Outboard motor

1. An outboard motor comprising:

an outboard motor body equipped with a V-type four-cycle engine provided with a left bank extending leftward and obliquely rearward and a right bank extending rightward and obliquely rearward; and

a mount member disposed to a front side portion of the outboard motor body to be detachably and adapted to support the outboard motor body to be rotatable in a horizontal direction through a steering shaft,

the V-type four-stroke engine including: a cylinder block in which a cylinder extends in a horizontal direction thereof; a cylinder head fixed to the cylinder block to form a combustion chamber together with the cylinder so as to cover the cylinder, and which is formed with an intake port communicating with the combustion chamber of the engine on an inner side of the outboard motor width direction than a cylinder axis and an exhaust port communicating with the combustion chamber of the engine on an outer side of the outboard motor width direction than the cylinder axis; and a crankcase in which a crank shaft is housed,

wherein the left bank and the right bank are formed by the cylinder block and the cylinder head, in which the left bank is formed, on the outer side of the outboard motor width direction than the cylinder, with a left side exhaust passage communicated with the exhaust port formed to the left bank and provided therein with a catalyst, and the right bank is formed, on the outer side of the outboard motor width direction than the cylinder, with a right side exhaust passage communicated with the exhaust port formed to the right bank and provided therein with a catalyst, and

wherein a drive shaft is perpendicularly disposed in the outboard motor body so as to transmit a driving force from the engine to a propeller disposed below the engine, and center positions of the left side exhaust passage and the right side exhaust passage are positioned forward than the drive shaft in a front-and-rear direction in an advancing direction of the outboard motor.

2. The outboard motor according to claim 1 , wherein the drive shaft of the outboard motor body is disposed in a manner offset rearward in the front-and-rear direction of the outboard motor with respect to the crank shaft of the V-type four-stroke engine, and the center positions of the left side exhaust passage and the right side exhaust passage are provided to a position between the steering shaft and the drive shaft in the front-and-rear direction of the outboard motor.

3. The outboard motor according to claim 1 , wherein a left bank side cylinder and a right bank side cylinder of the V-type four-stroke engine are formed to the cylinder block together with a rear half section of a crank chamber housing the crank shaft, and the left side exhaust passage and the right side exhaust passage are formed integrally.