Question for Tony O about 2002 Mercury 2 stroke 75HP classic

" Tony, I'm leaning toward

" Tony, I'm leaning towards buying one to repower my 16 foot tri-hull. Can you tell me if this 3 cylinder has a good track record? Is the oil pump dependable I've heard nightmares about the OMC VRO setup. Any insite pro or con would be great!

Thanks, Jim "

"Jim,

These engines are as

"Jim,

These engines are as good as any. All oil injection systems have their drawbacks. The Mercury oil pump that is used on this engine is driven by a gear that fits around the crankshaft. Generally, this gear is where the problem arises, and in order to fix it you have to take the engine apart.

On the OMC engines, the VRO pump is an external pump just like any fuel pump. You could always replace it with an ordinary fuel pump and mix oil manually if you don't want to spend the money for a new VRO pump.

Personally, I would always stick with OMC ( now Bombardier ) engines. I feel they are the most dependable outboards. They are certainly easier to service in just about every way.

"