what year is this mercury 225 hp optimax; no serial number available

I would like to purchase this boat and motor but no serial number on motor.
can anyone tell by looking at the picture what year or range of years that this motor may have been manufactured?
Thanks
Mike

Some states require separate titles for the boat and engine...SN will be on it.

The 225 Opti has been around since 1997 (or there-abouts).

The first few model years had a significant number of "bugs" - typical with any new design.

By 2001/02 they pretty much had them ironed out after making some mechanical changes to the motors.

Cosmetically they look the same today as the first models out did.

I would personally want confirmation of the model year. If it's the original owner there should be paperwork etc (I hope it's been serviced at least a time or two).

If the motor is pre-2002 I would either pass on it or give it a pretty low value in calculating the value of the entire package.

The "discount" price of a brand new 225 Opti is about 16K - if this one is 5/6 years old I would expect it to be worth 1/2 the new price (with a tech check and documentation of service if it's a private deal - at least a 90 day warranty if from a dealer). If it's a 2002 thru 2007'ish model I would drop the value to maybe 5K. Older than that, if running well I would personally value it at no more than 2K as part of the entire package - but that's just my opinion....

Pull the cowling and look at PCM as it will have date and hp on sticker....