200 evinrude ficht

[kshut]

I,m in the process of possably buying a large fishing boat with 2 200 evinrude ficht motors on it, I dont know anything about these motors nor have i ever heard about them, does anyone have any opinions about these motors ? Are they good motors ? how do they troll ? How is the gas milage ? thx kevin

 

[yoster]

Re: 200 evinrude ficht

I'm not the authority (even close) about these motors, but the general consensus is, if you lined up all the series of Evinrude motors, the Fitch line is the one to avoid. Some say the Ficht's are what put OMC out of business.

Now, I understand they got better as time went on, but I can't tell you what the good and bad years are. There are people here who have ficht's that run great. But if you're buying a new boat, and you have others to look at, I'd have to advise that you avoid them(unless you get it REAL cheap.) The slightly older (just by a few years) carb'd Evinrude's or the newer etec's are what you want. Obviously the etecs are in a whole different league.. cleaner.. more fuel efficient.. reliable.. but you're going to pay a pretty penny for them.

It's kind of like the old OMC stringer I/O drives. When they worked.. they worked great. Had one myself. Would I advise someone who was getting a new boat to pick one up? Not a chance. Too many known issues.

Sorry the story isn't brighter.

 

[boobie]

Re: 200 evinrude ficht

IMO it was pretty well said above.

 

[fireman_bob]

Re: 200 evinrude ficht

I have one of these (2000) on my boat. The only real issue I've had with mine with over 700 hours, is the EMM. Be sure that the EMM's have been rebuilt. I had mine done by DFI Technologies. They do a great job and are very nice people to deal with.
Other than that, they're easy motors to work on and parts are readily available. You may want to get the software and a cable if you plan to do your own maintenance on them.
When you have the motors checked, be sure they check for the maximum temperature that they've seen since some motors have a history of overheating and damaging the EMM. This is usually due to poor maintenance on the part of the user, namely not flushing the motors after each use in saltwater. One thing to check on to see if the owner really kept up the maintenance is to try and remove the thermostat covers (one on each side at the top). If they come off easily, look inside the chambers for signs of corrosion and salt build-up. If they do come off (easily) then most likely the motors have been taken care of. If not, it's a sign the owner probably didn't do a good job with the motors. These plastic covers seem to get jammed up very easily with crud, but will come off if taken care of annually.
Good luck.

 

[kshut]

Re: 200 evinrude ficht

Thanks a lot guys I'm really skeptical now .... I think I might reconsider thx again ...

 

[seahorse5]

Re: 200 evinrude ficht

I,m in the process of possably buying a large fishing boat with 2 200 evinrude ficht motors on it, I dont know anything about these motors nor have i ever heard about them, does anyone have any opinions about these motors ? Are they good motors ? how do they troll ? How is the gas milage ? thx kevin

It all depends on the model numbers on the motors. 2002 and later engines were redesigned by Bombardier and were quality motors. The 2001 and earlier models were the former OMC built outboards and had quality problems, along with no resale value at all. In any case, have a factory trained technician check them out comepletely if you plan on buying them.

 

[striper2301]

Re: 200 evinrude ficht

I have a 2002 200HP Ficht. I purchased it in 2004 with 28 hours on it. I now have 300 hours and can honestly say that it has been almost trouble free since the purchase. I have it winterized by the dealer, have them do the spring start up and change the plugs every year. The only issue that I had was a starting problem and discovered that the plugs were fouled. The early years of the Ficht engines were misrable but after the purchase by Bombardier the quality seems to have returned.