4 Stroke outboards….?

I am going to be upgrading my boat this year (used) and have decided to go with a 4 stroke motor.
Is there any to avoid or any to really one that stands out? Yamaha, Merc or Evinrude?
90-115HP…

The Yamaha guys (I’m one) will say great things about them. Merc guys will say great things about them. I only know one guy who has a Evinrude and he likes his.

Add Suzuki & Honda to your list and you have all the good ones covered.

If you don’t go Yamaha, give Suzuki and honest look.
DT

Which manufacturer has the best dealer close to you? I would take this question into consideration.

I myself have had 3 different Yamis since 2003. My 115 4-stroke was great from 2003-2012. I took care of it and it returned the favor. This may be the case with most current motors, but I can only speak to the Yamahas I have owned.

FDR

I had a yamaha 4 stroke and it was amazing. I then bought an Evinrude etec and that was horrible will never own one again. I now have a Suzuki 115SS and look forward to trying that out.

I’m on my second Merc 115 4S and couldn’t like it any better. Great motors.

I’ve been running Merc 115s since the late 80s (wow almost 30 years) and they’ve never failed me in any way. I’m on my second Merc 115 4S and couldn’t like it any better. Economical, dependable and just all around really great motors.

I’ve been running Merc 115s since the late 80s (wow almost 30 years) and they’ve never failed me in any way. I’m on my second Merc 115 4S and couldn’t like it any better. Economical, dependable, quiet and just all around really great motors.

Thanks for the info guys! Good to see I am solid with either choice!

I have spent about 20 years in the marine industry and have sold Johnsons, Evinrudes, Hondas, Yamahas, Suzukis, Mercurys, Force, and Tohatsu. I have done this in MN, Alaska, and Texas. I have seen what works and what does not, I know what is reliable and what is not so much.

It is highly unlikely that I would spend good money on a new outboard unless it was a Yamaha or Suzuki. Day in day out if you were going to bet your life on an outboard it would be best to bet on Honda Yamaha or Suzuki

I have seen what breaks and what does not. That being said I purchased a new Suzuki last year without comparing prices on other brands of outboards.

I used to be a big Merc guy, owned 3 of them on different boats. My latest boat I made darn sure I didn’t get a merc on. The 3 I had none of them were reliable. Merc makes a great smaller outboard(25hp or less), but the three 90hp-115hp I owned were junk. My 05′ Johnson I am told has a Suzuki motor in it. It has been an outstanding motor for 11 years. If I had to replace that motor I would go Suzuki.

All new 4 strokes are now EFI and honestly all are very good IMO. If you comsider used, be careful going back before 2010 or especially before 2005 for the manufacturers that had EFI back then. Carb’d motors, even 4 strokes, can be rough starting and expensive maintenance to the carburetor.

I am looking at boat anywhere from 2001-2009….
Is there that much a difference?

deertracker wrote:

If you don’t go Yamaha, give Suzuki and honest look.
DT

+100

“I am going to be upgrading my boat this year (used) and have decided to go with a 4 stroke motor.
Is there any to avoid or any to really one that stands out? Yamaha, Merc or Evinrude?”

Also, Evinrude doesn’t make 4 strokes.

I have owned the following Yamaha 4stroke motors. 25hp 2005, 80hp 1998, 90hp 2000, 115hp 2001, 115hp 2003, 150hp 2007. I put 1000’s of hours on every one and never put a penny into em, other than oil and gas. They’re bullet proof!! (disclaimer… I never actually shot any of these motors)

The best part is as far as I know everyone of these motors are still going strong with no issues. I can’t even fathom the amount of hours on some of these motors. One of the motors has to have close to 10,000 hrs without any issues. I would never shy away from buying an older Yamaha.

When I went to Belize I asked my guide if he likes his Yamahas. They looked to be very very old. He nodded yes and pointed out that every single boat had a Yamaha and said, “Yamaha no fix!!”

Suzuki would be my second and only other choice.

Merc vs Yammy: I have always heard that Merc has a Yammy head and Yammy has a Merc lower unit (or visa/versa…). True? I run a 2015 Merc 90 4stroke and granted it is brand new but run good clean non-oxy gas and winterize correctly and they are bullet proof. Otherwise the carbs can get dirty quickly…RR

roosterrouster wrote:

Merc vs Yammy: I have always heard that Merc has a Yammy head and Yammy has a Merc lower unit (or visa/versa…). True?

False!

In the 80’s there were some small motors they traded parts on from what I have read. Like Yamaha making the Mariners. As for anything recent I was told by multiple people involved with these companies that there is nothing related.

