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Posts: 7036
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Opti getting old, and pouring money into it is getting old, so it's re-power time. IF money were no option (i am rich beyond words because of my tenure with M1st), what would you recommend? |
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Posts: 1036
| I loved my old Yamaha 4 stroke.
Nothing wrong with my current Optimax. But when it goes, I'll look at Yamaha and the Verado. My buddy just got a 200 hp Verado. Nice hole shot and it is very quiet. |
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Location: Contrarian Island | how old is your motor? what is wrong with it? the ROI on re-powering a non blown 2 stroke is not very good... imo you'd be money ahead if you sold the boat as is and found a different boat w a 4 stroke.. repower is gonna set you back 8 to 12k range I'd guess....having done it a couple times... 
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Posts: 278
Location: US | Recently repowered with a new mercury 4 stroke, at the time they had a 5 year warranty promotion, not sure if they still do. Nice piece of mind IMO. No comparison going from a carbureted 2 stroke to a EFI 4 stroke. I did not know what i was missing. |
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Posts: 1405
Location: Detroit River | I can't make any specific motor recommendations but when I went from a 2-stk to a 4-stk back in 2008 I was very hesitant. After having my 9th season with my 4-stk Mercury tiller I wouldn't hesitate at another 4-stk. It's so much nicer not having to deal with 2-stk oil or the smell. Plus the increased fuel efficacy is great and much quieter.
I remember 10 years ago people were bad mouthing 4 strokes about how much extra maintenance they are etc. Aside from having to make that extra oil change I don't know what they were basing their complaints on. |
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Posts: 555
Location: Tennessee | I LOVE my Mercury fourstroke. Yamaha is another great engine. I wouldn't want to go back after running one |
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Posts: 441
| I have a 150 Honda with 1300 hours on it, with zero problems.
Also have a 115 Yamaha, and love it. |
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Posts: 3480
Location: Elk River, Minnesota | Hiya,
To be honest, I feel all of the 4 strokes out there are definitely worthy of taking a long look at. Longevity has now been proven, durability has now been proven and the technology at this point in 4 strokes has flatlined for the most part, so there is not much going on in terms of things that are making one more efficient than any other...or for that matter, any brands that are pushing the envelope creating engine issues...such as situations like when OMC came out with VRO, or Mercury with the older optimax motors frying up... (tongue firmly in cheek here). In other words...the bugs have been worked out...
There is no doubt you can't go wrong with any of the big names: Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Mercury... So...with that in mind, I might make my repower decision based upon local dealers and their customer service history. Who's close and does great work? Do they have a quick turn-around time, etc.
Yamaha is very prominent all over so if you travel a bit and need quick service, who will have the parts, knowledge, certification, etc. to work on the motor? Mercury is much the same way....both have available dealers and service techs all over the country, and for those who travel further north of the US border, plenty of service techs up there as well unless you are getting into remote areas (again...tongue firmly in cheek here)
If there is availability of all brands close to you, then I would be considering engine displacement... The largest displacement in most cases will give you the best low-end torque and overall thrust. I'll take that any day over top speed, but I'm not one who is looking for top end speed these days... I want something that is going to get me up on plane, keep me there, and if I have a heavy load, still get the rig up and running on top of the water. This becomes even more important in heavy wave conditions... Power to get through the conditions..especially on a following sea..
In a nutshell: All brands are solid, and your choice of motor might be based more on service and proximity to you than anything else.
Good luck with the repower!!
Steve
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Location: Contrarian Island | suzis have 6 yr warrantys... Agree with Steve, a dealer close to me might make the choice easier... |
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Posts: 138
Location: Aurora IL | All the brands are making great motors right now but I think Mercury has the best torque and the lightest weight (in standard 4 strokes). If you go merc you may be able to reuse your control cables and save some money. PM me with what you need and I can shoot you some prices. Bill |
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Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | I would highly advise not repowering....
I switched to a 4 stroke 3 years ago after running a 2 for 10 years. I would never go back to a 2, 4 is simply way less work |
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| If you are not set on getting a new 4 stk, Mercury has a program where they sell rebuilt units. One of their reps was on the Muskie Hunter show a few seasons ago with Jim Saric and discussed this. They are done at the factory with all new parts. Maybe something to consider.
I bought a 90hp Merc four stroke new in '08 and it has been great. Very dependable, very little noise. |
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Posts: 1000
| They're all good. Nearby dealer/service support is a big thing to take into consideration.
I currently run an '04 Honda 135. It's the same block as the 115 and 150 (135 has variable intake. 150 has VTEC). It's been a wonderful motor the entire time.
With that said, when it comes time for my next boat I'll be taking the Yamaha's equally as seriously. Both seem to offer pretty good dealer support in my area (west TC metro).
