Tohatsu 3.5 2-stroke, where to buy new carb?

Gary Fox

Gary Fox

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I'm a big fan of these motors, and I have a low hours example, missing its carb. My fault, it got dismantled to un-gum the carb, and the fiddly bits are now effectively lost.
On ebay, prices range from £28 (suspiciously low) to £78 ( half what I paid for the engine.)
Any suggestions please, many thanks.
 
Have you tried an outboard shop? My old Mariner was easy to get spares for, it's the engines that were outlawed. Ron Hale in Portsmouth for instance should be able to get you whatever you need
 
I was in the same position- dismantled the carb, moved house, seven years later realised I couldn't find all the bits.
The genuine ones are easily available but about £80. I saw someone selling a complete 2.5hp for £50 as a non runner- bought it since I hoped to get the carb and a few other spares off it. Annoyingly, after I fitted a new plug, it did run, so whilst I had bought a bargain engine I still needed a carb!
If heard bad things about the cheap ones so waited for a genuine one to come up, paid £35 for it.
What did come up more frequently was the carb for the little Yamaha 2hp, I was tempted to see if that would work.
 
Poey50 said:
I got one for a crazily low price on AliExpress - works a treat.
Click to expand...
The lads at Mount Batten Boathouse in Plymouth were adamant that these were all rubbish. I'm glad to hear that my instincts were not wrong.

For genuine Tohatsu parts I have found Cambridge Outboards helpful and with quick delivery (they have a couple of names on eBay), but I bet £78 is the going rate. You might phone them and ask if they sell pattern carbs.
 
I had a good experience ordering genuine parts to rebuild our 4hp from Impex in Japan. For some rarer bits and pieces, I found they were the only source. It’s a bit of a faff (they re-invoice for shipping once they’ve got the parts from Tohatsu and packed/weighed them) and of course there’s customs to pay... but it does ‘work’!

Outboard parts TOHATSU — IMPEX JAPAN
 
The engine in our 6hp 2 stroke Tohatsu is the same as the 8hp 2 stroke, the only difference being the carburettor.
A 8hp Chinese import carburettor was fitted and it runs very well.
 
I bought a Tohatsu 3.5 two-stroke in the summer, I like it very much.

I downloaded the manual pdf which appears to give instructions for principal maintenance procedures.

I'd equally happily give it to a good Solent outboard outfit for servicing...I can imagine needing tools I don't have, or disarranging critical parts which then need professional input anyway.

Is it one to be wary of attempting DIY on, or worth a try?

Alternatively, is there a recommended Tohatsu servicing outfit in Hampshire?

And, what's the best way to deal with this rusty bar that separates the bottom-end of the transom-grips? Just a new 316 bolt or bar?

50774691431_447fbdfc4b_z.jpg
 
As I understand it, 2-strokes are amongst the easiest kind of engines to service, @dancrane. Unless you're going to have all engine servicing done professionally, I'd think a small 2-stoke outboard a good place to start - a small ¼" drive toolkit from Aldi will probably provide most everything you need, and you can take it home to work on it at your leisure. I had to buy a new torque wrench to tighten the head bolts on mine, because my previous one didn't go down that far, and set of crow's foot wrenches to access one of said head bolts, but don't worry about it until you cross that bridge.

I've been fortunate enough to have found patient marine mechanics when I've got out of my depth, who've explained the problem I've paid them to fix or shown me what they're been doing. It may help that I'm able to visit their workshops on a weekday. I don't know any in Hampshire, but no doubt you'll have recommendations shortly. Tohatsu UK are in Lymington but, as above, Cambridge Outboards deal with the public.

I'm not sure I'd worry about that rusty bolt enough to replace it - the whole shaft of my outboard is like that. You should be able to find a parts catalogue for your engine (PDFs on the left hand side of this page or try this site) and once you have the part number you can google it - I'd replace it if it was cheap, but I think a stainless replacement would be expensive. Does it have a nut on the end, or is it screwed into aluminium?

