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Purchasing a new 15 h.p. Outboard, suggestions?

J.J. Zimmerman

New member
I am looking to replace the old 1974 Mercury 9.8 h.p. on my boat, since parts are getting harder to find it is time to move on and buy a new one, I would like to get some opinions on what to replace it with.
1. What would be the most reliable outboard to purchase?
2. 2 stroke or 4 stroke?
3. Electric start or Manual start?
4. Would it be better to stay with a 9.8 h.p. or 9.9 h.p. instead of a 15 h.p.?
 
What do you normally use it for, fishing, and do you always leave it on the boat? Four strokes are heavier, of course, so harder to transport or portage. For me, I love the Johnson or Evinrude 15's 2 stroke and they are lightweight. Mint used ones can be found for around 1000 bucks. They made them from 1974 until the 2000's. I still have lots of them at our 2 Ontario Camps. They are economical, dependable, and quiet. I use Amsoil full synthetic at 100 to 1 mix with non oxy fuel and never had a single failure in 40 years of operation. They are the same size as the 9.9 hp but only a bigger carb. All parts are available and I'm sure will be for years to come.
 
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It would be for fishing and it would get used for trolling... I haven't seen any of the main outboard makers(Evinrude, Yamaha, Honda, Mercury) offering new 2 stroke models in the U.S. and I'm pretty sure that I would like to purchase a new one versus an older model, I already have 2 older model outboards that the parts for one have been obsolete for at least 50 years and the parts for the Mercury, for the most part, are all no longer available and I wish that Johnson still made outboard motors... The motor might stay on the boat until the end of the fishing season, but I'm unsure about that, the Mercury 9.8 has always been taken off the boat when towed and hung in the garage when the boat wasn't on a lake...
 
Kinda got to go with a 4 stroke then, but I can check around. Johnson/Evinrude was of course purchased by Bombardier and now OMC. There are millions of 9.9 and 15's still in regular service. Parts will be available for at least 25 more years, as I know from being an OMC mechanic now for 50 years. Other lesser manufacturers are expensive replacement parts and seldom supply parts for more than 20 years.Then you are at the hands of aftermarketers like Sierra. I can still buy many new parts for my early 50's vintage OMC's.....that is outstanding service. Merc was known to make more frequent parts changes between years, when OMC would keep interchangeable and similar parts for 10 to 15 and sometimes 20 years of model production. This is good insurance for the consumer.
 
What are your thoughts on Import Brands like Sail, Errow, Seatan, Aiqidi, Yamabisi, Calon Gloria, Metswin, Parson and Hideo?
Most of these brands are offering both the 2 stroke and 4 stroke models, but they ship from over seas.
 
If you go with a new 4-stroke, I'm partial to Honda. They make an 8, 9.9, 10, and 15 with most parts the same except carbs. They publish an excellent carb manual so you can do all of your own carb work when/if necessary. Their outboard roots are with these smaller 4-stroke engines and they have an excellent reputation. However, they tend to be a bit pricier than their counterparts.
 
The brands you are posting are unpopular here, so I cannot give you valid advice. Chawk likes Honda and I do too. They were the first company to actively build a 4 stroke outboard that became popular here in the US. It is the only outboard in all my years that I purchased new. A 1995 15 hp. Loved it, but retired it when my Dad died in 2004. It is still absolutely MINT. I intend to start using it again as a kicker on the wife's "new" 74 Starcraft alongside the Black Max 150 V6. Arguably one of the finest outboards of its era.
So yes Honda....great motors and I rarely ever get one in my shop that needs anything major, except perhaps pilot error........rock strike. I am an aluminum welder.
 
If you are used to two-stroke outboards, you will be amazed at how quiet the small 4-stroke Honda's are, even at WOT. You'll also be amazed at the fuel economy compared to 2-strokes.

One of the things I've learned over the years is that the four-strokes are a bit more maintenance intensive. I've seen old 2-strokes sit in a corner for 10 years, taken out, dusted off, fueled up, carbs sprayed with some Sea Foam, and crank right up. If you do that with a 4-stroke, you are going to have problems. Oil changes and fuel filter changes are critical. Also, fully draining carbs at lay up is essential. Those Honda carbs (as well as all the other brand named carb'ed engines) have some really small passages that can get easily clogged.
 
I'm not supposed to say this, but keep the ethanol gas in your truck or car, not your boats and airplanes. My sweet Yamaha Venture sat for 8 years with treated non oxy. Drained it out and refueled with fresh non oxy and she runs sweet, never even touched any of those 4 carbs, and the fuel filters were like new. I rebuilt those carbs after I first got the bike (1996).....its a 1983, and they are complex, really full of offices and jets, 6 in each carb, so 24 in all. Never want any problems with a delicate set up like that.....for sure. Most shops won't work on them, this V4 was called the V max, the quickest bike in its day, remember them? The motor in the 83 Venture, was the prototype for the V max which came out in 84. Check out this cool old commercial. My Venture is fast, brother, its a V max in a tuxedo.

https://youtu.be/GHj0GFvhfJ4
 
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Don't know a thing about bikes, but certainly ditto on the non-ethanol fuel. It remains readily available here in Virginia, but runs about $0.40/gal higher.
 
Gas $1.95 here today in Superior WI. But non oxy still $ 2.60. Most stations still dropping prices. Nice to see for sure.
 
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