undeciced about motor

[dave k]

I am looking to buy a new mercury motor to put on a new smokercraft 168 pro mag. The boat is 16'10" long with a beam of 69". Weight is around 500lbs. Usually, only my wife and i will use the boat, we are not in any hurry, and will not be on any large bodies of water. I have it narrowed down to a 15hsp 4stroke or a 25hsp 2stroke. Both are about the same money and weight. I am concerned about the coldblooded condition of the 4 stroke I have read about. Any views on either engine would be appreciated.
Thanks

[PJM]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-14-01 AT 00:00AM (CST)[p] Dave K I am thinking out loud here. If you buy a 15hp Merc Four Stroke you are basically buying a 15hp Yamaha Four Stroke. It is my understanding that Mercury and Yamaha designed the powerhead togather or that it is a Yamaha powerhead on the Merc and Mercury built the lower unit. On the other hand maybe the Yamaha is cheaper and it is also a very good motor. But on the other hand again maybe you are a Mercury kinda guy. A Mercury is a very good motor but the issue here is power. Myself I would buy the two stroke because I know it will push your boat alot better. Again thinking out loud, I would take a hard look at a 30hp yamaha two stroke because it is only about 20lbs more in weight, it is a 3 cylinder engine and it is oil-injected. Again Mercury and Yamaha are very good motors and if you buy to small of a motor, you can't make it bigger. This is something to think about..............................

[Stormsearch]

I would get the 25 HP 2-Stroke because the 15HP will, if at all, barely put that boat on plane. I recently sold a boat like yours, 16'+, 600 lbs. I maxed it out to 40HP, but test drove it with 25HP. The 25HP got us up on plane and that was it, 24 mph top end. If I throttled back at all, I was pushing water again. When my wife got on (now 3 of us), the 25HP would not get on plane, too much weight. Unless you plan on strickly trolling from spot to spot, I would get the 25HP 2 Stroke. Good luck.

[Bob]

I agree with the info your getting here. Most serious boaters will tell you one of the most frusterating and long lasting mistakes a boater can make is to under power his boat. Believe me it makes you want to pull your fingernails out. Don't buy into the 4 stroke mania untill we have to (in 2006?). 2 strokes have been around forever. It's proven technology. And their is no comparing the horsepower to weight ratio. 4 strokes just plain weigh more in a similar horsepower rating. In some cases, a lot more. Now for trolling, a 4 stroke can idle down with almost missfiring. But, all well made 2 strokes will idle down well also. My advise is two fold. First, for the primary power source of your boat go with a 2 stroke and be glad we still can for a few more years. They are easily the best buy for the money. Go with a Merc or Yamaha and you won't be sorry. Second, don't even think about anything less than 25 horse for that boat. In fact, I'd not put anything less than a 40 on it if it's rated that high. Trust me on this one. I've made this mistake before and under powered my first serious fishing boat (one of those inexpensive package deals). I regretted it every time I turned the key. Remember, when you have a boat, you seem to acquire fishing buddies and lots or gear (aka junk) in it. Your 500 pound boat will gain weight a little each year. And a outboard of marginal power will only become less satisfying with each passing month. Soon, you will be wanting more horsepower and will want to trade your boat or motor in on a bigger one. All at much more cost(and regret, that you blew it) than the bigger motor would have cost you in the first place.

[Goldpig]

I spend a lot of time each summer in a sixteen foot Lund w/ 25hp motor in order to get into alot of smaller lakes around here. Do not put anything less than a 25hp on that boat. I can run just fine by myself, but if I get another adult or two in the boat, I have trouble getting up on plane. I think that a 40hp would be the way to go!!

[George Eh]

Dave, forget the 15#, not enough motor for your boat. I have a 16' with a 30# Suzy and would not go any smaller. Top end with one in the boat is around 27 and about 2-3 mph less with 2 in the boat. Yammy does make a nice 3 cyl. 30 2 stroke or if you can spare the change go with at least a 30 Honda. A 40 would be nice but not necessary, it gives you better top end if you want to play pulling tubes etc. Good luck and good fishin'.

[mrb]

Dave,
Your getting good advice here. Just don't underpower your boat.If you do, I guarantee you'll be sorry. Don't go less than 30 and 40 would be much, much smarter.

[Olfs]

I have a 70 hp 4 stroke Evinrude on a boat that is rated for a 90.I have only had it for a year and love it. No problems with being cold blooded. If you are not concerned with getting the boat on plane and just want to tool around the lake slowly, I don't see why you would want to max out the H.P. The 4 stroke does burn much cleaner than a 2 and you don't have to smell the fumes, although the new 2's do burn cleaner than in the past. I did have people tell me I would be very unhappy without maxing the h.p., but it really depends on how you plan on using the boat.If you may sell the boat in a few years and can afford the extra cost you can always throttle down.

[Eye Guy]

FYI
Yahma does not make the power head for Mercury.
They have not for 3 years now.

[Frank from TBay]

I agree Goldpig. Buddy runs an s16 Lund with a 30 Yamaha and when it is loaded down he wishes he had a 40. OK most of the time but the 40 is a lot nicer.