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1989 force 125 hp

Kevin Davidson

New member
Hello im new owner of a 1988 bayliner Capri with a clean 1989 force 125.very low hrs i want to know i put in telltale and new water pump it said Mercury parts so i guess my question is is my motor a Chrysler or force or mercury. this boat has been in the family sense new it was always kept in a shop. took the boat out and it ran like a new one.It looks brand new under the hood lol!!!done a comp test had 145 across the board i have learned so much here all ready thanks for all the help!!! I read so much bad about the force but couldn't let this deal pass 800.00
 
Re: 1989 force 125

There is nothing wrong with the Force motors.That's what you have a Force.Someplace on the mid section is a sticker that tells you the serial and model#s.Always post these when asking questions.
Mercury bought Force in the early 90's. They continued to make them and change them over to Mercury style and Mercury parts.The stopped making them in 98(I believe).
Top of the head is a silver screw.That's where you hook up the tell tale.
This site sells parts so look here or look on the net.Try to use FACTORY parts.Aftermarket will not always be the right stuff.
The most important thing is get a factory manual and READ it.
When changing oil there is a screw on the side of the lower unit that shouldn't be touched.could be very expensive if you do.The drain is an allen head screw on the bottom.It could be painted over or full of dirt.
These motors will run good for ever if you take care of them.There are other sites that offer forums that have lots of good advise.Look around. There are no dumb questions.It could cost you a lot of $$$.J
 
I tend to agree with Jerry - Force motors are "ok". They were built as a budget motor and their ignition system can be a nightmare when a problem develops but all in all they are ok.

To expand on his bit of history. Force started it's life as Chrysler's outboard division. When Chrysler went bankrupt, Bayliner boat bought the outboard division and gave to their own US Marine division. Their idea was to build their own motors to package with their own boats creating a one-stop-shopping experience. The early Force motors, which either included a "built by Chrysler" or "built by US Marine" on the hoods, were 100% Chrysler parts.

Bayliner was bought by the marine giant, Brunswick in 1985. Brunswick already owned Merc so they gave the Force production to them. Merc saw the Force line as an opportunity to use up all their old/discontinued parts that they were no longer using on their own models. So you ended up with three distinctly different type Force models out there - some were 100% Chrysler, some were a mish-mash of Chrysler parts and Merc parts that would work together and some were 100% Merc, albeit, constructed with some parts that they had stopped using in the 1970's.

Your 1989, 125 horse belongs to one of the "cobbled together" lines. There were 54 distinct models of the 1989, 125 horse - YES there were 54 different 125 horse Force models in 1989 alone, so when you are looking for parts, your model number is of utmost importance - another 1989 125 will not necessarily share alot in common with yours.

Having said all that, a running 1989 Force is still way better that a 1989 Merc, Yami or OMC that is sitting in the scrap heap :)
 
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