I have a 115 4 stroke merc on my boat I love it. It’s great I use the boat 11months out of the year does great in cold weather, but I usually let it warm up for about 5min before I go out. its good on gas and pushes my 20 foot boat with 2 layout boats 12doz decoys and 4 guys at 30mph. I have had other motors in the past (Honda piece of s**t) but the merc is a good solid motor

 

you cannot go wrong period, this is the third boat i have owned with a merc four stroke, never winterized(i use my boats all year long) they always fire up no matter the temp!

i'm sure the other brands perform as well, just have always been a merc man. you will absolutely love it!! no mixing or choking, just turn the key and go!!

 

Go Yamaha all the way. Better overall IMO.

 

not a 4stroke fan in outboards. love the e-tec's, can't replace 2stroke power.

 

I thought I was reading somewhere that Yamaha was making a variety of the Merc 4 strokes.

Owned a 2000 Honda 90hp 4 stroke for 9 years before selling. Never an issue, although I know other have had issues with them.

Now have a 2010 Yamaha 90hp 4 stroke. No issues.

Is the torque difference between a 2 and 4 still noticeable? I thought I had read it was negligable at this point, and once on plane really doesn't matter.

No doube 2's and 4's now days are on par as far as fuel economy and pollution, but not having to mess with filling up with oil and having to count on a pump or mixing gas/oil is worth the price of a 4.

 

not a 4stroke fan in outboards. love the e-tec's, can't replace 2stroke power.

We should go for a ride sometime...I was skeptical too, no way I'd ever go back to a 2 stroke.

2 strokes do have their advantages (weight, mainly), but for me the trade off in smoke, stench, noise, smoothness (if thats a word), & fuel economy is an easy decision.


One thing to consider - Yamaha and Honda both have 5 year warranty's. Merc is either 1 or 3 (not sure, website doesn't specify)

Edit: Yamaha has a 3 year warranty, I got a 5 year as part of a season end promotion

 

Typically anything over 25-50 hp in a Mercury line is a Yamaha power head for what it is worth, just pick your color of motor.

You should post this in the Boating forum and you will get some additional responses from mechanics and other users.

Good luck with your decision.

I personally will never own another mercury if I have a choice. 115 Hp 4 stroke we have on our fishing boat came from the factory, missing the fuel filter plus 6 bolts under the cowling in odd places.

 

2 strokes do have their advantages (weight, mainly), but for me the trade off in smoke, stench, noise, smoothness (if thats a word), & fuel economy is an easy decision.

i've seen and used both. I've used a lot of 4strokes and have yet to see one compete with an E-tec head to head on power. E-tec emissions and tech is incredible compared to a standard 2 stroke or even current 4stroke technology. This is why bombadier snatched up evinrude...wasn't because they wanted to get into the boat motor business...they bought it solely for the e-tec technology.

E-tec>4stroke>standard 2 stroke

 

What size etech you running kid? A few guys i know run the 200+ hp etechs on walleye boats and are having allot of problems with the injectors. Just wondering if thats a problem on the smaller motors.

IMO Its tough to beat a four stroke for the reasons mentioned.

 

Dad had nothing but problems with his 4-stroke and finally traded it in to upgrade to a Yamaha. (nothing but fuel/ignition problems)

Thought maybe pops wasn't properly caring for the gear in his older years, but in my own searches for a new outboard just about every service mech and dealer rep I talked to steered me towards a Yamaha or the E-Tec.

for whatever it's worth.


(my current motor is still a mercury though. hard starting 2-stroke!)

 

I've owned both a Yamaha and a Merc 4 stroke (50 HP). Never had a problem with either, both were/are exceptional.

If I were to buy a new one, I would go with a Yamaha for a few less than major factors.

The Yamaha is noticeably quiter both idling and under power.

The Yamaha on the same boat in the same HP had more at low speed and top speed. For walleye trolling, I could idle down a good .5 mph slower with the Yamaha than the Merc and on the top end, the Yamaha gets about 3-4 mph more than the Merc. Might have been the props, but since it beat it at both the top and bottom, I'm sure the motor came into play as well.

