Oh yeah I can see it being handy in that situation. For me I’d never be working on it in the water anyways. If it broke down on the water I’d get back to the ramp under secondary power and fix it in the garage.
Pros vs Cons I/O vs outboard
- Thread starter Warlord
- Start date
It really depends on how much access you have for getting at maintenance items, my old '88 Four Winns isn't too bad, I reconfigured the rear seating so it comes out easy, instead of one huge seat I have 2 36" pontoon seats that come out individually and a bulkhead on a center hinge that makes it much easier. The hardest job I did on the I/O was changing the power steering actuator, that is behind the engine up against the transom, I wound up removing the exhaust system to get access and got it done.
Pros:
Simple GM marine engine, engine parts much much cheaper than outboards, can add closed cooling to a new or reman engine, for longer life than outboards
Cons:
poor access, anything on the rear of the engine is tough to get at, some repairs require an engine pull.
With the simple engine you have to deal with transom mount and outdrive
having said that I have made the same boat last me 20 years in salt water, I have not had to replace much on the outdrive or transom mount.
Actual repairs:
replaced tilt n trim hoses
replaced gimble bearing once and bellows twice
replaced the trim sender a few times
for the transom mount and outdrive that's it!
for the 4.3 V6, I did a top end overhaul about 6 years ago, I replaced the cyl heads due to overheat damage, the cooling passages in them were getting thin anyway due to 15+ years in salt water
replace the manifolds 3x over 20 years
Parts are cheap, repairs simple (most at least lol)
Pros:
Simple GM marine engine, engine parts much much cheaper than outboards, can add closed cooling to a new or reman engine, for longer life than outboards
Cons:
poor access, anything on the rear of the engine is tough to get at, some repairs require an engine pull.
With the simple engine you have to deal with transom mount and outdrive
having said that I have made the same boat last me 20 years in salt water, I have not had to replace much on the outdrive or transom mount.
Actual repairs:
replaced tilt n trim hoses
replaced gimble bearing once and bellows twice
replaced the trim sender a few times
for the transom mount and outdrive that's it!
for the 4.3 V6, I did a top end overhaul about 6 years ago, I replaced the cyl heads due to overheat damage, the cooling passages in them were getting thin anyway due to 15+ years in salt water
replace the manifolds 3x over 20 years
Parts are cheap, repairs simple (most at least lol)
Anyone with an I/O in salt water should get closed cooling. Then all you need to worry about is the heat exchanger and exhaust risers.
I/O's are a compromise but are easy to build and live with, but not the best in any area. We have all three; inboard, I/O and outboard on three boats w/ three very different purposes. My favorite is the inboard, because it is the sports car of boats, and I really like the way an inboard handles once you get used to the idiosyncrasies.
I dislike outboards for the one reason, I think they are ugly; big goiters clinging to the back of an otherwise pretty hull. But I have come around and modern ones are really slick and ultra quiet.
For a general knock around fishing and fun cruising boat, I'd get outboards vs. I/O; easy to access and service, one less large penetration through the hull below the water line as well as no bellows, simpler drivetrain, etc. Outboards also have more room in the boat.
I dislike outboards for the one reason, I think they are ugly; big goiters clinging to the back of an otherwise pretty hull. But I have come around and modern ones are really slick and ultra quiet.
For a general knock around fishing and fun cruising boat, I'd get outboards vs. I/O; easy to access and service, one less large penetration through the hull below the water line as well as no bellows, simpler drivetrain, etc. Outboards also have more room in the boat.
Yes! I am a huge fan of outboards. It is kind of sad they've become so expensive. But nothing is worse than an I/O that has a flooded automotive starter motor, or rusty/clogged exhaust risers, or a fuel pump mounted under the engine. Ugh. Not to mention the external gearboxes and propulsion hardware that has been driving boaters crazy for the last 70 years.
Generally fine when new, I/O's rapidly become a maintenance nightmare.
I'd much rather have 2ea modest sized outboard engines than any single I/O, of any HP rating.
There is a reason real yachts are now available with outboard powerplants.
Although true, if one is out on the water and an engine needs attention, I would simply (and have) motor back on the remaining engine(s) rather than work on it. But this is also a function of size. A 50HP outboard is a small thing compared to the monster units available today.
Having known of a few boat fires, they were all Inboard engines. There is a reason the air blowers must be operated for 5 minutes before starting the engine(s).
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The best thing about having more than one engine for a boat is if one breaks down you can still get back to land.
Like Cujet says fire is a huge reason to want an outboard. Much easier to deal with when it needs any kind of major work.
Easy to upgrade if you want to, less chance of having major hull leaks. And no humps to take space in the boat floor and on and on.
I would never want an inboard, unless it was huge old crab boat size thing.
Like Cujet says fire is a huge reason to want an outboard. Much easier to deal with when it needs any kind of major work.
Easy to upgrade if you want to, less chance of having major hull leaks. And no humps to take space in the boat floor and on and on.
I would never want an inboard, unless it was huge old crab boat size thing.
Once you get over about 24' the inboard or I/O engine fits in the V of the boat and there is no hump for the engine.
^^^ Well Said ^^^
As a late age teenager I have had at any one time two different 18 foot outboards boats (once a runabout and another center console but that was decades ago and since all I ever had was I/O's up to 28 feet. Luckily in the past I got another new boat every few years so never any major repairs bar one on my first I/O decades ago, the dreaded gamble bearing froze up.
All I'Os in the past were mercruisers.
Now downsized greatly I expect to have our current (runabout) Chaparral 180 SSI which is really just shy of 20 feet as it has a factory extended platform. But the only ding to me is the darn I/O, this time a Volvo. At the time we were looking hard for a "new to me" outboard but just slim pickings if you shop anything but a center console. The boat is in amazing shape, get compliments all the time, freshwater 2008 boat, got it right before covid at an incredible price, at the time from a dealer in the middle of winter. Under 100 hours, 60 to be exact at time of purchase.
Just one expensive issue two years later. It had the newest upgraded VP drive on it back when the boat was built back in 2008. But there was a known factory issue with the upper gear case clutch that at the time VP was addressing free the following year in 2009. Well around 2021 being our boat had such low hours the defect hit me. Being the boat is like new, instead of going rebuilt I purchased and had them install a new upper grearcase. Cost was just over $5000 ... it stung.. though I call the boat my wife's boat. Since this time around she wanted it so bad and I have my motorcycle.
It is sad that outboards have become so expensive. They are designed from the ground up to be in water (and saltwater) where I/O's are nothing more than "marinerized" automotive engines and way too many components getting through the hull.
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I think another consideration when comparing ways to power a boat is where it's being used & how it's being stored.
There has been a strong dislike for I/O and salt water. But what if your day boating in salt water ends with the boat going back on a trailer or onto a rack? And maybe a quick flush with Salt-Away or similar?
The place I keep my boat will gladly move your boat from the water to a work rack then back into the building to its storage rack. On the work rack many people flush the engine. Some wipe down the boat also.
I/O and inboard can have closed cooling which I don't think any outboard has.
There has been a strong dislike for I/O and salt water. But what if your day boating in salt water ends with the boat going back on a trailer or onto a rack? And maybe a quick flush with Salt-Away or similar?
The place I keep my boat will gladly move your boat from the water to a work rack then back into the building to its storage rack. On the work rack many people flush the engine. Some wipe down the boat also.
I/O and inboard can have closed cooling which I don't think any outboard has.
