Pressure to ban older outboards

Like it or not, agree with it or not, Australia is looking to be the latest country to actually ban the importation of older used 2-stroke outboard motors. Check out this link: http://www.brp.com/en-AU/about-us/newsroom/News-Details.html?ArticleID=de52cda5-2543-4b8f-980b-63cacea73608


To me this is silly. They are no longer making the older motors, attrition has it's way. Sure, BRP is playing good corporate citizen before some special interest group calls then on something. I congratulate them on the new ultra-low emissions E-TEC Evinrudes. However, to me the push to ban older motors seems so self-serving.

They say that the older motors pollute 10 times (!) more than new motors. One way of looking at it is that the new motors runs so clean it is almost unbelievable. This is a good thing for sure, but to suddenly turn mean on some ancient motors, numbers of which are dwindling, seems a little bit much to me. You know what happens next, one country does it, then another, then another...

Don't get me wrong. I love this planet. I am not a fan of pollution. There just seems to be little in the way of balance; any consideration to existing property and ways of life. It just seems fashionable to espouse "green" at every turn. Excuse me while I wretch... It all just seems so damn heavy-handed to me. You want to talk about function creep? Give up your liberties and see what follows.

My old 2-stroke has not killed anybody. The way that the greenies talk, they act like we can live forever if we all just unquestioningly take up and follow their agenda.


Beware the man with a cause.

Re: Pressure to ban older outboards

Hmmmm interesting. So how big of an industry is the importing of older outboards in Australia anyway? It seems to me that the Australian people are far too pragmatic to fall for an obvious ruse like this, It's obvious that BRP just wants to sell more new outboards. Can't fault them for that I suppose. It's actually brilliant. It costs them nothing and they get to look like the champions of environmentalism.

There is no doubt in my mind that the older outboards pollute ten times more than the new ones. The question of pollution is something every vintage outboarder has to wrestle with themselves. Myself, for the last 15+ years I've driven a 25 year old car to work every day and I use it for my fishing car (when I'm not boating). It gets 31 mpg, it passes emissions, it doesn't burn or leak oil and it has no A/C. It now has 326,000 miles on it. ('83 Toyota Tercel 4wd wagon). Plus for the last 30+ years I have been an automotive technician specializing in driveability and emissions. I keep my outboards tuned to the nth degree and now I use 100% synthetic oil (not that I think it's that much better than conventional) So I feel I've earned a little latitude on the whole pollution issue.

If I drove a Hummer H2 in which I had to recharge the A/C every summer because it all leaks out, or a car that pukes oil all over the highway then I might find it tough to sleep at night.

I don't think we have to worry about our vintage outboards being outlawed any time soon. As you say, attrition will do it for them.

I found this interesting [snip] "Total Industry size: $ 13.4B ? about triple the size of the Australian Snow Industry"[/snip]
Whoa!!! Now that's a shocker!

Cheers....................Todd

Re: Pressure to ban older outboards

Yes, I?m sorry that it may have come off like a rant, but i just thought we needed to be aware of what is happening.

The proposed law may be aimed more at manufacturers that bring in the older technology over the new cleaner-running motors. It may or may not end up affecting private citizens & used motors. I bet it will though.

I would certainly like a new Johnson 9.9 4-stroke, but the things are heavy as the old 25-horse from the 1970s dad had on his Starcraft. It looks like the Johnson brand has been deep-sixed anyway (R.I.P. to a great marque). The last of the 2-stroke Johnsons up to 2007 are very interesting to me but are hard to find as a clean one (people keep them unless they are all used up). The lighter weight and relatively clean technology (two star emissions) are strong plusses.

Yes, the older outboard do run dirty, between the higher oil ratios and the overboard drains for the carbs. Yet the way some are talking, every living thing on earth should be dead or dying from cancer. It just isn?t so! The amount I use mine, the durability and the simplicity, and to me the beauty of the older models make them viable. Watch out though. These talks of a Green Economy make me shudder in my boots. The prospect of a bureaucracy devoted to the pursuit of everything green at the expense of everything else including common sense, plus the fact that these non-elected bloated agencies are known for being devoted to their own existence, can keep one awake at night.

Beware the man with a cause! (Al Gore comes to mind)