1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

[willp2]

I'm looking at buying a boat that's powered by a 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP with about 500 hours on it.

I've heard mixed reviews of these motors and would appreciate any opinions on how reliable they are.

Thanks for any comments.

 

[DJ]

Re: 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

They were not particularly bad. They are of somewhat older technology. They do tend to run a little dirty so decarbing them is a must.

If it went 500 hours, obviously someone was doing something right.

Common service parts are still readily available.

Realize that it is an outdated engine, no longer made, with the name gone from the industry. The good news is that Mercury still supports parts.

With meticulous care, it will go longer.

See link below for decarb. info.

http://forums.iboats.com/bbBoard.cgi?a=viewthread;fid=36;gtid=1035563

 

[willp2]

Re: 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

Thanks for the info! I actually was not aware that Force was no longer being made. Not sure how I feel about this boat now, I'll have to rethink this.

Thanks again

 

[DJ]

Re: 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

willp2,

If you really like the boat. The Force engine is a real bargaining chip, in your favor. The seller knows that.

If you buy it right with plans to repower, in the near future, any use you get out of it is a bonus.

 

[Stuart Kelley]

Re: 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

This may sound redundant but I'm looking at a 1998 17ft Triton powered by a 120HP Force by Mercury. I don't know much about it (nothing really) except for the fact that Mercury has a great reputation. The guy says he's had no problems except for the hot wire coming loose at one time. He easily fixed it and claims to have no problems since or before. He is a second owner and had it for only 1 year. I'm taking it out today but not sure if I'm entirely comfortable after the things I've read on this forum. My first outboard was an 89' Johnson GT 150 V6 and I don't even want to talk about that one. Maybe I'm paranoid because of my experience with the Johnson but should I be worried at all about this outboard ? Can I expect reliability out of it or should I just keep looking. I'm looking at another boat with a 115 Yamaha 4 Stroke but the money is quite a bit more on this one....Thanks for any light you can shed on this subject!
Stuart

 

[captquest]

Re: 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

This may sound redundant but I'm looking at a 1998 17ft Triton powered by a 120HP Force by Mercury. I don't know much about it (nothing really) except for the fact that Mercury has a great reputation. The guy says he's had no problems except for the hot wire coming loose at one time. He easily fixed it and claims to have no problems since or before. He is a second owner and had it for only 1 year. I'm taking it out today but not sure if I'm entirely comfortable after the things I've read on this forum. My first outboard was an 89' Johnson GT 150 V6 and I don't even want to talk about that one. Maybe I'm paranoid because of my experience with the Johnson but should I be worried at all about this outboard ? Can I expect reliability out of it or should I just keep looking. I'm looking at another boat with a 115 Yamaha 4 Stroke but the money is quite a bit more on this one....Thanks for any light you can shed on this subject!
Stuart

Boy this is an old thread, but I can tell you this Stuart.
I have had one of these for over two years now. I bought it when it was eight years old and personly put a heck of lot of hours on. When it went ...it went good, and I ended up (just recently) rebuilding it completely. I expect it to keep running for quite some time if taken care of. The Yammy is probably a higher end motor (you get what you pay for) but the four strokes are expensive to work on when they do need it. Factor may be your budget, just do a compression test and water test on which ever one you decide on. One good idea when buying a used boat/motor is to have a trained mechanic look at it and have the seller deduct the cost of any work it may need. Look up my posts and you will see the history I have had with mine.

 

[algoboating]

Re: 1998 Force/Mercury 120 HP - Good Motor?

not a bad motor i have one its hard on gas go whit the yamaha