The outboard bracket hinge and both clamp screws seized on mine over the course of a few months last winter, so I make sure to cover the screw threads with coppaslip (or non-copper grease as some forum members prefer) and exercise them once or twice a month when the engine is not in use.
 
dancrane said:
I bought a Tohatsu 3.5 two-stroke in the summer, I like it very much.

I downloaded the manual pdf which appears to give instructions for principal maintenance procedures.

I'd equally happily give it to a good Solent outboard outfit for servicing...I can imagine needing tools I don't have, or disarranging critical parts which then need professional input anyway.

Is it one to be wary of attempting DIY on, or worth a try?

Alternatively, is there a recommended Tohatsu servicing outfit in Hampshire?

And, what's the best way to deal with this rusty bar that separates the bottom-end of the transom-grips? Just a new 316 bolt or bar?

50774691431_447fbdfc4b_z.jpg
Click to expand...
I replaced mine with 6mm Stainless threaded bar available a a reasonable price from most engineering suppliers. Use SS Cap screws to finish it off . works fine.
 
Excellent advice here, I'm very glad I asked. Thanks very much.

I had been using a 5hp two-stroke Mariner in 2019. At 20kg, even though it's probably a third lighter than the equivalent four-stroke, it seems massive in every way, next to the 3.5hp Tohatsu. At only 13kg it's hard to believe the Tohatsu is in a remotely similar ball-park...

...and the ease of carrying and clamping the 3.5 on and off, makes its output seem unbeatable, when 2hp motors aren't much lighter.

50017590321_e76e294129_z.jpg
 
dancrane said:
I bought a Tohatsu 3.5 two-stroke in the summer, I like it very much.

I downloaded the manual pdf which appears to give instructions for principal maintenance procedures.

I'd equally happily give it to a good Solent outboard outfit for servicing...I can imagine needing tools I don't have, or disarranging critical parts which then need professional input anyway.

Is it one to be wary of attempting DIY on, or worth a try?

Alternatively, is there a recommended Tohatsu servicing outfit in Hampshire?

And, what's the best way to deal with this rusty bar that separates the bottom-end of the transom-grips? Just a new 316 bolt or bar?

50774691431_447fbdfc4b_z.jpg
Click to expand...
I would rub down the bar and then give it the black hammerite treatment in situ
 
Good thoughts, thanks.

I'm a little surprised to see other corroded parts in exposed places - rivets, the fuel-tap, and thimbles like the one the starter-cable recoils into. Is it likely these are original parts (probably the engine is from c.2005) or have they been cheaply and inadequately replaced?
 
dancrane said:
Good thoughts, thanks.

I'm a little surprised to see other corroded parts in exposed places - rivets, the fuel-tap, and thimbles like the one the starter-cable recoils into. Is it likely these are original parts (probably the engine is from c.2005) or have they been cheaply and inadequately replaced?
Click to expand...
When I rebuilt our 4hp last year there were a few mild steel fasteners that were toast, despite the rest of the motor looking like new inside (even the warning stickers were adhered/intact/unblemished since 2006!). Things like the bobbin mounts for the fuel tank, hose clips, and yes the fuel tap, were all corroded beyond repair. They definitely hadn't been replaced as the motor was a 'time capsule' having sat in the previous owner's shed for most of its life!
 
Thanks dankilb. It's surprising that when motors are first made and offered for sale, the manufacturers haven't struck upon the idea of using (and advertising their use of) high quality corrosion-proof components.

I doubt anybody who is considering paying the high price of a new small outboard would be disinclined to find an extra £25 if the maker is able to boast of having specified all-stainless or alloy components, whereas the builder who can't say the same would start to look very second-rate.
 
dancrane said:
I'm a little surprised to see other corroded parts in exposed places - rivets, the fuel-tap, and thimbles like the one the starter-cable recoils into. Is it likely these are original parts (probably the engine is from c.2005) or have they been cheaply and inadequately replaced?
Click to expand...
I love my Tohatsu 9.8 2-stroke, but it's the exact same in this regard. Watch out for where steel goes into aluminium, and for the clamps seizing up when it's unused over the winter.
 
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