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Posts: 271
Location: davis,IL | On my third Yamaha 4 stroke since 2000, a 40, a 75/90, and now a 150. All 3 have been flawless motors. Reliable, quiet, good on gas, relatively easy to maintain. I would not hesitate to run any manufacturers 4 stroke motor, the only possible one I would shy away from is the verado. More so because of the supercharger, not that this isn't proven technology, but for weight and fuel economy reasons. While the 4 strokes may not quite have the seat of your pants performance in many cases that 2 strokes have. I feel they excel in most other categories. They are more or less very similar to the engine in your car or truck. |
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Posts: 457
Location: Minneconia | Can't believe I'm saying this after owning a reliable Yammy 4 stroke for years, but...the Verado I own now is hands down my favorite motor. Great performance, quiet and consistent. I've had Optis including a Pro XS and I hated them, smoky loud temperamental SOB's that ate ignition coils breakfast lunch and dinner. Vrod! |
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Posts: 3
| Just replaced 30 yr old Evinrude 90 with a 4 stroke Merc 90 on a 19.5 Sea Nymph in October. Only have about 20 hrs but I'm hooked for sure. Quiet, fuel injected, all the regular pluses. I went with Merc for the troll control via the smartcraft gauge. Allows you to set engine speed as low as 550 rpm and hold it there, increasing in 10 RPM increments up to 1000. I troll almost exclusively, can run as slow as 1.5 SOG, and plan to ditch my 9.9 kicker. My merc is also a Command Thrust model which means a larger lower unit (from a 150 I think) which provides a larger rudder as well as the ability to swing a larger prop.
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Posts: 22
| Yamaha but agreed, stick with the closest dealer for convenience |
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Posts: 612
| Bought a 4-stroke Honda this year. Smaller than the class your looking for. But fast out of the hole, very fuel effect, 5 year unconditional guarantee, Starts up immediately even when it 27 degree out. Can't say enough about the motor. Honda started w 4 strokes and never had to transition between 2 and 4 stroke engines types. |
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Posts: 859
Location: MN | Dealer service is key, what size motor? I would suggest Yamaha or Suzuki. In this case size might matter all things being =. |
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Posts: 1638
Location: Minnesota | Used my dad's boat for years nothing but problems bought my first boat had a Yamaha F 150 no problems bought a skeeter MX with a Yamaha F150 no problems if I start having problems I look at other motors but until then I'm a Yamaha guy all the way. |
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Posts: 512
| had a merc 115, and now a suzi 90
love, love, love.... you wont be disappointed. |
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Posts: 45
| Another vote for Yamaha, I have a 12 year old T8 kicker with 2K hours on it.
Rebuilt a couple years ago and working on the next 2K hours.
Repowered from an Evinrude 90Hp 2 stroke to a Yamaha 115 4 stroke. couldn't be happier. It is so smooth and so quiet. I'm not a WOT (wide open throttle) guy, so I expect many years of excellent service from this 4 stroke.
Rich |
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Posts: 46
| I knew i wanted a four stroke even before this thread. But also want a bass boat. But the majority of bass boats, especially that 2003-2006 years that i am looking at, are all two stroke models. Even now days with newer ones you see a ton of pro xs and 2 strokers.. what gives? |
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Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | WiscoEsox94 - 1/4/2017 5:46 PM
I knew i wanted a four stroke even before this thread. But also want a bass boat. But the majority of bass boats, especially that 2003-2006 years that i am looking at, are all two stroke models. Even now days with newer ones you see a ton of pro xs and 2 strokers.. what gives?
4 strokes are generally heavier engines weight wise. Bass boats are designed for more speed too |
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Posts: 46
| cheaper too? even deep v of that era there are more 2s than 4s... technology not advanced enough at the time to be popular? |
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Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | Samsquamptch - 12/19/2016 9:44 PM
Yamaha but agreed, stick with the closest dealer for convenience
Agreed. Blowing my 2 stk was the best thing that ever happened to my boat. I had a dealer for every motor in the world within 20 minutes when I was motor shopping. I went with the Yammie because 1) already had Yamaha controls, 2) already knew my awesome Yamaha mechanic and 3) probably the biggest reason was that I've got a lot of saltwater background and go to a marina in Alaska or Florida or Panama and 90% of the motors (especially 150+ hp) are grey. |
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| I believe another factor in the current prevalence of 4-strokes now is that the EPA tightened the 2-stroke emissions regulations around 2008-9 or so. Now, you can't even buy a carbureted 2-stroke 50HP like I got on my boat in 2008 in the US, because they aren't able to meet regulations. Fuel- and oil-injection and computer control are necessities to meet the regs now. |
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