how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

thomasiam

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jul 1, 2013
Messages
30
hi all,

i just got a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stoke motor and want to ask a simple question on how to break it in.
acording to there website they give you a chart staing different hours but falls short in extact what it means. i'm totally new at this so have no idea what they are refering to in the table. can you help?

this is the table from to Tohatsu web site.

table.jpg



So the first 10 mn put it on idle. i get that.
from 10 min- 2 hours put the throttle at less than 1/2 position and let it run for 1:50 min or does it mean you can leave it on in gear but not to go over 1/2 throttle for 1:50 min.....

PLEASE HELP!!!!!!
 
Last edited:

Packard8

Seaman
Joined
Apr 8, 2007
Messages
72
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

It is my understanding that they are referring to running in the water, motor in fwd gear. The motor needs to be under the normal load for all the parts (drive as well as engine) to seat in properly. It could be done in a barrel of water I suppose, but I'd suggest just taking the boat out and following the times & RPM's as per the manual.

I'm sure you'll enjoy the new motor, I have a 20 HP 4 stroke and so far it has been flawless in operation.
 

thomasiam

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jul 1, 2013
Messages
30
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

It is my understanding that they are referring to running in the water, motor in fwd gear. The motor needs to be under the normal load for all the parts (drive as well as engine) to seat in properly. It could be done in a barrel of water I suppose, but I'd suggest just taking the boat out and following the times & RPM's as per the manual.

I'm sure you'll enjoy the new motor, I have a 20 HP 4 stroke and so far it has been flawless in operation.

i suppose you can take it out and break it in per manual. :grumpy: I was planing to have it ready to go 100% when i am in the water rather than spending 10 hours in the water breaking it in. :facepalm:
 

Packard8

Seaman
Joined
Apr 8, 2007
Messages
72
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

i suppose you can take it out and break it in per manual. :grumpy: I was planing to have it ready to go 100% when i am in the water rather than spending 10 hours in the water breaking it in. :facepalm:

Patience, Grasshopper :D. 10 minutes of idling, 2 hrs < half throttle and another few hours < 3/4 speed with occasional full throttle doesn't seem to me too much to ask to insure many years of trouble free use.
 

Lund_bC

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 6, 2012
Messages
136
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

hi all,

i just got a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stoke motor and want to ask a simple question on how to break it in.
acording to there website they give you a chart staing different hours but falls short in extact what it means. i'm totally new at this so have no idea what they are refering to in the table. can you help?

this is the table from to Tohatsu web site.

View attachment 210763



So the first 10 mn put it on idle. i get that.
from 10 min- 2 hours put the throttle at less than 1/2 position and let it run for 1:50 min or does it mean you can leave it on in gear but not to go over 1/2 throttle for 1:50 min.....

PLEASE HELP!!!!!!

Just hammer it man, I know I wouldn't sit around idlen' with a nice new motor like that, I would be full out all the way like you !
 

Packard8

Seaman
Joined
Apr 8, 2007
Messages
72
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

Just hammer it man, I know I wouldn't sit around idlen' with a nice new motor like that, I would be full out all the way like you !

Good advice man!!!! Just hammer it hard full tilt right out of the box!! What do those stoopid enjuneers at Tohatsu know about break in anyway?

In 6 months I'll expect to see a post here: "Why is my brand new motor smokin' so bad, and why do the gears chatter so much?" :facepalm:
 

pvanv

Admiral
Joined
Apr 20, 2008
Messages
6,511
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

You can operate the motor "normally" from new... just don't hammer the heck out of it for the first few hours. Don't "baby" it, or it'll take "forever" to seat the rings. Think about it... typical use is below 1/2 throttle most of the time, with occasional WOT bursts anyway. The best break-ins are done with varying throttle positions, just like "normal" use.

Don't overfill the oil (fill to about 1/2 way on the stick)...

You need to be under load, in the water, on the boat, for a good break-in. Never run much above idle if not in gear. At about 10-20 hours, you will want to change the crankcase oil and the LU lube, as this motor does not have filters for the oils.... so you want to get rid of any machining debris that makes its way into the oils by changing them. Do not run synthetic crankcase oil. Use 10w-30 four-stroke OB oil, labeled FC-W.

After about 10 hours, feel free to "run it like you stole it". I know it's counter-intuitive, but running a 4-stroke hard helps seat the rings, and is better overall to reduce "making oil".

At the end of the day, disconnect the fuel hose at the motor to avoid fuel expansion from causing problems with the fuerl pump diaphragm or oil dilution. If running the next day, you can leave it like that... if in doubt as to when it will next be used, also run the carb out until the motor stalls, to reduce varnishing from fuel evaporation at the carb.

Try to get non-ethanol gas as well...
 
Last edited:

MattFL

Master Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Oct 20, 2010
Messages
850
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

I just broke in a 2013 6-hp earlier this year, here is my experience. First go to amazon and pick up a Hardline hour meter with tach, under $30 I believe. This will track your hours of use, current rpm and max rpm. Without one of these you are just guessing at everything.

I followed the manual with mine but spent too much time going too slow (mostly idle while fishing). After the break in hours were up,it was burning a little oil after full throttle use (blue smoke). After running it pretty hard for about a gallon of gas this cleared up and it has been a great little motor since. Loud and vibrates a lot relative my old 2 cylinder 2 stroke of the same HP, but runs great and sips gas and idles better than any 2 stroke I have owned. I've got almost 30 hours on mine now and it seems to get looser and run better with use. I would follow the break in, you'll likely get a longer service life if you do.
 

san dimas

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Jan 20, 2012
Messages
369
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

The captain is right.
 

rocket rich

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Aug 31, 2013
Messages
225
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

What's with all the viberatiions, my new 9.8 tohatsu really does viberate at half speed??? What's the deal?? My old 1996 Johnson never did viberate????? let me know
 

MattFL

Master Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Oct 20, 2010
Messages
850
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

Tohatsu didn't use a counter balancer for some reason, probably cost and weight. 4 strokes really benefit from counter balancers. I've got a single cylinder 4-stroke motorcycle that puts out almost 50HP and it's smooth as silk, so it's definitely a design decision on the part of Tohatsu, not some technical problem they couldn't solve.
 

pvanv

Admiral
Joined
Apr 20, 2008
Messages
6,511
Re: how to break in a new tohatsu 9.8 4 stroke motor

What's with all the viberatiions, my new 9.8 tohatsu really does viberate at half speed??? What's the deal?? My old 1996 Johnson never did viberate????? let me know

This post was about proper break-in procedure, not how the motor runs, so it would be best to start a new thread... oh, duh, you also redundantly did post to several old threads. sorry. Guess you knew that.
 
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