what should i expects- E-tecs
 

Thinking about throwing a brand new motor on the back of my 1990 Center console. right now i have a 1990 johnson 175 on it. she runs about 42mph WOT and cruises nice between 27-30. Motor still runs fine but is an absolute gas hog.

i want to keep the price of a new motor as low as i can (cutting HP) yet still get performance. All i do on the boat is go fishing, i dont need the 40+WOT speeds if i can get the 27-30 im perfectly happy. Id like to save fuel too.

what kind of speed/ fuel consumption do you think i would get out of the following motors

E-Tec 175hp (price15,200)
e-tec 150 hp (price 13,500)
E-tec 130hp (price 11,700)
E-Tec 115hp ( price10,700)

do i need the bigger motors or could i get by on the smaller motors?


any and all opinions are appreciated

should be able to get one of the new merc 4 strokes 150, soup to nuts, for around $12,500.
be my choice

I really dont want a 4 stroke motor... those prices i posted were just msrp i havent went and actually priced them yet

I'd wait til boat show season and try to swing a deal. Also try to get a deal with the extended warranty included.

I love my 150, but if I carried more passengers/gear I'd probably spring for a 200. Just because I like to haul *** sometimes.

I wouldn't go smaller than a 150. An extra thousand when you're already breaking out 10,000 is worth spending to be happy with it.

With mine I generally cruise at 4200-4400 rpms and travel about 31 mph. Have seen 45 mph once, cant remember the rpms, probably around 5400 or so. Uses about 1/3 the fuel of my old 225 looper. I run a 14 1/4 X 17 stainless Solas prop.

E-Tecs
 

I put a 2013 130 Etec on my 79 v20 and absolutely love it. I cruise at around 28-30 not WOT. The fuel consumption is very good. Most days out i use between 7-10 gal. my fishing grounds are about 7 miles away and once there i troll, drift and move around and return. The boat also pops right on plain in seconds. Highly recommend the Etec.

I have the 200ho (3.3 litre) and really enjoy the economy and performance.. Comparing to my friends with comparable 4 strokes, I out run and out gun them with just slightly better economy.

I average in the 3.4mpg when running for tuna, loaded heavy with a tote of salt ice, 4 guys and equipment and 35 gallon bait tank and sea conditions generally suck heading out 50 miles and pretty good coming in.

No oil changes, valve adj and lots of weight as 4 strokes.

My .02---go with the 175. You can always use less throttle, but can not push down any more if it is not available.

plus you do not have to work the bigger engine as hard as a smaller hp engine.

PS--get the I command gauge and the fly by wire--they will both pay for themselves down the road.

Why go new if you don't have to ?

Good sources such as ARG Marine in Florida often sells used, and they stand behind the motors. I bought from them years ago, and I'm very careful.

Anyway, 150 hp all around adaquate based on your description.

(Genie is a horsepower freak......... like me.......:) )

just so you know, there are some deals to be had on Optimax motors right now, you will have to find a dealer that's willing to search a bit, but from what I've heard, mercury is blowing out some deals to get their 2 stroke inventory down. Make no mistake, four strokes are taking over the market, with ever increasing tighter emission standards coming, its only a mater of time before two strokes will be gone. If I were buying a new motor, the 200/150(four cylinder) Yamaha four stroke would be a the top of the list. The Mercury Opti's would be right beside it, maybe in front of it if the price was right.

Thanks,

I will take a look at the Opti's as well. I really dont want a 4 stroke motor. Just seems like much more maintenance than i want to deal with.

50% of the engines I work on are Yamaha fourstrokes, 75% of the work i do on them is preventative maintenance, the majority of the 25% of work is fuel related(bad fuel, contaminated fuel, bad fuel pumps). They have other issues, just like any other engines as well(trim systems, lower units, etc...). I work on all types of engines spread apart four strokes outboards, two stroke outboards, Inboards, Inboard Outboard, some light diesel work, and I even work on jet pumps once in a blue moon(real jets, with big blocks, not jet ski's). Yamaha engines are by far the most popular new engines in my area(Charleston, SC), followed by Mercury, Suzuki, Honda(very little), in order of popularity. there are probably less than 10 E-tecs in the drystacks (over 1600 individual stacks) and marinas around here that I can think of, with only one dealer willing to work on them(four dealers selling Bombardier parts). Research the area you are in to see what your options are for service before you buy.

