Tohatsu 9hp vs other brand options

[Charlyipad]

Just an update for anyone interested.

I did find another dealer that stocked nd shipped a 9.8. jp water sports in San Diego. Ok price but not as good as central fla Yamaha. the guy thought they came with a three blade pre installed, so he sent me a separate four blade. Turns out they come stock w four blade so now I have a spare. oh and the fuel line was missing

the homeade guillotine worked ok, but I messed it up right off the bat when I installed the first motor. I boogered up one of the tracks, and it never worked smoothly again. SO I whacked it off and replaced it with aluminum. The block system I made from the delrin sheet and plywod actually did the job, but the lines were too small for comfort, and the leads were not quite right. SO I whacked them off as well and bought a few harken swivel blocks and mounted them inside. they work, but not good enough to,suit me. for one thing, with the sliding setup there is a good reason that the design posted above by angelique has a continuous line with pull from both sides otherwise the mount will not move up and down on the level, causing binds. I hope to improve mine with more purchase and some grease. I will let y'all know how it works out.

 

[Angélique]

For one thing, with the sliding setup there is a good reason that the design posted above by angelique has a continuous line with pull from both sides otherwise the mount will not move up and down on the level, causing binds. I hope to improve mine with more purchase and some grease.

For those who want to take a look, that's in post #22. Here's a general set up drawing of the Dufour T7.

Maybe, if asked, the guy will sent some pictures and answer questions about the actual motor hoisting and sliding system there. Contact info is on the bottom of the linked pages, communications can be done in english I guess.

Good Luck !

 

[Charly]

achilles heel

Just a heads up to anyone looking at similar o.b.s

Ive had this 9.8 xls installed now since mid October- not even three months- and already had a failure at the coupling on the shift rod. Note photo. The rusty spot in the middle of the pic, there are two pins that go in there holding the rod ends and the coupling all together, so the rod moves up and down when you shift gears. The pins are not stainless, and they both failed already. Not a big deal but a huge annoyance, mainly because of the heart palpitations I had when I thought that I may have destroyed my lower unit, when I suddenly could not shift. It seems incredible that Tohatsu would put such a part there, especially in such a "salty" place. Now I have to check the other motor, as I can see it has rust there as well.

I didn't have sense enough to diagnose it on the boat so I took it to my mechanic expecting the worst. He replace the roll pin with the same part, saying that Tohatsu doesn't make a stainless roll pin. Doesn't make sense to me. Anybody else had this problem? Otherwise very happy with the motors.

 

[Charly]

another negative quirk

re tohatsu
Yesterday's outing was spoiled as a result of tohatsu parts being hard to come by.

When I ordered my 9.8 it came shipped without the fuel line.
I went around looking for one and all I could come up with was a "universal" setup (I think attwood). It fit, but it never did exactly feel right, the way it clicked on an off, sometimes difficult to disengage.

Ok that was a year ago. Occasionally it would drip fuel at the engine. I would wiggle it around and the leak would stop- then I would make a mental note: find a backup fuel line that fits good and proper. But every where I went it is the same story: no, sorry we don't have THat one in stock. Ok, so I would remind myself when I get home to buy one online. I never did. Yesterday it failed for good. no backup. yes it is my fault, but it would not have happened if tohatsu parts were easier to find.

caveat emptor

 

[Angélique]

Was the other motor still working OK ? And is one enough to move you around safely . . ? ?

You can also look at Nissan parts as they are the same.

Google ‘‘ tohatsu 9.8 fuel line ’’ gave me . . . .

- Here the same kind of problems, but for 2-stroke.

- Tohatsu website: Fuel Lines & Connectors ---> North American Dealer Search

- Some suppliers -- Link* -- Link -- I don't know if these are genuine parts.

* scroll down.​

Check for 4-stroke and the right HP number.

 

[Charly]

Thanks Angelique, I got one online from Cumberland watersports. They are easy to find online. The problem is (was) finding one locally in stock.

 

[Charlyipad]

Hi Guys, Well., the motors are about two years old now with about 250 hours on them. I reckon it is time to change out the water pumps. It would be less hassle I think to do it right on the boat. Any advice? I never did it before.

