Motors on bass boats

I know it is a discussion that that can go on forever, but what are people buying for motors theses days and why?

Yamaha, Mercury, and Evinrude in no particular order.

Mercury, because it came with the boat
My opinion on motors is this, any newer motor produced nowadays are going to be good motors. I could care less what is hanging on the back of the boat as long as it runs good and isn’t a gas hog

In my thoughts, Merc Opti Pro XS is the #1 motor for a bass boat. Tuff to beat it.

Direct inject motors are awesome. I won’t get into a brand war. I love my Opti.

Different hull designs prefer different lower unit designs for lift. Say 225’s across the board, they all have roughly the same horsepower. Its just the little things that make the big differences. Props, prop shaft height, set back, etc.

How has the bass market embraced (or rejected) the monster 4 strokes from Yamaha, Suzuki & Mercury? Are you guys seeing them make any inroads or are guys sticking with the DFIs?

You’ll hardly ever see one hung on a bass boat in this region. Maybe too early to tell but I doubt they’ll ever have any market share. The word is out, the new DFI’s will out perform and be almost equal in efficientcy(sp)to the four strokes.

I’d say they have been rejected. I’ve only see 1 or two guys who have run the 4 strokes. All have told me the same thing. Great motors, but just don’t have the hole shot and raw power that we crave.

The E-tech in my opinion has taken the lead in most popular motors from what I’ve seen. Just my opinion.

Slop said it right about the 4 strokes!!!!

Merc Opti Pro XS or any Merc.

with the exception of a few select hulls from different manufacturers bass boats aren’t really designed to carry the extra weight of a 4 stroker. With the DFI technology getting as good as it is, I don’t think there will ever be a market for a four stroker on a bass boat.

Bass Boat or any larger boat for that matter I would prefer the DFI’s over the 4 strokes. My personal preference, but I rather have the power and fuel economy of the DFI’s and I can live with a little extra noise they produce. For me I just can’t see the advantges of running a 4 stroke????? Off eveything I have read there does not seem to be an advantage for me, to swing me to a 4 stroke.

My main motor of choice: MERCURY OPTIMAX PRO XS 225

My Kicker Motor of Choice: MERCURY PRO KICKER with a YAMAHA T8 a very close 2nd.

I am certainly not an authority on bass engines but you will notice that several manufacturers do not offer their larger (over 150 HP) 4 strokes in 20″ shafts thus their is a reduced opportunity as almost every bass boat has a 20″ transom and again almost every walleye boat (that are rated for 200+ HP) are 25″ transoms.

At the BASS Classic a few years ago each competitor fished from a supplied identical Triton with a Merc Verado on the back.

Four strokes are different animal that require specific prop setups to harness the all their potential power.

As long as advances are being made in DFI that keep up (and continue to exceed) the EPA standards I believe you will see both technologies around for a long time. The good news here is that each generation of both motors are continually refined and competition is fierce for competitors dollars so the consumer wins with the technology enhancements that arrive each year. Howerver the costs don’t appear to be leveling off anytime soon so hang on or buy in at a point you are comfortable.

my $.02

ted merdan