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Mercury 60 HP 1984 to 1996

C

coaster

Regular Contributor
I am trying to establish what was the performance , problems , consumption etc of the 60 HP. I ,as of yet do not know the serial number. Any information would be appreciated .
 
The 60 Merc 2 stroke, from the mid-80's until 1997 was built with Merc's 3 cylinder 51.8 cube (849 cc) block.

Over that time frame the block was shared with (sometimes) the 40, 50, 55 and 45 Jet models.

In 1998 they began using a larger 59 cubic inch block that was much better suited to producing 60 horses than the smaller displacement previously used.

So the 1998-on 60 horse has a little better torque band (at the lower end) and has a longer "life expectancy" than the earlier models.

Anytime your horsepower is greater than displacement you start shaving years off the motors life.

Having said that, the ealier 60's were still a very decent motor. They had great carbs, Thunderbolt 4 igintions, and "headless" Yamaha built (only for Merc) blocks - nice motors.

These models did have very (high) gears. At 1.64:1 the motor really is meant for a "lighter" boat - 1.83:1 would be "standard" and 2.3:1 would be found on "bigfoots" designed to push pontoons or fiberglass jobs.

As to performance - compared to what? and hangin' on the back of what?

If the motor is matched to the boat - what I mean is, for any given boat to perform "as designed" it must be powered by at least 80% of it's max horsepower rating.

So for example, if the boat is rated for 75 horses max, then 75 x .8 = 60 horses is the minimum for that particular hull - if the hull is rated for 100 horses, with a 60 it will significantly "under perform" and burn more gas doing so.

If it was "matched", the 60 should burn about 6 gallons (23 litres) per hour running at wide open throttle and about half that if you throttle back to about 4000 rpms.

On a 15-16 foot aluminum fish/ski, with a hull weight of about 1000 pounds or less, you could get close to 40 mph out of this motor (the max the hull is capable of).

On a 20 foot 'toon I would be surprised if this particular model could "bog it's way" to 15 mph - so again, really depends how you intend to use it...
 
Good reply. I will try to establish the gear ratio. The unit is on a open boat, centre console, glass tri hull 17 foot. I think it is underpowered for its weight. Would expext 80 to 100 HP the correct match. If i can will post a photo.
 
galamb said:
The 60 Merc 2 stroke, from the mid-80's until 1997 was built with Merc's 3 cylinder 51.8 cube (849 cc) block.

Over that time frame the block was shared with (sometimes) the 40, 50, 55 and 45 Jet models.

In 1998 they began using a larger 59 cubic inch block that was much better suited to producing 60 horses than the smaller displacement previously used.

So the 1998-on 60 horse has a little better torque band (at the lower end) and has a longer "life expectancy" than the earlier models.

Anytime your horsepower is greater than displacement you start shaving years off the motors life.

Having said that, the ealier 60's were still a very decent motor. They had great carbs, Thunderbolt 4 igintions, and "headless" Yamaha built (only for Merc) blocks - nice motors.

These models did have very (high) gears. At 1.64:1 the motor really is meant for a "lighter" boat - 1.83:1 would be "standard" and 2.3:1 would be found on "bigfoots" designed to push pontoons or fiberglass jobs.

As to performance - compared to what? and hangin' on the back of what?

If the motor is matched to the boat - what I mean is, for any given boat to perform "as designed" it must be powered by at least 80% of it's max horsepower rating.

So for example, if the boat is rated for 75 horses max, then 75 x .8 = 60 horses is the minimum for that particular hull - if the hull is rated for 100 horses, with a 60 it will significantly "under perform" and burn more gas doing so.

If it was "matched", the 60 should burn about 6 gallons (23 litres) per hour running at wide open throttle and about half that if you throttle back to about 4000 rpms.

On a 15-16 foot aluminum fish/ski, with a hull weight of about 1000 pounds or less, you could get close to 40 mph out of this motor (the max the hull is capable of).

On a 20 foot 'toon I would be surprised if this particular model could "bog it's way" to 15 mph - so again, really depends how you intend to use it...
Click to expand...





if anyone can help I’m having trouble removing the foot off of an 84 Mercury 60. Have removed all the nuts and bolts but still won’t come completely off. Only comes down about a 1/4 inch?!?!?!
 
Eleven year old thread, you might get more replies by starting a new one.
But in saying that, did you get the bolt under the trim tab? If you did, good chance the drive shaft is probably corroded in the crank .
 
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