Best outboard you ever owned?

[zulu]

1990 Yamaha 115

Regular maintenance every year and virtually no major problems. Have spend less than $700 in 21 years in unscheduled repairs. About 30-40 hard hours each year of WOT to & from fishing holes or towing skiers, tubes, kneeboards, etc.

My father-in-laws Mariner 175 EFI has been 10 times as problematic and it is 4 years newer.

 

[Gillsy]

The best outboard I've ever owned was a 05-06 vintage Bombardier Johnson J140 (re-badged Suzuki 140 hp four stroke). It is the best piece of marine equipment I've ever owned.

 

[Steve S]

I am enjoying this thread. I never owned an outboard . I have has several inboard boats though I had the use of a friends outboard fishing boat for two years and reaqlly enjoyed it . The boat was a 15 foot Radon with a 35 hp Johnson .

 

[rokwldr]

I have a Yamaha 115 fourstroke, I'd have to say it is by far the best outboard I have owned. Had a Johnson 90 V4 blew a piston at 250 hrs. No more 2 strokes. Also had a Merc inline six, very thirsty, not real reliable, it also died an early death.

 

[Tuffy1760]

87 mariner 150... 7 years not bad, few electrical problems...mainly key kill switch, hard to find intermittent problem...
94 johnson faststrike 150...3 years blown powerhead... no ther problems...
97 johnson faststrike... 2 years...no real problems...
99 evirude 175 ficht... 7 years... problems but kept running...
06 225 etec HO... 3 years...complete nightmare... 3 blown powerheads, 2 lower units, and a broken mid section... lifechanger in a bad way...
08 merc 150 optimax... no problems... the winner... sad to say, I no longer own it...
next boat and motor is not known but looking forward to wrenching on one...

 

[OVERKILL]

Not really mine but I think it is worth mentioning. My Grandmother owned a small Grew with I believe a 70's Mercury 50 (inline 4) that was basically bulletproof for 30+ years. I don't think it ever needed anything other than the carbs balanced.

The engine was a bit low on compression in the early 2000's when the boat was finally retired (my Grandmother died and the boat passed to my aunt briefly... but the transom was punky and so it was taken out of service) but it stands out in my mind as one of the most reliable engines we've ever owned and by far the most reliable outboard. It just "worked". Always.

 

[Turk]

Best??

My current 2003 Suzuki 140HP 4-Stroke.

ZERO repairs in 11 Years!!

Nothing I've had comes close. Frequently get compliments from other Fishermen hearing from others they like their's also.

 

[westwind999]

Martin outboards were pretty interesting 2 strokes with intake valves instead of reeds. I have a couple that I'm planning to restore. My best outboard has been my Johnson qd14 10hp, one of the old green ones. Very reliable and idles right down too. Idles so slow in gear that you can hardly tell the boat is moving, below 1 mph on the gps. We'll have so see if the Martin will out do the Johnson.

 

[hattaresguy]

I have owned a number of small outboards and they have all been pretty good. I can't say one brand is much better than the other.

Never owned anything larger, went straight to I/O's and inboards. Large outboard powered boats annoy me, hard to boat fish. I like a clean transom.

It seems like a lot of the other boats with multiple large outboards have problems with them just like anything else. But so does every other marine engine, so I can't really say anyone has an advantage one way or another.

The big downside of outboards especially pushing heavy large boats is that they are very short lived, they are not built with the same internal mass as a big block or a diesel, so they don't seem to hold up pushing the weight around as well.

 

[gm03]

Of the three motors I owned,72 Johnson 25 hp, an ancient Chrysler 85 hp and a 91 Tohotsu 50 hp 3cyl that I owned for 12 years before selling my boat, the tohotsu was by far the best moter I ever owned.I replaced the impeller once and that was it always started never a lick of trouble. I did change the plugs yearly.

 

[Barkleymut]

After one year of ownership I really like the Mercury 50hp 2stroke on our pontoon. I have no idea what the model name is but it has a manufacture date of 2001 I believe. Starts right up even in really cold weather and runs smooth all the way to redline. My only other outboard was a 1969 Johnson 25hp that I had on the back of a 16ft johnboat. It ran great for 2 years, but then the carbs messed up. Sold it for almost exactly what I paid for it....$200.

 

[MNgopher]

A back from the dead thread...

New addition to the fleet since I last posted. Current favorite is the 2003ish Yamaha 115hp four stroke. Starts on command, quiet, and easy on the gas. One fuel injector cleaning in all of its years from the PO to us.

I'm a four stroke convert now...

 

[mjk]

2002 Yamaha VMAX HPDI, on a 1800 Pro V.

 

[Errtt]

From a handful of boats I had a little 9.9 Johnson, never gave me any issues. Had pretty good luck with an old 65hp and 110 Merc.
Had a 200 Merc XRI that ran good at idle and high rpm, but running in mid rpm range for awhile would sometimes just suddenly slow down like it was bogging, had to run it up for a minute to clear it up - never could figure that one out, but ran good wot.
Had a Chrysler that was hard starting but ran good once running.

 

[ShieldArc]

Originally Posted By: Papa Bear
Nobody had a Chrysler outboard that they liked ??...

I hade a Chrysler 105 and loved it. It beat Johnson 90's.

 

[cmhj]

Early 50s maybe 1952? 7 HP Scott Attwater.

 

[thunderfog]

I also had a Johnson 9.9hp from 1976. Great little engine, although I went through 3 coils in 15 years or so. Easy fix, though.

 

[Silverado12]

1994 Evinrude 48. Still running w/o problems except for a fuel pump.

 

[hemitom]

Originally Posted By: JTK
The old V-block Evinrudes were downright rude.

Joel
Had one of these when we were kids i think it was early 60's and 40 horsepower, i only ever remember the old man changing the oil in the foot and new plugs every year. i'm thinking the model was lark but not sure.

 

[vipergg]

1986 Force (chrysler) 50 hp . Had it for 11 years , plugs and a couple of water pump impellers. Always started first time even after sitting all winter. Lot to be said for manual chokes.It was fairly noisy compared to todays silent 4 strokes but it ran great and I could run all day on a 6 gallon tank.