Buying a 10 year old Tohatsu 18 - what to look for?

[EricG22]

Hi folks,
I've been researching Tohatsu outboards and you folks seem to be the most knowledgeable group around, so I have a question I hope you can help with. I'm going to be looking at possibly buying a 2001 18hp Tohatsu 2 stroke. The owner's ad says only 10 hours on the motor since new and garage stored. The exterior photos look like a new engine. What should I look for before purchasing? I'm sure age takes a toll even if the motor is just sitting..

From what I can tell these Tohatsu motors are known for their reliability but I'm concerned about what can degrade after 10 years of inactivity and how reliable I can expect a 10 year old motor to be.

Thanks for your help.

Eric

 

[Davem3]

Re: Buying a 10 year old Tohatsu 18 - what to look for?

well, for openers, i would put in a new water pump and flush out and change the LU gear oil.

I am not sure if ethanol was around in 2002, but this plays a major part in the decision,if it was, you are looking at a carb cleaning and change the fuel filter/lines as well.

moving forward, IF you use the carptastic gas we now have forced down our throats, each and every time you use the motor, at the end of the day, disconnect the fuel line and run the run out of gas, to clean it out of all fuel.

I would also look the motor over, ( under a microscope, preferably) and look for signs of abuse, rust and the like.

also, i am not sure where you live, but salt water MIGHT be a consideration. If it was not flushed out properly each and every time, oh Gawd help us all.

pull the plugs and look at the story they are telling you, it is important ( change them too)

squirt some oil in there too BEFORE you fire it up and turn it over a few times by hand, get some lube up in there to help her out a bit after such a long time of no use........

a compression test is a biggie to ............. 10% tolerance between cylinders is the max tolerance you want to see.........

just as a FYI and my personal experience, i live in Massachusetts and was looking for a 9.8 and a 6 this year. the 9.8 i looked at had 70 pounds compression in it and went through hell in salt water. the 6 was well cared for, but had a lot of rust from salt water again.......long story short, i said screw it and went out and bought NEW, it is a decision i will NEVER regret......

 

[Davem3]

Re: Buying a 10 year old Tohatsu 18 - what to look for?

also, this board has some AWESOME guru's here, that will chime and help ya as well, i am a new Tohatsu ( and damn proud of it as well) owner, but my understanding is they are damn good motors and pretty much bulletproof, if well taken care of.

hopefully, someday, i will be as smart as them ................

and this comes from a 50 year old man that grew up and always loved johnnyrude and mercs............

funny thing is Tohatsu/Nissan now makes the motors for everyone at this point, i think

that speaks volumes in my book.

 

[Sea Rider]

Re: Buying a 10 year old Tohatsu 18 - what to look for?

Which Tohatsu 18 HP, 2 strokes model do you plan to purchase. If it's 18E2 is the latest version, if 18E it's the previous version. Don't know how much will a E2 vary from a E model specially for parts availability ? We only work with E2 latest version.

Happy Boating