Fuel economy, there was no noticable difference.

Hole Shot and accelleration were pretty much the same.

Another creature comfort of the Yamaha was that it had a two stage hydraulic tilt. Slow at the bottom to allow for fine tuning while running, but once it gets to a certain point it speeds up quite a bit so it doesn't take as long to trim the motor all the way up. Not a make or break issue, but I like it.

And one other thing that doesn't seem like a major deal, but has proven to be beneficial for shallow duck hunting applications is the water intakes on the Yamaha are much lower than the Merc, this allows you to trim the motor up quite a bit higher and still be sucking water into the motor.

One plus for the Merc though, not by much and I could be wrong, but it seems like there's more Merc dealers (service) than Yamaha. If you're on a trip somewhere, you'd be hard pressed to not find a Merc dealer nearby. Yamaha is everywhere too, but I don't think it's quite as saturated and wide spread as Merc.

Either way, you'll be happy and love it.

 

Typically anything over 25-50 hp in a Mercury line is a Yamaha power head for what it is worth, just pick your color of motor.

You should post this in the Boating forum and you will get some additional responses from mechanics and other users.

Good luck with your decision.

I personally will never own another mercury if I have a choice. 115 Hp 4 stroke we have on our fishing boat came from the factory, missing the fuel filter plus 6 bolts under the cowling in odd places.

Is this still true? I thought Merc and Yamaha parted ways a few years back and Merc now makes all their own?

 

Is this still true? I thought Merc and Yamaha parted ways a few years back and Merc now makes all their own?

Haven't heard that, but would be interseted to know.

 

...
One plus for the Merc though, not by much and I could be wrong, but it seems like there's more Merc dealers (service) than Yamaha. If you're on a trip somewhere, you'd be hard pressed to not find a Merc dealer nearby. Yamaha is everywhere too, but I don't think it's quite as saturated and wide spread as Merc.

Either way, you'll be happy and love it.

two edged sword maybe?

nice when you need one, but does it tell you something as well?!! (hmmmm...... is there a reason/necessity to having so many service areas?!

think maytag repair man commercials - he's bored stiff because nothing ever breaks on their brand!

(just poking fun - still love my hard starting, smoke billowing Merc!)

 

And one other thing that doesn't seem like a major deal, but has proven to be beneficial for shallow duck hunting applications is the water intakes on the Yamaha are much lower than the Merc, this allows you to trim the motor up quite a bit higher and still be sucking water into the motor.

I noticed that this fall also. I can almost have the prop out of the water and it still pumps.

 

Current gen. yamaha and merc. 4-strokes are not related in any way what so ever. Mercs new 75-115hp gen motors are their own design based off of their 135-200 verado block. Yamaha stopped producing motors for merc several years ago. As far as the motor difference goes now, I would go with the manufacture that offers the best warranty and best after sales service. The new ones are both bullet proof for the most part as long as you keep up on good fuel and maintnance. 115 etec is a v-4 block. Really not too many problems out there for that hp range. You will need a oil tank onboard the boat for the etec also.

 

I'm running a 75hp e-tec. I've been pretty pleased with it's performance. I went with the E-tec do to the 2 stroke power and weight. There not like the old 2 stroke. They don't blow smoke, no more mixing oil in the gas tank, there just as quiet as 4 stroke and there fuel economy is about the same. Also routine maintance cost are about half of what 4 stroke is. When I bought the motor it came with a 5 year warranty. Just some food for thought.

 

The mid range Merc four strokes are very good reliable motors. They can be tricky to get propped correctly, so if you go this rout, make sure your dealer will let you try different props till you get the right set up.

The four strokes still lack in hole shot and top speed to the new 2 strokes, and if you have room for an oil tank and don't mind buying oil, the 90 Optimax is an absolutely unbeatable motor and will give you a better hole shot and top speed.

Just as a point of reference, the mid range four strokes are not made in the USA, the Optimax and Verado lines are made in the USA.

Good luck and enjoy whatever you decide on.

