I know I am going to get tons of merc owners who are going to say no stay away, but I am interested in other volvo owners. Thanks for all your help.
Howdy,
Welcome aboard!
There really is a problem with parts availability for the FOMOCO (Volvo and OMC) EFI engines. Other "wear" parts like manifold and risers etc are going to be generally available but will cost more. Ford engines were abandoned for stern drive use in the 90's This doesn't mean they're less reliable than any other engine. It only means that certain parts are simply not made anymore. This causes a lot of repair facilities to shy away from them. They want to satisfy you . They don't want you mad at them because they can't (or won't) fix them
As far as Volvo vs Mercruiser, that's a different issue. For every Volvo powered boat sold in the US, Mercury Marine sell far more Mercruiser powered boats. It's not because they're "better" (in fact some think Volvo is better...but they're biased......they own Volvos!!)
I went through the same process when I removed my previously installed OMC (Ford 460) + King Kobra drive.
I looked specifically for a Big Block (GM) Volvo Penta engine and drive to replace the OMC Cobra.
Back then, I considered even buying new packages and found that similarly sized engines and drives were similarly priced. That is, the Volvo 496 + Duo-Prop AND the Mercruiser 496+ Bravo III packages were about $25,000 in round numbers. (Plus install, tax etc)
Since it wasn't worth putting a new engine in a nearly 20 year old boat (no matter what condition it was in) I started looking for used "pulls" (I.E. good engines and drives in damaged boats)
Over a several month period up here in the Pacific Northwest (including Portland OR) , I found several complete Mercruiser eng/drive packages ranging from 5.7L to 8.2L Bravo I, II, III that were suitable for my 21ft boat, ranging from $5000 to about $8500 with various hours etc.
I found NO similar Volvo engine/drive packages at all. None.
At the same time I was checking eBay for similar engine/drive combos and although I did find a few Volvo packages it was only a few and they were simply too far away. (I didn't really want to buy something I couldn't check out first)
I also observed that at any given time, there was approx 3 times more Mercruiser engines, drives, parts and accessories etc on eBay than Volvo [Right now Volvo: approx 25000 results, Mercruiser: 71,000]
It appeared to me that since I was going to be the one fixing my boat when something failed, I wanted to stack the deck in my favor when looking for parts new or used etc.
I ended up buying the engine and drive I have now (1997 454/Bravo III)
Understand, if I had initially found a Volvo engine and drive, I probably would have bought it. After I bought the engine and drive, I continued to look and found more Mercruiser engines and drives. (even found a late model 425hp 496/Bravo III setup I could have probably gotten for about $8000 (should have bought it anyway but didn't)
So my "vote" would be DO NOT BUY a boat with a 90's (OMC or Volvo) Ford EFI engine under any circumstances.
And this is NOT a Volvo vs Merc thing..........
If it's carbureted, I wouldn't get it either (Ford engine)
Any other Volvo (GM) is fine. The (SX) drives are fine (from about 1995-ON) It's just that if you want to scrounge parts to fix it yourself, and you use eBay, craigslist etc, you'll find Mercruiser parts more plentiful.
If you're just going to go to the Volvo Dealer for parts, you will not have any problem finding parts. (Just take out mortgage on your house first! Getting OEM parts for either Merc or Volvo will always be more expensive than scrounging used parts........but it will always be easier to find used Merc parts )
Good luck,
Rick