Johnson 88 special help

[lovey'sboat]

Hello everyone! I am new here and am excited to get a little help as I am somewhat new to the boating world. I have been out on my grandfather's boat numerous times throughout my childhood. Unfortunately he passed away a few years back leaving me his 1995 eagle crestliner 196 sst II with a 1994 Johnson 88 special outboard.

I am trying to learn as much as possible about this boat to do Pop Pop proud.

I am hoping to get a little help from you all on the following topics:

1. Is there a problem with using the 88 special in salt water? I just moved to Charleston, SC and live 4.2 miles away from the beach and am surrounded by lowcountry water.

2. Can anyone give me any insight on the 1994 Johnson 88 special? Is it a quality engine?

3. The boat has been sitting for a few years. I am about to replace the water pump, I replaced the fuel solenoid and housing, am going to perform all maintenance my operation and maintenance manual instructs me to do. but can anyone give me any other suggestions? I would really like to "do things right' for this boat, but really don't have the income to send it to the shop right now.

Thank you all for all of your help!

 

[Charlie in TX]

Re: Johnson 88 special help

I had a 1988 90hp. OMC used the same block from your 88 up to 140 hp. I consider it one of the best outboards ever made. It will be fine in salt water. Treat everything under the 'hood' to corrosionx. Flush the motor after each use.

 

[toddschubert]

Re: Johnson 88 special help

I have same motor.
Great saltwater motor. Be sure to flush on muffs after every use.
The motor is a horse. Known for running hard even with problems.
Absolutely get a water pump kit (impeller, housing, o-ring, etc.) and take your time installing it.
I can help with some tips if you haven't already done it.
get a infrared thermometer and check temperature of both sides of heads after it warms up. They have whats called water deflector tubes in the water jacket (under heads) that gets flat with time and can cause engine to over heat. It's a good idea to change them if you are comfortable removing and reinstalling heads. I did it and have never removed heads before that.
the thermometer will show different temperatures from one side to the other if this is a problem.
I installed a water temp gauge and put the sender unit on the thermostat housing which gives a good composite reading of both heads.
The motor is easy to work on and will last a long time with some simple miaint.

 

[emdsapmgr]

Re: Johnson 88 special help

The 88 specials were actually the 90 version but without some of the 90 enhancements. Such as: your engine may not have power trim and won't have a VRO (oil/gas) mixing pump. Also won't have a voltage regulator (rectfier only.) Same engine as the 90, but costs less due to less options. A torquey engine, it was never know to be fuel efficient. With proper care, should be a solid runner.

 

[kjdunne]

Re: Johnson 88 special help

I had a '97 90 spl and now a '95 112 spl and can only say they have been very good to me. Mine are run in saltwater regularly, just flush and rinse it off with the hose after each outing and it'll last a long time. Real workhorses. Not as bad on gas as some people claim they are, but I don't run wide open all day either. Do all the maintenance stuff to awaken a sleeping outboard and you should be good to go. Don't try to compare them to the newest outboards, they are a different animal. They do what they were designed to do very well, which is why you still see so many of them on the water.