Advice on motor selection

[Wayne Grabow]

I am trying to make a decision on an outboard motor of 40-50 hp. In Colorado, boating sources are sparse; the nearest dealer of any sort is about 50 miles away. Used motors are few, far away, and usually old. I have already eliminated Honda, Nissan, and Tohatsu from consideration; dealer support is too scarce and iffy. Mercury is the predominant brand in this area. I am considering the Mercury 40 4 cycle which weighs 216 pounds. The Yamaha 40 is essentially the same engine, being jointly developed by the two companies. Suzuki seems to have a good product. Their 40-50 hp 4 cycle both weigh 243 pounds but are physically compact. The Evinrude ETEC 40, 50, and 60 2 cycle all weigh 240 pounds but are also rather compact. Note that there is no weight advantage to the 2 cycle, also the ETEC is 2 cylinder while all the others are 3 cylinder.

Price will, of course, be a big consideration, but I will also be looking at the quality of dealership including help with other equipment purchases and installation, convenience, and manufacturer support. What else should I be looking for? What ideas have I forgotten? Care to share any biases?

I am building an 18' runabout and need all the gear for a bare hull including trailer, steering (considering the Baystar hydraulic unit) instruments, lights, seats, bimini top, windshield, etc. I am starting the decking but need to be thinking several steps ahead to make sure I don't go in the wrong direction. In the past I have built sailboats and row boats, so the whole power boat thing is rather new to me.

[Easy Rider]

Wayne,
Seems we've talked about this before. Sounds like you've already made your decision .. got to have a Merc as they are the only dealer. Merc's fine, and Yamadog's fine .. their all fine. I have a 40 E-tec and am very happy w it. I feel a little vibration in the tiller handle only because it's very long. I too are a bit puzzled why injected 2 strokes are so heavy ..must be in the injection system. With the E-tec the pistons are huge and the stroke is very short. The E-tec burns a tad more fuel and makes a tad more noise but very small difference. As to # of cylinders (I assume your'e talking about vibration) the 2 stroke twin has considerably more power strokes per revolution than a 3 cyl 4 stroke. Just as many as a 4 cyl 4 stroke. With remote controls the E-tec twin is very smooth. However the main reason I bought the E-tec is 2 stroke simplicity. I have a 60hp Suzuki and love the engine except it's very heavy and very very complex. I live in the wilderness in Alaska and frequently simplicity rules. Also the Suzuki and the E-tec have the lowest gear ratios (the E-tec more so) and biggest props available on outboard engines. All these engines are wonderful except ther'e heavy, expensive and complex. I know mercury made a 50hp 4cyl 2 stroke that would be very smooth,light and perhaps cheaper but w much higher fuel burn. It was a very old design .. probably not available.

Easy Rider

[Submarine Tom]

Wayne, you're bang on!

After sale service is a big deal and can easily become a huge deal.

Have you considered buying out of state and trailering it home?

-Tom

[Wayne Grabow]

Easy Rider,

Thanks, You have the experience I need to learn from. Your pretty much exactly addressed the details I am looking at: vibration, maintenance, size, simplicity, weight, gear ratios. It appears that 2 cycles may also use a heavier battery to handle their electronics. I am very close to the decision point, and see this forum as a good source of sound advice.

Submarine Tom,

My daughter lives in Seattle (near Lake Union), and I am considering a visit to her and some nautical shopping combined. Certainly the internet is a great source, but some things you want to actually see and discuss before buying. Also, people badmouth West Marine, but when it is the ONLY marine store in the area (50 miles away), you also appreciate what they have.

Thanks for the encouragement. It is a fun project. I just wish that I had the information to make good choices quickly and see more progress.

[Submarine Tom]

Wayne,

My thought was buy what your after already built, tested and for 1/3 the price of new!

West Marine has good after sales service but you may have to work for it.

Negotiate up front and then hold them to their word. Only deal with the manager or assistant manager.

Also, browse on-line and get model (SKU) numbers for when you're ready to order.

A 5000 square foot West Marine store will only stock about half of what's available.

Good luck!

-Tom

[Bglad]

You may already have factored in the altitude if not you may consider a little more motor. I don't know the difference percentage wise but for example inboard ski boats have to run a smaller prop and in some cases a bigger motor to handle the holeshot in a timely manner and to maintain speed against the skier.

[Wayne Grabow]

Bglad,

Appreciate the comment. I have already factored in altitude, which I expect to decrease output by about 18-20%. I had a gentleman from Newfoundland here at the house yesterday whose family are big time boaters. They buy a new outboard every year, according to him, and build some of their own boats. Anyhow, he looked at the hull I am building, checked the weight, and declared that it would go 45 mph with a 50 hp engine. I am not sure that he had factored in the altitude, but 45 mph is more than enough speed.

The local marine dealers all think that I need 60 hp, but none of them has seen my design or any wood-epoxy design. They are all thinking in terms of production fiberglass models.

I will be talking to the Evinrude dealer this week. An E-TEC 50 is my first choice right now.

[Wayne Grabow]

I put a deposit on an E-TEC 50 hp today. Appreciate the information, Easy Rider; always nice when you get an owner's viewpoint. Simple maintenance, 5-year warranty, compact powerhead, low gearing and big prop, more than enough power. Additionally, the dealer seemed very helpful and understanding. He had a wooden Whitehall-type rowboat on his lot and showed me pictures of a Riva he had just inspected for a buyer. So he understands the difference between wood and production fiberglass.

The local Honda and Yamaha dealers didn't attempt to be competitive price-wise, and the Nissan/Tohatsu dealer support is pathetic, so that was beyond consideration. I am sure that Mercury and Suzuki have good products, but the features of this Evinrude should be excellent for my purposes.

[powerabout]

think of it this way the etec is made in north america and the merc is made in china

[Easy Rider]

Wayne,
You may consider a 40hp. The only time you'll notice any difference in power will be the last 2-300rpm .. as in flat out. With the 40 it probably will run a bit better and get a little better fuel economy. I played freighter w my 16' Crestliner loading it w boxes of freight, many very heavy w canned goods ect. With all that extra weight and my wife (barely had room for her) we popped right up on plane and went as fast as we wanted. If the 40 has smaller ports it may have more torque at mid range. See if you can compare part numbers for the power head. Usually for more hp you have to pay the price somewhere and w the same pistons, cylinders and crankshaft i don't think the 40 would have any less power than the 50 except at the very top end. And you'll pay less money for the same goods and services unless you run flat out at max load for the engine and then you'd be ripe for an even bigger engine. I'm sure you'd be happy either way though. Oh .. did you know the E-tec has a feature whereas it automatically fogs itself. Nice feature for anyone that dos'nt live in Jamaica. But on this forum there are probably a few that are from Jamaica .. a very nice feature of the forum.

Easy Rider

[Wayne Grabow]

Easy, I am sure that your advice is correct. My local Evinrude dealer (50-60 miles away) happened to have one 50 hp E-TEC in stock, and the 5-year warranty offer is good through the end of this month, and the price was good, so I took it. I don't think that all 40 hp motors are equal; the E-TEC with large displacement, low gearing, and a big prop is probably one of the stronger alternatives. Being Colorado, I feel lucky that the dealer had what I was looking for. The dealer described the E-TEC 60 the same way you describe the 50: just a little stronger at the very top end. At least with the 50 I will not be asking myself what another ten hp would feel like. By contrast, the Tohatsu "dealer" had NO stock at all; just trust and order from a brochure.

Again, thanks for the advice.