I have no experience with the new direct injection 2 strokes, but I can tell you, I love my Johnson/Suzuki 140 4 stroke. I get 40 mph top end and average 5 mpg cruising.

To me, dealing with pouring oil once a year (annual oil change) is better that pouring $30/gal oil all season into a 2 stroke...but thats just me, I always used to make a mess with outboard oil.

The 5mpg crusing just opened my eyes a bit... im getting less than 2 on average right now....

Dont be too focused on mpg...the savings in fuel used will take at least 10 years to pay for the new motor (or more)...if the issue is range, then get excited about mpgs...if its economics, you can buy a lot of gas for $10 to $15K.

^THIS!!!!

My buddy had to take his 180mi round trip to be serviced.....never got the lower unit right, ended up selling it.

fuel savings
 

our fishing season here is roughly april 1 to november 1. We fish a lot, pretty much every day Lake Erie will allow it. On average 4-5 times a week. On an average day we run 8-15 miles each way (depending on time of season) plus moves while were out. lets just average that on the light side say 20 miles per trip at 4 trips per week for 6 months.

20*4= 80 miles a week
80*4= 320 miles a month
320*6=1920 miles a year

i get a little less than 2mpg now

1920/2= 960 gallons of fuel a year

fuel at our marina floated right around 4.40 all year

4.40*960= $4,224 a year in fuel

1920/5= 384 gallons of fuel a year

384*4.40= $1689.60 a year in fuel

4224-1690= $2534 a year in fuel savings

even at 4mpg id save roughly $2100 a year on just fuel

2 mpg is good for me realistically its more like 1.7 1.8 so my numbers arent dead on but it still proves the point that id be saving a ton of money on fuel and have the peace of mind knowing i have a new motor on the boat not one thats almost as old as me and has seen plenty of use.

plus if i went 4 stroke i wouldnt be dumping 20 bucks of oil in it every week either


Sure its a lot of money up front, but it does save a whole bunch of money on fuel alone.

then there is the fact that i have a brand new motor hanging off the back with a warranty instead of the motor thats 2 years younger than me....

I agree with Spare and SSIRedfish about having a dealer who is reputable for whatever brand you buy. Doesn't matter what kind of deal you get if you can't get parts or service down the road in a reasonable manner. For what it's worth go south of the border or to any other off the beaten path tropical place you'll see the locals all run Yamaha Enduros.

If it were me I'd run the old John Rude till she bit the dust.

I would agree with the others that you will need a good dealer close by for what ever motor you get. I've had my 150 etec for 6 years and have had no problems. Only serviced every 3 years. I have 2 e tec dealers close by.:nice::beer:

the marina I dock in is a yamaha dealer, there are 2 reputable evinrude dealers within 30 miles of me and merc dealers about 30 miles away. Not sure about honda or suzuki but im sure they are around too. Im lucky and have a lot of dealers near by to choose from.

as for running the old motor until she dies, there is no real reason not to. She runs well, just doesnt like the first cold start on some of these 35-45 degree mornings. People tell me the old johnson is a ticking time bomb and it gets in my head. That makes me want to repower to avoid missing out on fishing if she does happen to blow. The motor has been good to me though and hopefully all those people are full of it

If the Johnson is taken care of and obvious issues are dealt with before they become huge ordeals I don't see why they would say that except for a VRO failure. Those engines are a solid workhorse of an engine and they are all over the place as far as spares go. Ask Ferm on here about any John Rude related stuff, not to mention just about any other engine related info.

You are a lucky man to get to use your boat as often as you do.

Seems like a no brainer, you just have to find the right dealer with the right motor.