I NEVER wanted a Merc. Yuck. Then my Pontoon came with one. A 4-stroke 40 horse.
10 long summers later and it still runs exactly the same as when I got it. (perfect)

The only negative I’ve heard about Suzuki OB’s is that it can be tough to find a shop that services Suzuki and parts can be more difficult to come by.

Have had only good luck with mercurys on my end.

1.Yamaha 2.Suzuki 3.Honda 4.mercury then everyone else. You will not be sorry with the top three. Suzuki makes some different hp ratings that might get you closer to your transom rating. I believe they make a 140. Yammy does 90, 115,150, leaving a big gap in there. I personally swear by my yamahas. Mid 2000 mercury four strokes were called “yammamercs”. Yamaha power heads and mercury lower units. I had one and it was flawless. I love diehard mercury guys that hate the jap motors. I pulled the cowling off and showed them the tuning fork logo on my 2006 yamamerc

Joe Scegura wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>roosterrouster wrote:</div>
Merc vs Yammy: I have always heard that Merc has a Yammy head and Yammy has a Merc lower unit (or visa/versa…). True?

False!

In the 80’s there were some small motors they traded parts on from what I have read. Like Yamaha making the Mariners. As for anything recent I was told by multiple people involved with these companies that there is nothing related.

The original Mariners were Yamahas all the way.Then Mercury started painting their own motors grey to expand dealerships(Mariner branded).I got a 15HP Mariner back in 1981 that was Yamaha and ran like it.Paid a whopping 599.99 for it.Then I got a 45HP Mariner(Mercury)in 1987.I swear that was lemon.Started hard,smoked like crazy and sucked fuel.Those motors fell in favor because they idled smooth,verses anything in that HP range.

After that,I swear that Mercury produced the Mariner versions on Mondays

If the serial tag says Japan,it was made by Yamaha.All Yamaha sourced parts.Unlike the Mercurys of that era with melty electrical parts probably from Mexico like OMC used.Yamaha came in with their own in 1984,and the rest is legendary.

Hard to go wrong with Yamaha,Honda or Suzuki if you have a great dealer around.Suzuki dealers are far and few in a lot of areas.Maybe because they need few repairs?Same with Honda.

I don’t think I’d fear any of the big 4. I had bad luck with a Merc 2S, early 80’s I think. Swore I’d never buy another Merc. Then a used boat came with a 2004 Merc 115 4S and it never had an issue in five seasons. Currently I’m 200-ish hours into a 2015 Merc 150 4S with no issues.

FYI, many of the Yamaha guys I’ve known have added an aftermarket water/fuel separator.

Joe Scegura wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>roosterrouster wrote:</div>
Merc vs Yammy: I have always heard that Merc has a Yammy head and Yammy has a Merc lower unit (or visa/versa…). True?

False!

In the 80’s there were some small motors they traded parts on from what I have read. Like Yamaha making the Mariners. As for anything recent I was told by multiple people involved with these companies that there is nothing related.

This is not exactly right either…

Yes in the 80’s Mariner had some 2 strokes that were flat out rebadged yamahas from about 6 hp to around 40 or 50 believe. I have a 84 8hp mariner that Merc does not sell parts for but the yamaha parts fit perfect, great motor and was made by yamaha thru the late 2000’s. Then in the late 90 and early 2000’s merc needed some 4 stroke help and bought some power heads (i believe 15 hp thru 115 hp), and again rebadged a few yamahas and sold as mercury, best example I can think of that is a 2003 or 2004 Merc 225 or 250 4 stroke was a yamaha that was painted black, had Merc decals, and a bit more pronounced lip on the engine cowl. I think shortly after that there was a big lawsuit between the two and the business relationship fell apart in the mid 2000’s So the real answer to the question is that nothing after the mid 2000’s (don’t know the exact year) is collaboratively produced. Also the 2015 Merc 90 hp is an is EFI.

Back to the original question and I would look at Yamaha first, and then Merc and that is mostly based on availability where I live and use my boats. I have 2 Merc’s now and mostly because it is a bit easier to get a Lund with a Merc than a Yamaha.

Agreed! Like I said, the two companies have not worked together recently and currently do not…

I have Yamaha and love them also a Honda 90. The Honda 90 is a 2009 I think that was on our pontoon which came of the travel trailer this fall. The motor is in perfect shape was never damaged a small scratch on the cover. I am selling the 90 Honda with very low hrs. We took the pontoon as salvage if interested let me know it has been a great motor just boat a new pontoon. Evenrude’s are 2 stroke

I’ve had a Yamaha and Honda. Both great motors but if I had a choice between buying one or the other I would take the Honda first. Sweet smooth quiet motor.