90 ETEC

[SENSEI]

for those of you who have Etec motors on your boats, how are they working for you?
I am about ready for a repower on the new to me 95 Angler and am leaning towards the 90 Etec. On the 83 I had the 90 Ficht and quite pleased with its performance. the best thing was being able to troll with it at idle all day with no loading up of fuel system.

the closest marine dealer to me is a Mercury dealer and I was quoted about the same price for a 90 EFI as the Etec would be. the only good thing for me is the merc dealer is only 4 miles from my home.

[island andy]

Happy to provide input, and I will be very interested in what else is said.
My 2007 etec 90 is on a 2007 22 Cruiser. It had about 150 hours on it when I purchased it may 2016, and now has about 210 hours. It has performed faultlessly to date. The p.o. took good care of it, I believe.
We use the boat and motor to get back and forth to the cottage on an island about 8 miles from the marina [in southern Georgian Bay, near Honey Harbor]. Therefore, it is called upon to lug a whole lot of stuff from time to time - aside from food [beer], we ship building materials and you name it. We also take day trips up the shore, and it does fine with 6 adults on board. I cruise about 18-19mph @ 38-3900rpm.
I am fond of 2-strokes and this evolution is remarkable. My first outboard: 1948 evinrude 5.4 hp in 1956...........a little different.
I am not aware of data on things like reliability and repair costs. Anecdotally, my mechanic says that he personally has not seen particular trouble with the 90, and his friend in the local BRP shop tells him likewise.
I have the 3 cyl 90. Out of curiosity, were you thinking of that or of the v4 HO 90 hp?
Any particular questions?
andy

[MikeR]

Had a 2006 90 hp Etec for 5+ years on a previous boat and loved it...could not think of a better 90hp motor for that boat, where minimizing weight on the stern made all the difference (a short & fat 16 footer). Since you also mentioned Merc, I'll also say that so far I'm equally happy, if not moreso, with the 2016 Merc 90 (Command Thrust version with larger V6 lower unit) on my 22'. A couple of other C-brats have repowered with these motors recently and their positive feedback (and numerous similar reports elsewhere) was the main reason I went with the Merc on the new boat. Not trying to steer you away from Etec, just mentioning it since you said you were comparing the two. Obviously 4 strokes will run a bit smoother at low to mid rpms, but you also can't beat the torque and light weight of a 2 stroke! I also love the small footprint of the E-tec, it's not much bigger, if at all, than most 60 or 70 hp 4 strokes!
-Mike

[Comfortably Numb]

I have had the three cylinder 90 ETEC on my CD22 since 2008. The only problem I had was a faulty "brainbox", which was under warranty, and replaced by a local dealer. (I bought my CD22 at Northwest Outlet in Superior, WI.) The engine performs well at all speeds. I really like the big alternator and the fuel economy.

[BrentB]

Are you using XD-100 oil?

What are you paying for it?

Is it quiet when cruising at 3500 - 4200 rpms ?

[island andy]

I use xd 100.
Amazon, 3gal for $108.98. "Free" shipping.
Arrived in 2 days. Shipped from western MI which may have expedited arrival, but also meant sales tax was added.
I have been impressed by how little oil the motor uses. Much different from my 50:1 mix 2 strokes.
andy

[neblig]

I have the Merc version (optimax) 2 stroke on my "not the Dory". Good weight to power and seems reliable, although it does not like trolling. In many areas there is little to no resale value on a two stroke, so that is something to think of too.

[SENSEI]

Well,
Friday I took a little drive to Everett WA(about 15 miles away) to have a talk with the E-Tec dealer. I was delighted to find out about the boat show deal that Evinrude had. the 90 hp E-Tec price was $8590.00 plus tax. the deal was a 5 year warranty, full instruments and controls, and a stainless prop. I will have to pay labor for install and there will be some monetary value for the trade in of the 90 Honda. hopefully it will cover most of install.
I take the Sensei down this week to get the install done.

[Larry H]

Congratulations!!

[potter water]

You won't be sorry. My E Tech is going on 8 year old and is a magical no pollution (5 stars) I don't remember how many, but at least 4. Starts, goes, lightweight, never been to the dealer with trouble. One warranty recall for the oil tank. In an emergency you can run this engine with the oil tank empty for several hours without damage. I'm not ever going to try it. The best thing about it is the torque that I get from it compared to the Merc 4 stroke that was on the boat before the e-tech. I have to winterize and that is done in about 3 minutes by the computer. Disclaimer: I don't put the hours on that most of your coastal folks do.

[Catman]

Hey, Roger, congratulations! May you and your ninety have many happy hours together. See you on the water this spring and summer.

[Robbi]

Roger, I have a an E-Tec 90 on my 19 and I really like it. It matches up very nicely with the 19. I think that it is the best choice for the 19 because of lighter weight and the torque. I also have an E-Tec 25 on a 16 foot Devlin open skiff and it's been a great motor also.
Congrats on your re power.

Robbi

[MikeR]

Congrats on pulling the trigger on the Etec, you are going to love it!

[RonMac]

I replaced the original johnson 70 on my 1990 cruiser with an etec 90 in 2009. It has 450 hrs run time ,serviced twice. The only thing thing that hasnt performed 100 percent are the evinrude decals they are curling up and peeling off.

[Kushtaka]

I just had a chance to use a brand new ETEC 90 a couple weeks ago on a boat I rented. By brand new, I mean zero hours. Not even broken in.

It was a small, 17' Stott Craft deep V skiff, self bailing, very cool boat with good self-bailing decks, etc.

The ETEC did not like being run at low RPM for very long at all. If I idled the motor for a bit, then gave it more throttle it would lag and stall. I believe this was due to the fuel tank being overfilled (the owner was showing me how the tank was fill, by pumping the gas right up to the top. FIlling a new style tank with a canister this way can lead to venting issues.

I honestly believe the issue was in the tank and vent, not the motor, but the issue was persistent and I never really tried to figure it out (rental). I just squeezed the primer bulb after idling and that took care of it.

The other issue with the motor was the trim/tilt system didn't hold pressure. I believe it needed to be topped off with hydraulic fluid, but again, never tried to deal with it. It was so bad that I had to use the little foot stand to keep the motor up overnight. By the end of the week I almost couldn't get the motor down because I had to hold down the UP button to get the weight off the foot stand and barely got it. There were no signs of oil or sheen, but it just didn't work that well. I'm sure it could be serviced easily.

Otherwise, the motor was a beast. It's performance was really strong on that little boat. It was super fast, responsive, towed well, and overall, was a great motor. It was a bit louder than a comparable 4 stroke, but it wasn't nearly as loud as older ETECs I've run.

All in all, I'd consider this motor for a repower, but I also have a new Honda BF90 at work, and it is so nice, and so quiet.