Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

Can you take the VRO off a 1989 Johnson 100 HP and put it on a 1982 Johnson 115 HP?

I have a 1990 Crestliner with an in-floor 20 gallon tank and a failing 1989 Johnson 100 HP motor. I can pick up a great running 1982 Johnson 115 HP motor and want to do a motor or powerhead swap but want to keep using the VRO. Trying to premix a 20 gallon tank would be very difficult and I actually like the VRO system. Thanks.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

why is mixing fuel/oil an issue? Think of it this way, if you mix fuel and run out no problem, But if you run out of oil and still have fuel you will now have bad JuJu! Just a thought!

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

Thank you for your thoughts, Monte1961. Premixing is not diffucult and I should have said "I prefer not to premix". Please don't turn this post into a debate over premixing. I want to know if it is possible to take the VRO fuel/oil delivery system off a 1989 Johnson 100 HP and put it on a 1982 Johnson 115 HP? Thanks.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

When the VRO fails and your motor seizes...there won't be a need for a premix debate.

I'm just a noob, but I'd be damned if I would trust a 22 yr old part that is crucial to the motor. Especially, since premixing is only a small inconvenience. JMO

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

The VROs were not known for their reliability and picked up a name as a result, Very Rarely Oils. Some will support them but I usually disconnect them and run on 50:1. Gear pumps tend to be more reliable but Mercury's early attempts were not reliable. This was probably because of the necessity to use an oil tank on the deck as with the VRO's. Suzuki and Yamaha use a tank in the motor which provides a gravity assist. Mercury also adopted this. Suzuki's I consider to be the most reliable.
The later types of VRO, no longer referred to as VRO, have been better on reliability but I still doubt that technology.
Hope this is of some help to you.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

ok i'm no expert. I am almost done doing the opposite ... installing a 1983 pump in a 1989 140 tlc vro. as I see it
1) you will have no warning system to notify you if you your oil supply fails (= a very bad day)
2) From what I have read on the forum I believe your older motor to be equipped with a 'bolt on' mounting position for the fuel pump that will allow vacuum pulse from the crank to enervate the fuel pump directly through the vacuum port on the back of the pump. I have read that some motors equipped (like mine) with a pulse limiter on the underside of the crankcase and activating the vro through a flex line might have an alternate location to mount a retro pump. I was unable to locate this alternate site and instead had to fabricate a new mounting plate that incorporated a 'nipple' that would accept the flex line. I expect you will have to fabricate some system to supply the vro with a vacuum pulse ...and if so I expect it 'should/might' operate. I had a bad day when the fuel side of my vro failed ... but not as bad as the day you will have if you try to run with the vro, no warning system, and the oil side fails :~/
peace

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

James R said:

The VROs were not known for their reliability and picked up a name as a result, Very Rarely Oils. Some will support them but I usually disconnect them and run on 50:1. Gear pumps tend to be more reliable but Mercury's early attempts were not reliable. This was probably because of the necessity to use an oil tank on the deck as with the VRO's. Suzuki and Yamaha use a tank in the motor which provides a gravity assist. Mercury also adopted this. Suzuki's I consider to be the most reliable.
The later types of VRO, no longer referred to as VRO, have been better on reliability but I still doubt that technology.
Hope this is of some help to you.

Click to expand...

James,simply not true VRO II and OMS were very reliable. I had a VRO II on my '85 J 140 for over 22 years w/o a moments problem and was still working perfectly when I sold the boat and motor about 6 years ago. That motor came with VRO, which was upgraded by OMC to VRO II at no charge during the warranty period. The original VRO was only around for about two years, when it was replaced by VRO II. There a great article on the Continuous Wave website that goes into considerable detail why these systems are good. They have been given a bad name by lazy mechanics who attribute most PH failures to oiling failures, which is simply not true. The biggest causes, by far, of PH failure is lean running, usually caused crap in the carbs.

Link: http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/VRO.html

Right now, I own E-Tecs, which are also oil injected, and must be. There is no possibility of EVER running any E-Tec on premix, so I guess BRP must have this pretty well perfected.

I have doubts about the wisdom of adding VRO or OMS to an older motor, largely because you would not likely be able to retain the alarm features, and there may be other reasons as well.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

The newer OMS pumps are generally very reliable and I can understand your desire to simplify your boating by going to an automatic type mixing pump. One of the big differences you will have to overcome is the pulse line to the pump. The blocks are different. The older (simple) pumps bolt directly the block and a drilled port in the block that matches an identcal hole in the back of the pump. The VRO type pumps require a pump pulse hose which is usually clamped onto a hose barb in the side of the blocks.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

When I first started in this business we premixed all our fuel. It wasn't until 20 yrs later the vro came out. I've seen to many probs with them over the years so I still premix my fuel. That way I know what I have. It's eaiser to take the time to mix than to do a p/h job.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

Thank you everyone for your replies. So it sounds like it may not work. But I have read that any v4 crossflow flatback powerhead from the 88spl up to the 115hp from 1979 to 1995 are swapable. If this true (and the VRO system started in 1984), does this mean you have to swap the complete powerhead or just the block and add your bolt on components?

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

I'd consider another option. The 72 125 engine used a 3 port fuel pump, which uses a hose to the block for the pulse-just like your VRO.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

Phantom90 said:

Thank you everyone for your replies. So it sounds like it may not work. But I have read that any v4 crossflow flatback powerhead from the 88spl up to the 115hp from 1979 to 1995 are swapable.

Click to expand...

That is true, but not exactly, some of the accessories from one generation won't bolt onto another. Example, there isn't anywhere to bolt the single powerpack onto an older block that was meant for 2 side mounted powerpacks. That said, they seem to bolt up fine to the midsection, and the rest can be figured out. I had to make a bracket to mount the power pack when I used the electronics of my 1989 when I installed an 1986 block, other than that it worked fine.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

If the VRO is a have to have thing. You need newpump, I would get pump kit. with the 4 wire harness, cut and modify your harness to fit. You will have to decide which warning system you want to use, pre 95, 95 and later. The horn and tank sender will have to match the system you use. Don`t know what you will have to do to the block, but holes can be blocked, holes can be drilled. I f you install correctly, should work great. I think you are well over 500.00 in parts. Warning system will be overheat, low oil, no oil.

Re: Add VRO to a 1982 Johnson 115

It is possible that your block may already have a plugged hole in the front for a pulse line for the pump.