Outboard engine life

[trevbouy]

I've been looking at a pilot house fishing boat 7m.
It has a Mariner 150 fitted with over 300 hours on it.
Given that a new replacement is 15k which is approx half the boats cost, what do you think to 300 hours of use in terms of outboard life.
It has been regularily serviced.

 

[NBs]

Hi,

In general, out board machines do last for quite large hours in the range of 3000-5000 in variable use fishing - home port. maintenance and use affect the length of Life Time. Just like with other engines, cold start and warm up the machine before taking a load and vice versa. A properly sized propeller achieves the manufacturer's max rmp, over propping shortens life time greatly.

NBs

 

[ChromeDome]

If maintained properly and with TLC they last long. Very long.

Far more marine engines (all sorts) fail or get scrapped due to lack of use and care than wear.

Suzuki 70 hp 4 stroke in our club has 8000+ h and runs like a clock.

 

[penfold]

What would you think of a motorcycle or car that had done 18000 miles? The marine environment is a harsh one compared to the road but in mechanical wear terms these are roughly equivalent.

 

[Boathook]

My honda 30 has done about 700 hours since 2008 and still runs (did last year) 'sweetly' with no noticeable oil use. It runs between mainly between 3000 and 4000 rpm on a displacement boat and it has done a 24 hour constant motor once. I would have carried on but fuel was getting low, and we started to get fed up with just motoring in a flat calm on a sailing boat at 5 knots.

 

[NBs]

Hi,

In general, out board machines do last for quite large hours in the range of 3000-5000 in variable use fishing - home port. maintenance and use affect the length of Life Time. Just like with other engines, cold start and warm up the machine before taking a load and vice versa. A properly sized propeller achieves the manufacturer's max rmp, over propping shortens life time greatly.

NBs

How Many Hours Does a Mercury Outboard Last?
Why all of the discussion about Mercury outboard engine hours? The question of how many hours a Mercury outboard is expected to last is at the heart of the matter. Whether you are trying to plan how long before you probably have to buy a new outboard or working to determine the fair value for either a used outboard you are selling or considering purchasing, projecting how long engines last is critical.
The question of how long a Mercury outboard will last includes a lot of “it depends.” The reality is, a well-maintained Mercury outboard will last a long, long time. Also, even with proper maintenance, some types of engine usage are just harder on the engine. For example, if a Mercury outboard experiences long periods of wide-open throttle, extended periods of trolling, or load weight is commonly higher than recommended, service intervals need to be more frequent, and overall engine life will likely be shorter.
So, with a significant number of caveats, we’ll say that it is typical for a well-maintained Mercury outboard to last for about 3,000 – 4,000 hours of operation. But, as stated, there are so many factors influencing engine life.
Mercury outboards are extremely well-engineered engines, and we have seen many with 6,000 and even 12,000 hours on them still performing exceptionally well.
Engine age also matters
While engine hours are typically the most widely considered metric when discussing likely remaining life, the age of the engine is also an essential factor that can be overlooked. A 25-year-old engine with only 300 hours of operation might, at first glance, sound great. However, how was the engine stored, and was the engine maintained over its life? A dormant engine improperly stored will be worth very, very little even though it has very few hours on it.

How to Check Hours on a Mercury Outboard - PartsVu Xchange

NBs

 

[trevbouy]

Thanks guys that clears that up.

 

[QBhoy]

I've been looking at a pilot house fishing boat 7m.
It has a Mariner 150 fitted with over 300 hours on it.
Given that a new replacement is 15k which is approx half the boats cost, what do you think to 300 hours of use in terms of outboard life.
It has been regularily serviced.

What model is she ? Is it an optimax or a 4 stroke ? I’d say it’s essential to do a compression check on any 2 stroke, if it’s an optimax (good idea on 4 stroke too)…and ask around the compressor on it too. They can fail after a decade or so most commonly.

 

[Hot Property]

I have a Verado 200 with nearly 400 hrs on it. First owner of 12 years only racked up 186 hours so not enough in my view. ...

Regular use and maintenance ( particularly oil and filters on 4 strokes) is essential.

I have just bought a Yamaha 25 two stroke which is 31 years old.

Impeller was shredded, fuel filter leaking thermostat knackered. Poorly maintained say the least.

New water pump, thermostat and fuel filter fitted, leg oil changed. Brown petrol replaced with fresh.

Sea trial this week and I'm chuffed she goes like the clappers! The gear/ throttle linkages need adjustment but mechanically the engine sounds superb.

So to answer your question, yes outboards do last a long time (despite serious neglect from the previous owners)

 

[Farmer Piles]

As per a previous thread: I had a Yam 80 with 1000 hours on it. Previous owner did loads of wakeboarding and skiing so a hard 1000 hours. Sweetest engine ever.

 

[Jim@sea]

Why dont you find out how much the outboard would be worth against a New one. That will give you a rough valuation as to how much its worth now, deduct that from what the price of the boat is and that puts a value on the boat. Also gives you the opportunity to decide if you want to upgrade.

 

[SC35]

Outboards take a very very long time to wear out.
Most fail due to other reasons, e.g. poor maintenance, water in fuel, or "something going bang".

300 hours is nothing.

 

[ChromeDome]

Why dont you find out how much the outboard would be worth against a New one. That will give you a rough valuation as to how much its worth now, deduct that from what the price of the boat is and that puts a value on the boat. Also gives you the opportunity to decide if you want to upgrade.

Boat/motor combinations are more sellable hence keep value better than if sold separately, but the assessment would be valid if at any time you wanted replace either. Also factor in the work and value impact of propeller, instrumentation and installation. bits and bobs.

The offering on the day, new or used, would have to be investigated.

 

[spannerman]

We have aound 240 outboard powered boats in our hotel, mainly Mercury, Yamaha, Suzuki and Evinrude. Nearly all have a service during the winter months while laid up. I always plug in the relevant diagnostic tool to check for fail codes and engine hours and all these engines log their rpm useage, there are a lot of hours at idle then a few from 1000 to 3000 ( getting on the plane) then more between 3000 and 4000 ( cruising speed ) and only a handful of hours at 4000 up to WOT. This is typical of all the boats I service so as a rule they don’t get thrashed and we have outboards with 7-800 hours on them that run just fine. The biggest problem is 4 strokes that spend a lot of time at idle which is obvious when you drain the engine oil, it has a lot of emulsified water in it because the engine doesn’t get hot enough to boil off the condensation that builds up. A bit like cars that only do the school run and get mayonaise in the valve cover.

 

[Rappey]

300 hrs is nothing. Take a car with an average overall speed of 45mph. 300 hrs would give around 13,500 miles.
3000 hrs on an outboard would, using the same flawed comparison would give 135,000 miles, so 300 hrs is nothing !