Small outboard reliability

[C08]

Thinking about a second hand 5/6 hp outboard engine. There are plenty of little used outboard engines about 80/90's but many of these will be before the advent of electronic ignition. Thinking back to the days of magnetos and points adjustment and cleaning I am wondering how much more reliable is modern electronic ignition than a magneto and what sort of date did electronic ignition come into general use. I realsie this will also depend on the make but a general date will give me a general criteria to search against, if this is a major factor. Having said all that most of the failure to start or run problems i have had on outboards have been fuel or flooding problems!

 

[lw395]

Thinking about a second hand 5/6 hp outboard engine. There are plenty of little used outboard engines about 80/90's but many of these will be before the advent of electronic ignition. Thinking back to the days of magnetos and points adjustment and cleaning I am wondering how much more reliable is modern electronic ignition than a magneto and what sort of date did electronic ignition come into general use. I realsie this will also depend on the make but a general date will give me a general criteria to search against, if this is a major factor. Having said all that most of the failure to start or run problems i have had on outboards have been fuel or flooding problems!

I would expect most 80's and 90's engines to be electronic ignition.
I would look for a Yamaha, or Yamaha based Mariner.
I bought such a Mariner 4 in the late 90's and it was fairly old then.
It was pretty reliable. a few issues of condensation causing drops of water in the carb due to being stored in a damp shed at the club.
Always carry enough tools to drain the carb and a spare plug IMHO.

 

[C08]

I would expect most 80's and 90's engines to be electronic ignition.
I would look for a Yamaha, or Yamaha based Mariner.
I bought such a Mariner 4 in the late 90's and it was fairly old then.
It was pretty reliable. a few issues of condensation causing drops of water in the carb due to being stored in a damp shed at the club.
Always carry enough tools to drain the carb and a spare plug IMHO.

Thanks foryour reply but I was really looking for an informed/expert opinion of which there are many on here.

 

[VicS]

lw395 is not far off the mark

By the 1980 most outboards had electronic ignition although some of the smaller ones clung on to points for a few years longer than the larger ones.

Ive no idea why but I know that Evinrude and Johnson actually swapped back to points for a few years for some small models in the early 1980s

If you have any particular models in mind it's easy to check out the ignition systems on one of the parts websites such as http://www.boats.net/

I guess electronic ignition is "better" and certainly never requires any attention to points. On the other hand points ignition systems have no horrendously expensive electronic modules.

Never had any trouble with points ignition, outboards or cars, but had an electronic module on an outboard fail, luckily not far from the mooring but could have been a real problem if it had been far.

 

[skodster]

Thanks for your reply but I was really looking for an informed/expert opinion of which there are many on here.

What exactly is an 'expert opinion' within the context of your question????? LW395 answered your question in good faith and you arrogantly swiped his excellent answer aside. Did you want Honda themselves to come on here and answer you personally??? Most people on here will furnish you with any amount of information that would adequately satisfy your needs.

Electronic ignition started to appear on most outboards from the mid seventies onwards. All Japanese engines were electronic by the eighties.I would personally recommend a 5HP Honda. These can be bought in good condition used for around £500 - 600.

 

[C08]

What exactly is an 'expert opinion' within the context of your question????? LW395 answered your question in good faith and you arrogantly swiped his excellent answer aside. Did you want Honda themselves to come on here and answer you personally??? Most people on here will furnish you with any amount of information that would adequately satisfy your needs.

Electronic ignition started to appear on most outboards from the mid seventies onwards. All Japanese engines were electronic by the eighties.I would personally recommend a 5HP Honda. These can be bought in good condition used for around £500 - 600.

I was not having an "arrogant swipe" at lw395 and I apologise to him if it appeared that way and I did thank him for his input however his comments were of a general nature which many of us could make from having owned and tinkered with a few outboard engines but without having any great depth of knowledge about a wide range of outboard engines. Amongst this forum there are people who have many years of dealing with and maintaining many different makes of outboards and they have the sort of broad and detailed knowledge I was looking for. VicS has pointed me in the right direction and the website he has referrenced shows in detail the type of ignition system individual outboard engines have across the range of manufacturers,sizes over a period of 40 or more years.
Thanks to all for contributions, even the snipey ones!

 

[skodster]

I was not having an "arrogant swipe" at lw395 and I apologise to him if it appeared that way and I did thank him for his input however his comments were of a general nature which many of us could make from having owned and tinkered with a few outboard engines but without having any great depth of knowledge about a wide range of outboard engines. Amongst this forum there are people who have many years of dealing with and maintaining many different makes of outboards and they have the sort of broad and detailed knowledge I was looking for. VicS has pointed me in the right direction and the website he has referrenced shows in detail the type of ignition system individual outboard engines have across the range of manufacturers,sizes over a period of 40 or more years.
Thanks to all for contributions, even the snipey ones!

All's cool!

 

[lw395]

I was not having an "arrogant swipe" at lw395 and I apologise to him if it appeared that way and I did thank him for his input however his comments were of a general nature which many of us could make from having owned and tinkered with a few outboard engines but without having any great depth of knowledge about a wide range of outboard engines. Amongst this forum there are people who have many years of dealing with and maintaining many different makes of outboards and they have the sort of broad and detailed knowledge I was looking for. VicS has pointed me in the right direction and the website he has referrenced shows in detail the type of ignition system individual outboard engines have across the range of manufacturers,sizes over a period of 40 or more years.
Thanks to all for contributions, even the snipey ones!

No offence taken.
VicS's link is useful.

 

[30boat]

My 1990 ish 2.5 Mercury was made in Japan and still has magneto ignition.Up until now it's been incredibly reliable and a first or second pull starter.

 

[Lakesailor]

the 5 to 6hp mark is strange. Some motors are uprated small one whereas some are down-rated larger ones. You could could get a nicely lightweight one or a bit of a beast.
My BIL had a 4.5hp Johnson and a 7.5 hp Johnson which were the same motor but rated differently. They were both early '80s and very good engines. There is also a 6hp, but it seems to be a different motor.
For some reason Johnsons often seem almost unused. Both of these were immaculate.