Mercury
In 2005 I bought new a Johnson J140. It was a re-badged Suzuki four stroke. It was a phenomenal outboard. I think the Mercury four strokes have a slightly better performance over the Yamaha's. Personal observation!I bought a new Starweld Victory 18 today (links below). This dealer is a very large one and does not put engines on most of the boats. The customer can choose between Honda, Mercury, Suzuki, and Yamaha.
I selected the F115 Yamaha (I think the SHO model is really ugly so don't want that even if slightly better performance). Right now Yamaha has a promotion through just after Labor Day where you get a free 2 year warranty extension, for 5 years total. However, the dealer has to order it (none in stock) and it can't be ordered until Monday, and it is unknown when it will come in. So this gives me the opportunity in the next couple days to switch if I want to.
My second choice is the Mercury Pro XS 115. These are made about 25 miles from where I live and there are dealers/mechanics that work on Mercurys on nearly every block around here. From what I can tell these have been a really good engine since they came out 7 or 8 years ago. My concern is Mercury electronics/ignition typically are subpar.
I never really considered Suzuki because of the dealer network near where I live. You almost never see them (or Honda) around here - by far the most popular is Mercury, followed by Evinrude (even though they are now out of business), then Yamaha. However, I am reconsidering Suzuki now, since there are more dealers than I thought. There are three within about 45 minutes and then there is the place I bought the boat which is 1:10 away. But there are at least two of the dealers (one 45 minutes away and the purchasing one) that are in or pretty close to places where I travel at least every two weeks anyway. The boat dealer said their biggest seller is Suzuki due to price. Right now Suzuki has $300 rebate and 5 year warranty on top of already being the least expensive. https://www.suzukimarine.com/outboard/115-200hp/df115b/
My main priorities are longevity and easy to work on (as much as it is possible to work on boat motors these days) to winterize, change the oil, and if needed change an ignition part or something. Parts availability and how long the company makes replacement parts for typically is also something that is important (I plan to keep this boat/engine for 20+ years). I would prefer one less heavy, and the Suzuki is heaviest by 50 pounds. Less important are maximum speed ratings, the latest tech, fuel economy, and noise. Boat will be used only in fresh water, and I will put on about 20 to 30 hours a year probably. The dealer spoke highly of all the brands.
Any thoughts or experiences?
https://www.americanmarina.com/defau...=xAllInventory
https://www.starcraftstarweld.com/sh...ishing/victory
!!!!Love our twin Yamaha 350's, and Yamaha has very good product support. I vote Yammy.
https://www.mercurymarine.com/en/ca...0r-delivers-unrelenting-outboard-performance/Yamaha is the king out outboards period. I would definatly get the SHO. Who cares if it's a lil ugly. I've never seen any boat owner complain about extra HP and torque.
No mention of Honda Outboards? A lot of people around here have them including the coast guard patrol boats
Nothing wrong with Yamaha, Suzuki's, etc.
The debate is about 115 HP engines, not 150's.And to add a little more, if you do a little research if you go with the Merc, you may want to go with the standard 150 over the Pro XS.
The debate is about 115 HP engines, not 150's.