Repower Tomcat 255

J

joechiro30

New member
I’m looking to repower my Tomcat 255 2006 soon. I currently have the dad 150suzuki 150’s with about 1100 hours. Engines are running great. Just cleaned the injectors and replaced filters. How much longer do they normally run?
What engines do you recommend that I repower with?
 
joechiro30":k4dmqf8a said:
I’m looking to repower my Tomcat 255 2006 soon. I currently have the dad 150suzuki 150’s with about 1100 hours. Engines are running great. Just cleaned the injectors and replaced filters. How much longer do they normally run?
What engines do you recommend that I repower with?
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If the engines are, by your own admission, "running great" why are you considering repowering? Got some excess cash you can't think of anything better to do with it?

If it were me I would do the regular maintenance and only consider replacing them when problems started to occur or maintenance costs got too high. I would also consider getting them rebuilt as an option to replacement.

I would hope that an engine from a reputable brand would run for at least a couple of thousand hours before performance or operational problems force their replacement.

I am expecting that my Honda engine will last as long as I own the boat.
 
That makes sense. I’m a bit paranoid as I do some offshore excursions up to 70 miles offshore and would feel better if my engines were newer
 
joechiro30":35yy77by said:
That makes sense. I’m a bit paranoid as I do some offshore excursions up to 70 miles offshore and would feel better if my engines were newer
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I understand. I'm not a mechanic so newer, right or wrong, gives me peace of mind.
 
ken35216":27f2vn84 said:
joechiro30":27f2vn84 said:
That makes sense. I’m a bit paranoid as I do some offshore excursions up to 70 miles offshore and would feel better if my engines were newer
Click to expand...

I understand. I'm not a mechanic so newer, right or wrong, gives me peace of mind.
Click to expand...

Newer does not always guarantee better. If that were true, why do new things come with warranties?

Yes, a warranty may get your engine fixed if it breaks, but it is not going to help the immediate problem you'll have if the engine breaks 70 miles offshore.

The age of the engine is not going to make a whole lot of difference if the reason the engine breaks is because you hit something. Warranty might not matter much then either.
 
What engines do any of you recommend for the tomcat 255? My buddy repowered with twin 150 HOs two strokes. Was interested in them until he said that they overheated at low speeds during rough seas.
 
joechiro30":22f9al92 said:
What engines do any of you recommend for the tomcat 255? My buddy repowered with twin 150 HOs two strokes. Was interested in them until he said that they overheated at low speeds during rough seas.
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That could be as much about the installation as the engine. The engine's lower end may not have been deep enough to pick up water in rough seas at low speed with no rear end squat.

David
 
The new generation 150 Mercs are getting rave reviews. Best in class power, economy, ease of service and more.
That said, have a knowledgeable mechanic give your engines a thorough physical. Have the oils tested, compression and leakdown tests etc. I'll bet they have another 1,100 hours to give.
 
The only outboard I ever had die on me was a brand new e-tec. I have a friend who is running a honda BF 150 (which is what i have on the back of my tomcat) and it has 20,000+ hours; the boat previously belonged to a commercial fishermen. Keep your engines, 1100 hours is nothing. You have two of them if one fails you limp home on the other.
 
I replaced twin Suzuki 115HP motors (1700 hours) on my Rosborough RF246 with a new 2017 Evinrude ETEC G2 300 HP. The installed price was $28,600.
I wanted better mileage, performance and reliability. It came with an 8 year transferable warranty. It had a good electronics display and shift by wire rather than cable.
I was never happy with the G2
Fuel consumption was a little better than the twins but I had to add $30 a gallon oil which made the fuel savings a wash
It made more noise than the 4 strokes
Performance was not smooth throughout the power range
This motor is better suited for a bass boater that wants a hole shot and runs near WOT most of the time.
I had a fuel line pop off at 17 hours which left me stranded. It soaked the insulation inside the motor cover. Warranty paid for the repair but I was responsible for tow in and delivery to dealer. I waited 3 weeks for repair.
I suggest you stay with the 4 stroke motors. My preference would be the Yamaha.
 
FWIW- My Tomcat Honda BF-150 engines have close to 2600 hours. I service in accordance with engine manual, and have never had to add top-off oil. If I had one engine, I might consider replacement, but the chance of losing two engines simultaneously are odds I'm willing to take. That said, I also have a Boat US tow subscription
 
Just to clarify my prior comments on the G2 are for the big block versions 200 to 300 HP. The 150HP is a small block. There is a difference and I advise anyone considering a G2 small block to discuss with the owner of a small block on a similar hull.
 
Engines should last for several thousand hours

Oil can be analyzed on a regular basis

Have motors compression and leak down tested.

Buy a motor computer scan tool

Keep up with maintenance items


If offshore and have break down, do you have a good VHF radio setup, SSB radio or sat phone?
 
Well, you can consider those Suzuki motor breakdown as QA does. Theres a "bathtub curve", which predicts a high rate of failure at the beginning due to manufacturing faults, a low failure rate during the service life, and a high failure rate at the end of service life. This is a statistical method of looking at the problem, but I've found it to be true, even though you only have a sample of two. I know the Suzuki factory looks at the failure rate this way.

So it looks like those Suzuki motors made it past the manufacturing failure rate and are now operating with the low service failure rate. So, as I understand it, you're looking at replacing those motors when the failure rate is low, before any end of life failures occur. Remember, when you buy new motors, they will not be perfect and you may have to deal with failures, which of course are fixable under warranty. I think replacing those motors is not a good decision.

Journey On has a 2005 Honda 150 with ~1000 hrs on it. It has never let us down and appears to be in good shape mechanically. I have changed the oil and the various filters, put new zincs, new sparkplugs and performed routine maintenance. I expect that engine to last at least 2000 hrs with no trouble based on several reports, especially from the Avalon Harbor Patrol, which runs Hondas. I will paint it this year, since the motor sits pointing to the sun, which destroys the paint. This summer we put ~150 hrs, and it ran well.

Boris
 
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