New boat! Which motor?? Yamaha, Suzuki, or Merc (60-75hp 4-stroke)??

[wmflyfisher]

Hey guys,

Looking at getting a new skiff in the next few weeks and I'm torn about motors. All are 4 stroke and everybody that I've talked with said that all are pretty much bulletproof (of course that's what their going to say!). Is this really true?? Are all of these motors (Yamaha, Zuk, and Merc) of the same quality?? I know nothing about the motors. Just want to make a good decision because I'll have it for years!! Any help would be great.

[steelespike]

Your first concern should be a close well established qualified dealer.
While these motors are fine motors I would go with an Evinrude Etec it is 21 to 49 lbs lighter
at 320lbs,The 90 is the same weight.Etec has no breakin period,no srervice for 3 years or 300 hours,fewer less complicated service intervals. The powerhead has about 7 moving parts.

[wmflyfisher]

Thanks spike,

None of the dealers that I'm looking at offer the ETEC. Their all big Carolina Skiff dealers.

[lifeisfun]

Your first concern should be a close well established qualified dealer.
While these motors are fine motors I would go with an Evinrude Etec it is 21 to 49 lbs lighter
at 320lbs,The 90 is the same weight.Etec has no breakin period,no srervice for 3 years or 300 hours,fewer less complicated service intervals. The powerhead has about 7 moving parts.

F60 and I think even the new F70 is the same weight as 60HP ETEC.

[bassman284]

The Yammie 60 and 70 are the pretty much the same motor.
F60 weighs 237, F70 257. F75 weighs 369.

Suzuki 70 weighs 341, 60 weighs 229.

Merc 75 weighs 399, 60 weighs 247.

Ete 75 weighs 320, 60 weighs 240.

So if weight is your main consideration there you have it.

I have 2001 Mercury 60 4 stroke and going into its 10th year has required no service other than annual oil changes. All of the above are generally regarded as bulletproof, so other than weight considerations, pick the one that looks nicest on the back of your skiff. Power to weight ratio has the F70 looking pretty sweet.

[Captain Caveman]

I'm on a couple of different outdoors forums, and every time someone asks this question (about weekly) the same debates come up. 95% of the responses you will hear is that the motor someone currently has is the best. They'll toss in some trinket information about why it's better than the others, yet the common theme is that everyone is really liking those three motor brands these days. You'll be hard pressed to find someone dumping on one of those motors for good reason, it's usually more to make their motor sound better.

The best advice came from steelespike. Find out which of your local dealers has the best reputation for service quality. Talk to other boat owners in your area and find out what they like about their dealer. It's probably the only big difference that you'll find between the motors, is how you'll get treated over the next 10-15 years (or however long you own the boat).

For the record, I've got a 2009 Suzuki DF90 and love it...but what did you expect me to say?

[lifeisfun]

No offense Captain Caveman but steelespike recommended 90 2S when the OP is looking for 60-75 4S

[Captain Caveman]

No offense taken. I realized that but steelespike gave two bits of advice. One part was to go to an Etec but the other was to first focus his decision making on the dealer more than anything. When you're talking about these 60-75hp 4-stroke motors, I doubt that you or anyone can provide a persuasive argument that clearly shows that one motor is better than the other. Therefore, the motor choice is less important than the dealer and their service department who will be servicing the motor for years to come. They are all good motors.

[lifeisfun]

Well, that's why if the dealer you want to buy your boat from offers only 4s as the OP indicated
I don't think that it would be wise to re-rig to different brand (ETEC in this case).

[boater1234]

What about tohatsus direct injected motors,they are good motors also.If they were available in your area i would take a good look at one of those also.Just something else to add to the pot.If it were me though and weight was an issue then i think the new 70hp yamaha is the way to go.I just went to a boat show here in fla in the tampa area and they were showing off the new 70hp yamaha and it is a sweet motor.It has a very slim design,as in it's not a wide motor.At 257lbs i don't think you can go wrong.As far as motors though they are all pretty much bulletproof as long as you take care of it.