Which motor

[deepsky]

Hey I have a blissful decision to make on the ZV 21 that I am going to buy. I have funds ready, and was going to order this boat with the Mercury 250 Optimax Pro XS, I am a two stroke guy from birth, and its all I know. Most tour BB run the 250 XS, so proof is in the pudding.

I have been offered a couple boats, at a discount, with Mecury 300 Verado motors on them, at about the same price I would be paying for my ordered boat.

Question is: Which motor would you choose. Merc 250 Optimax, or 300 Verado?? Now I know the price difference, but 5 years down the road, which will be better in reliability??

I appreciate your comments, any and all.................Ed

[dakotahunter12]

Both are proven motors and both have there advantages but I can tell you this I was a diehard two stroke guy too until my verado. I ran a 250xs before switching to the verado and I won't be going back. On the bass hull the extra weight backs a bigger difference but u are starting to see a lot more guys on bass boat central switching over. The resale should be better with the verado. And I would be very surprised if the performance wouldn't be better too. The operation of the verado is night and day compared to the pro xs truly amazing how smooth everything is.

[John5670]

Just switched from a 2 stroke (200 Opti) to 4 stroke (250 Verado). Just being able to have a conversation at cruising speed is enough for me. Great performance and excellent resale.

[deepsky]

Thanks guys, I agree with your thoughts, only that supercharger in the Verado has me a little apprehensive. The 671 Blower seen on hot rods, is a reliable piece if taken care of, good reliability. But neeeds tweaked now and then, and is expensive.

But, the auto industry has always went with turbochargers, and not superchargers,one reason is cost, second is longevity. This is what gives me pause. I would love a 671 blower on my truck, but 5 years down the road I would be fixing something. Diesal motors go 300000 miles without blinking with turbochargers

[skeeter012]

Four strokes hardly ever foul plugs. No more expensive 2 stroke oil to remember to buy. Quiet operation. Easy starting as well.

Versus a lighter outboard with more torque.

Never had any issues with 2 strokes, they always did me well as long as I kept it fed with good oil and fresh plugs. However after making the switch to four stroke I see very little reason to go back.

[CMesserschmidt]

My old man just had to make the same decision with the same boat and decided to go with the 250 pro xs.

For a couple reason. He got a very good deal on a brand new 2015 250pro xs that that a pro's boat came with and they took it off and put a verado on. That was the main reason

Other reasons were that the pro xs is supposedly better on fuel, and also it sounded like the performance difference wasn't that great to justify the extra cost of the 300 vrod.

From what Keith or Gary said, that the 300 verado is actually 280hp and the 250 pro xs was almost 270. The 300 will be a hair faster top end obviously.

I am curious of the price difference of oil purchase in the 2 stroke vs a yearly oil change on 4.

Either way you can't go wrong. What color ZV were you going with?

[deepsky]

Well thats great advice from everyone. My color selection is in flux too. If I order one, the color will be a custom color of black mist, and blaze blue, the boats that are being offered are all standard colors that are in stock.

Tough choice, but the smart choice is give up some bling, and get more options for less $$, I love my 2 strokes, always have. The new Verado line is getting a lot of attention, almost too much for Mercury to let this selling surge to get damaged with less than superior products. Outdoor channel is awash with Mercury commercials, and the big Verados are the featured pics. I will sleep on it, and let everyone know. Bottom line is 250hp vs 300hp. If they would offer a 300 optimax there would be no decision to make, but with the new 350 Verado coming, I do feel the Optimax is fading out. This was an EPA desired outcome to be sure, to end the 2 stroke outboard.

[skeeter012]

Originally Posted by MACH

My old man just had to make the same decision with the same boat and decided to go with the 250 pro xs.

For a couple reason. He got a very good deal on a brand new 2015 250pro xs that that a pro's boat came with and they took it off and put a verado on. That was the main reason

Other reasons were that the pro xs is supposedly better on fuel, and also it sounded like the performance difference wasn't that great to justify the extra cost of the 300 vrod.

From what Keith or Gary said, that the 300 verado is actually 280hp and the 250 pro xs was almost 270. The 300 will be a hair faster top end obviously.

I am curious of the price difference of oil purchase in the 2 stroke vs a yearly oil change on 4.

Either way you can't go wrong. What color ZV were you going with?

Changing your own oil in a four stroke the price for a Yamaha kit usually runs between $35-$50 depending on where you buy it. That gets you a season or 100 hours of operation. When I was running a 2 stroke I would go through 3-4 gallons of oil a year. At $35-$40 a gallon for mercury oil. The one nice thing about 4 strokes are if you will hopefully never have an empty oil reserve 3 miles away from your trailer.

[deepsky]

Well, after sleeping on it, and reviewing the common sense manual, I will go with the 300 Verado. Reason being I am getting this for essentially what would pay for an ordered boat, and a few more options.

I am waiting on a list of options, and a picture of the boat, but I am 90% sure this is the one unless there are unseen problems. Forsake some of the bling I wanted for a beastly Verado, and a solid kicker.

Look out Uncle Walley, the grim reaper is a comin


And keep an eye on this post, I will attach pics when I get the boat, first week of March is my window. Then maybe swing by pick all you guys up, and we head to Okechobee for some bass bustin practice.

[Tweak]

I didn't read the post thoroughly the first time and thought, man, if you like two strokes, what about the Evinrude G2. Now that I see it is a tracker model, I get that.

On that boat I can't see not going with the Verado. Quiet, power steering, and that hull likely doesn't care about the weight increase. Even if I was ordering that boat, I would still go Verado.