Best Outboard Brand for Owner Maintenance?

[Darkwater]

The high quality of all modern outboard brands has been discussed here.

I live in a remote area, far from factory authorized service dealers for all brands except one. I would appreciate opinions on the best brand(s) from an owner-maintenance standpoint. Some possible factors:
-Availability and price of factory service manual.
-Can the owner read all available electronic codes from the ECM with a laptop or other reasonably available code reader?
-Availability of factory parts by internet.
-Availability of needed special tools.
-Engineering design for easy disassembly/assembly for common maintenance tasks eg. replacement of impeller, thermostats, filters...

Thank you mechanically inclined C-brats!

[Tom on Icarus]

I would never attempt to judge which brand of outboard is the best. They all seem very good these days but I have to say that we have traveled to some very remote places where the native tribespeople are far from repair service and the brand that we see predominently in these places is Yamaha. Don't know the reason. Better remote marketing or what, but where there are few outboards around, there are always Yamahas. Just an observation....not an endorsement of a brand.....even though I own a couple of them......but I have owned Hondas too and have no bias.

Cheers
Tom

[dutch123]

Yamaha

[Dreamer]

Don't know how easy they are to work on, but the Yamahas have a huge following in the Northern BC area due to their dealer network. See Grumpy's adventure in Powell River with his Hondas for comparison.

We rarely need dealer support here in WA but we dread the thought of having problems in the Broughtons due to lack of a dealer. All the modern 4 stroke outboards are just as complex as your new Lexus and need special tools to diagnose and repair.

[thataway]

Yamaha had a intensive campagne to sell outboards in 3rd world countries--and succeeded especially in Mexico, Central American and Caribbean. But many of these motors were the lower HP. Yamaha is a good engine. In the last 10 years I have owned: 4 Suzuki's, 3 Hondas, 1 merc (2 stroke dinghy motor and the easiest to work on), one Yahama and two OMC outboards. I would not say that for routine maintenance as above that any were much more difficult that the other.

On the other hand Fort Bragg is not the end of the earth--or even a remote village in Honduras. You should do fine with any of the outboards. Get the one which suits the boat the best. If you get a Tom Cat--then the Suzuki 150's. If a C Dory 25 then an E tec (probably not need service during the time you own the boat...)

Welcome aboard.

[journey on]

I am the proud, happy, nay, thrilled owner of 2 ea Honda outboard motors. One a 150 main and a 10 kicker. And I'll make a few comments.

First, no question, Honda motors are good. Work well, few problems, I can do the regular service. They are heavier than the rest which you begin to notice about the 5th time you hoist the kicker up onto the bracket, when launching. The 150 is a car engine set on end, so the maintenance is straight forward. The kicker is simple, so ditto.

Second, I don't have a very high opinion of several of the Honda dealers with which I've dealt. They don't seem to be too knowledgeable and are intent on doing things to the motor you don't want done. And charging for that service, whilst not worrying about the problem for which the motor is there. I do know of a good one 100 miles away in LA and I go there if I need any repair. Which brings up another point. If you're out in the boondocks, Honda dealers are hard to find. For example, Port Alberni, which isn't really the boondocks, has a Yamaha dealer, but they don't handle Honda anymore.

Third, as for parts, I wouldn't worry about the local dealer, but order them via the internet. I just got through paying $4 ea for the gearcase oil plug o-rings, and they're 95 cents at boats.net. Even paying shipping, you save about 1/2. There is a week lag, but if the dealer has to order them, there's a delay there, too..Spark plugs are the same as in the car, so you can get them for $6 via the internet, $15 at the dealer.

Finally, several of the big outboards have a standard data interface with the motor, but not Honda. That little specialized readout device costs a bundle from Honda. And if you want their digital dash display, it gets really expensive.

Great engine, but so are some of the others. My advice is: if there's a knowledgeable, cooperative dealer in Ft Bragg, buy what he sells. Otherwise, buy the engine for which you can get the best deal, do your own maintenance and get parts off the internet. And for the record, when we bought the boat, Honda financed it for us.

Boris

[Will-C]

Yamaha seems to have almost anything you need available online. Yamaha's have pretty easy access to be able to display engine data to onboard electronics. They have a good reputation, good corrosion resistance and are usually faster and lighter than a Honda. But make no mistake about Honda they are terrific engines by anyones measure. I have Honda generators and a couple of their cars can't say anything bad about Honda's durability.
Can't speak for Suzuki, ETEC, or Mercury but I would think for resale in most areas Honda or Yamaha would have the widest acceptance.
D.D.

[Captains Cat]

You can buy all the Suzi parts on line too from Browns Point Marine in NJ. Good parts diagrams and quick to ship. Been using them for awhile now.

Charlie

[berryst]

Yamaha.

[matt_unique]

[Pat Anderson]

The question is not best outboard for owner maintenance for me, it is the best owner for outboard maintenance - and I KNOW it is not ME! The first rule is do no harm! Thank heavens for Pete and crew at West Coast Marine in Bellingham!

[ghone]

I'm with Pat. I have a 2010 yamaha 90 efi and can identify perhaps 4 things under that cowl. I am no dummy but what is all that stuff? I take it in like my yamaha mechanic says and so far it makes noise and goes when I turn it on! I take my F150 to my Ford guy and they keep it nice it too has a bunch of "stuff" under the hood I enjoyed monkey wrenching as a broke kid but now as a "wealthy retired yachtsman with a c dory. .".....Money is no object!! These new motors are a wonder but other than oil and plugs etc if something really goes south not sure what you can do. I have had 2 yamaha and in BC that is the major brand. Honda has funny dealer support here. George

[Darkwater]

...and Bing Bing Bing the winner of this post is..........Yammie!

Bob- Yes I have seen Yamaha seems the motor of choice in Mexico and the Caribbean. And in terms of "remoteness", Fort Bragg has been "just right" for me for over 20 years now (I am one of many SF Bay Area transplants here).

Pat and George- I am with you on "do no harm", as I have done harm more than once in my amateur mechanic ventures. It's amazing how one little mistake can have huge consequences (especially with a stern drive)... Problem is, when I have had mechanics do work, they have "done harm" about as often as I have (e.g. neglecting to glue and clamp the u-joint shaft bellows to the gimbal housing). So for me, it's a crap shoot whether the work is done by me or someone else.

Thank you all for your responses. What a great resource!

[ghone]

I am lucky to have a really good Yamaha trained guy here. He has been a top local guy for 20 years and when you find a guy like that send him business and bring in your motor. I bet you would need to start off with a pre electronic everything engine to be able to do all your own maintenance. Like pre 1995? Miss out on some great new engines.

[hardee]

I'm with George AND Pat and Yamaha. My Yami mechanics do their thing and my Yami's do their thing, everytime I turn the keys -- (yup -- twins.) About all I do is put in the marine stabil, like they told me to. . . .. and do it every time, like they told me to and the Yami's do their thing. Good stuff

Harvey
SleepyC