Honda 9.9 vs Yamaha 9.9

Rda2187

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Oct 21, 2015
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Hello everybody. I recently purchased a 1990 16' Starcraft aluminum boat. It came with a 1966 merc 60, 6hp. After weeks of tinkering to get it running and 3 trips on the water. I just can't be bothered, I need reliability and not having to pour starting fluid to move my boat. Okay anyways...

As the title states I'm hung up on both brands. I've always been a big fan of Honda, but I keep reading positive reviews on Yamaha! speed isn't a major factor, just looking for reliability. And headache free. So as far as features, weight, speed, noise Which would you choose?

Side note is it highly frowned upon to say purchase the 15hp model and re label it with the 9.9 graphics, to be able to use on restricted lakes? Or am I asking for a whole lot of trouble if I ever got caught?
 

ondarvr

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On restricted lakes they normally know what to look for to identify people trying to get around the rules, so you've been warned.

They both work well, but....

The Yamaha tends to do better in almost every category, that's the reason Yamahas out number all other small motors combined around here by about 10 to 1
 
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Rda2187

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Does the Yamaha or Honda have decent battery charging setups. I.e. For recharging batteries trolling motor, fish finder etc etc. thought I read Honda has it built in and Yamaha it's an aftermarket accessory? Or am I wrong? Thanks!
 

ondarvr

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It depends on the model you get. Honda has a charging system that you just hook up and go, Yamaha has the charging system, but depending on the model you may need to add a rectifier to hook it to the battery, not a big deal. They will both keep the battery charged while trolling.

Hondas can be hard to troll with because the RPM's are difficult to control just off idle, so finding the right speed can be frustrating. Some people resort to mounting an electronic throttle control so they can get the right speed.
 
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S.A. Baker

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I used to back troll for Walleyes all day wih my Honda at idle speed . Putt,putt, putt,putt.....never missed a beat! You couldn't GIVE me a Yamaha. Course I also was a Honda service tech for 42yrs. ;) Unfortunatly I also had to fix all that "off brand" stuff too. And nothing made by Yamaha is on my list of "reliable".
 

Rda2187

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Oct 21, 2015
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Well great, I got one Yamaha guy and one Honda guy. Helps me out 😉Lol - seems as if both motors are pretty top notch. I don't do to much trolling. Just going from point A to B. Then throw on trolling motor. Of course I'm still trying to decide 55lb thrust or 70 . Decisions decisions! Happy thanksgiving!
 

ondarvr

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If you're not using for it for trolling either motor will work well, the Yamaha just works better for trolling, they both are very reliable and well built, it's hard to pick a winner.
 

sam am I

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Can't say anything for the Yamies's other then I used to ride them a lot in the dirt and they ran fine. Never had one on a boat......yet.

My 9.9 Honda I've had since 1992 and have trolled to China and back with it. Wouldn't trade it for the world, it just purrrrr's going slow or fast, have not one bad thing to say about it.

Only just replaced the timing belt and upgraded the charging system from the built in/stock 6 amp to a add on 10 amps. The rec/regulator was already rated at the 10 amps, the upgrade just added a dual winding setup for the increased charge output.

I run three batteries with the Honda and a Merc that are both "OR'd" and charge through a alt. output distribution unit, when trolling (hours at a time sometimes) and using electronics/downriggers etc, the Honda keeps all the batt's topped off quite nicely, so no problems there either.......
 
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roscoe

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Oct 30, 2002
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FYI,, no outboard, will keep the trolling motors charged.
The charging amperage is too low, and the outboard would need to be run for many hours to charge the trolling motor battery.
 

ondarvr

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FYI,, no outboard, will keep the trolling motors charged.
The charging amperage is too low, and the outboard would need to be run for many hours to charge the trolling motor battery.

Like he said, nothing will keep the trolling motor batteries charged except a battery charger.
 
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