrive will probably be a better choice ( have you checked the replacement cost for an outboard???) A big block v8 or the equivalent diesel is at the top end of the design limits for torque load on any outdrive,,, a small block V-8 or smaller....Not an issue...Although merc and volvo put diesels in front of their outdrives...and stand behind them the same as they do for the big blocks!

#2 (Bahhh .....

The resale shows that they have an awesome marketing thing going, nothing more. Fiberglass is fiberglass. Grady White doesn't use some secret alien technology. I spent some time on a Grady. It was nice. No nicer than Striper, Pursuit, and lots of others. OTOH, it rode like s__t in a chop. This particular boat the owner ended up selling after 5 years for MORE THAN HE PAID FOR IT. He hadn't added a thing to it, either. I guess Gradys improve with age? I don't think so. He replaced it with a Pursuit, and now says that the Pursuit is nicer than the Grady was.)

Finegrain; fiberglass in NOT fiberglass...if that was the case then there would be no blisters or acidic decay in poorly laid hulls. Google fiberglass blisters and you will get a lifetime of reading!! ...the Grady's DO have superior construction more consistent resins, I believe they are vacuum bagging their hulls, Very expensive, etc. Does that make them worth the price...I don't know but If I was going to buy a "lifetime boat" well, I would look very hard at them.
IronheadMN...Freshwater may also play a role with longevity...But you make an excellent point! If a Bayliner trophy is the boat that has the layout you like and all the features / benefits and works for you on the plus side of most of the comprimises then buy it!!!

(They claimed that the "new and improved" Volvo Ocean Series OSI-XDP is rust prove.
Everything on the engine is stainless or brass and a special paint is used.
The drive unit is composite) It may be rust proof ( brass and aluminum do not "rust" but NOTHING is corrosion proof. Like finegrain said if you are gonna be in salt, fresh water cooling is the only way to go! Something you will not find in an outboard. By the way stainless and brass can set up a pretty good galvanic current, The stainless is very noble and the brass not so much, wich basicaly means the brass goes away fast if your zincs and other corrosin inhibitors stop working. Wich is true for any drive, corrossion is a killer and if you put your boat in water(anywater) you have to learn how to fight it!
As far as the motor cover(hump) is concerned doesn't the Striper have a flush deck??? Seems like I remember all there was was a sweet gunwale with fish/ice boxes....

B) All that said Volvo has a rock solid reputation for standing behind their outdrives and the sx drive seems to be THE choice...although you only have two choices, merc or volvo...it all boils down to

Ironhead it all boils down to this. A boat is a series of comprimises, go out and run the boats you like, fish with friends on their boats and try as hard as you can to anticipate what you want. It sounds like you do not really like the outboards, but do not know much about I/O's, They have both been around forever and they are both reliable ( I think I/O's get better mileage than 2-stroke outboards, but I don't know about 4-strokes O/Bs).
Find a boat that is as close to what you think you want as you can, buy it and realize that once you have your own boat you are going to start finding shortcomings that you never even thought of before! Try to pre-emptivly compromise toward how you are going to use your boat, and know beyond the shadow of doubt that from your first trip out you will probably find something that you wish was different.... It is a vicious/wonderful circle known as owning a boat...


Now, regardless of how we feel about this or that, we ALL want to see pics of your new boat so we can oooh and ahhh over it


Johnny