No other issues really for me, except the shifter cables have a tendency to come loose at the retainer clip where they enter into the cowling. I have had to use a hose clamp there in addition to the retainers to hold them in place good and proper. The bend there is pretty tight in my case, and all the vertical movement up and down when dropping the motors doesn't help things. The shifter gets out of whack now and then, but other than that...

PS where is the thermostat?

 

[Charlyipad]

Well, I found the thermostats. Definitely not rocket science to change them out.

I want to keep them for spares if they are still OK. How do you tell?

 

[PAR]

Place them on a coathanger and dangle in a pot of water on the stove, with a thermometer. When the temperature starts getting close to it's opening time, you should see some movement and the full opening point, should be at the temperature it's intended to open at.

 

[Charlyipad]

Thanks PAR. I will do that when I can find a thermometer. My wife hides such things from me.

The thermostat is rated "30". The part guy told me that was celsius, so the target temp is 140 F.

 

[SukiSolo]

That sounds wrong Charly, 30 Deg C is 86 deg F. Outboards tend to run around the 55-70 deg C afaik. Your 140 deg F is 60 deg C so at the lower end. possibly too low. Most relatively modern outboards I've seen data for are around the 70 Deg C - Mercury, Suzuki etc but these are more powerful units than your 9.9. Running at the right temperature improves efficiency of burn ie fuel consumption and lowers pollution.

FWIW most car engines run a bit hotter for primary thermostat 80-84 Deg C would be typical for a petrol engine.

On simple engine cooling systems thats all you need, cars get an extra switch thermostat for a fan(s) to the radiator.

If the thermostat moves with hot water the thing is working, not stuck. A gummed or excessively dirty corroded one often sticks. It is then prudent to find and check the switch operating temperature as PAR has said. The tell tale will still be cool either way unless there is a blockage in the water feed from impellor through the head. If it's hot the impellor is most likely the culprit but the whole feed needs a check through.

 

[Charlyipad]

Right! thanks SukiSolo. It was 60, not 30

I have had no overheat issues, I just wanted to check things out. They were pretty gummed up.
The impellers still pump a good stream though. The manual says change them every year. we are going on two years now, so I guess I should pull them soon.

 

[PAR]

Yeah, impellers are consumable items, just like oil filters and it's too cheap of insurance to not change them, regardless of number of hours on it.

 

[Charlyipad]

OK, here is another question. When I drop the lower unit to change out the impeller, do I have to drain the gear oil first? or is the oil contained inside the unit?

I have watched several you tube clips and i still can't tell.

Thanks!

 

[SukiSolo]

The gear oil is contained inside the box so you can drop the whole unit without draing the oil. You will have to disconnect any gear linkage, which may be behind a rubber grommet about 40mm (1 1/2") or so in diameter. Most of these small engines have two hex head machine screws (bolts) to retain the gearbox. There's another on the anode but some use the anode fastener as the 'box retainer too.

The drive shaft will go right up to the underside of the engine and is mostly a splined fit. Note carefully where the impeller feed goes - usually another more flexible (mostly metal tube) end. When you reassemble you need to line up the drive shaft, impeller feed and the gear linkage. Mostly this can be done almost one at a time, but some engines esp Mariner 4 and 6Hp can be a bit tricky 'til you get the knack... ggrrrr why not have a decent tapered drive shaft feed as some manufacturers do?

I'd strongly recommend using a decent 6 point socket on the 4 bolts retaining the impeller. Keep an eye out for the impeller keyway and key - the type varies a bit depending on manufacturer - don't lose the key!. When replacing the impeller, the vanes DO have a way round so check orientation with the manual. Check the end plate is reasonable too, not over abraded, it may indicate some really abrasive grit ie sand or silt has been in the system or otherwise. Ver light lube or water and slide in the new impeller over it's keyway. Check it's OK still clean etc and reassemble. Worth lubing the impeller housing bolts and making sure they are clean, it is easy to get a lot of corrosion on the threads if ignored.

Worth doing the gearbox oil, it tends to absorb water and this shows by being 'milky' even if still 'golden'. Easy to drain, loosen both lower and upper screws with container underneath. Refill using pump or squeezy tube from bottom and once at top level ie just coming out top hole put the top screw in. the vacuum will hold it enough to get the lower screw in.