 

my Hondas. I have 3 of them, and never a sniff of an issue, other than being cantakerous in the winter.

That said, you can talk smack about any outboard made. I know of a half dozen big block E-tecs that suffered blown power heads. I know of several Mercs with lower unit issues. I know of Yammies with electrical switch/relay issues. Hondas are notoriously poor cold weather motors, which I can personally attest to.

Don't even really have a point other than Honda and Yamaha are pretty universally regarded as making the best 4 strokes around. You may pay a premium for their reliability, and it's up to you to decide if reputation and reliability are worth it.

 

Very good info it has helped very much thanks everyone.
Also when I 1st looking I was looking at 75 hp motor
and I compared the weight of a 75 hp 2 stroke and a 75 hp 4 stroke
the difference was about 24 lbs I was shocked at how close they where
I'm not sure in the 90's. But i'll be calling the dealer and asking some question on warranty info and getting the correct pitch prop. Some friends of mine have a dyno and said they could dial in a prop some how.
I just bought a 20' Alaskan Lund and the 90 hp 4 stroke merc so I'm looking forward to finding out about the warranty's, if the warranty is poor, I might be able to swith to the yamaha's.

Thanks for the info it has been very helpful .

 

Very good info it has helped very much thanks everyone.
Also when I 1st looking I was looking at 75 hp motor
and I compared the weight of a 75 hp 2 stroke and a 75 hp 4 stroke
the difference was about 24 lbs I was shocked at how close they where
I'm not sure in the 90's.

The Merc is 30lbs heavier than the Yamaha, the Yamaha is 20lbs heavier than the Etec (comparing 90's)

But i'll be calling the dealer and asking some question on warranty info and getting the correct pitch prop. Some friends of mine have a dyno and said they could dial in a prop some how.
I just bought a 20' Alaskan Lund and the 90 hp 4 stroke merc so I'm looking forward to finding out about the warranty's, if the warranty is poor, I might be able to swith to the yamaha's.

Thanks for the info it has been very helpful .

I'd think with that hull/motor 13X19 or 13.5X19 would be a good starting point - of course it all depends on how heavy you plan to load the boat and other varying factors.

If you go to Merec's website and pull up the performance bulletins you can find a similar hull that was tested with that motor and find the various props that were tested.

FWIW- the Merc 90 is the same motor as the 115 (spec's are identical) - so you may want to look at the step up in hp as I think the boat is rated for it.

As an FYI - I know where you can get a 2010 Yamaha F70 4 stroke for $6200 still in the crate, with full warranty. That motor is nearly 100 lbs lighter than Yamaha's 75Hp 4 stroke

 

We should go for a ride sometime...I was skeptical too, no way I'd ever go back to a 2 stroke.

2 strokes do have their advantages (weight, mainly), but for me the trade off in smoke, stench, noise, smoothness (if thats a word), & fuel economy is an easy decision.


One thing to consider - Yamaha and Honda both have 5 year warranty's. Merc is either 1 or 3 (not sure, website doesn't specify)

Edit: Yamaha has a 3 year warranty, I got a 5 year as part of a season end promotion

Yup my groin will testify to the low end of KLRs four stroke.. I still walk like a rode a horse for a week straight.. Real funny to hammer down when I am standing with my legs spread on an icy deck, real F in funny

 

I'd go with the Yammi. Twice Merc left a bitter tast in my mouth with the way they avoid dealing with warranty issues. Never again.

 

The four strokes still lack in hole shot and top speed to the new 2 strokes,

Where is HP measured on an outboard? So, a 90hp in various varieties would have different hp at the prop? Not sure how a 90 2 stroke vs a 90 4 stroke would have a different top end.

 

Where is HP measured on an outboard? So, a 90hp in various varieties would have different hp at the prop? Not sure how a 90 2 stroke vs a 90 4 stroke would have a different top end.

HP is rated at the prop shaft on all the motors of today. The top end and hole shot come from the difference in the power stroke between 2 and 4 strokes, hp to weight ratio, and probably one of the most important, the gear ratio of the case and rpm power band.