What would you consider high hours?

[rags]

I'm looking at several used boats. What would you consider high hours on a motor? A 2001 Yamaha with 400 hours. Is this high?

[Rocky]

I dunno myself, we have 300+ on our 2002 115 Suzuki and are not concerned. I think it might depend all on how it was maintained and ran, I would be interested to know what folks consider to be high also

[KeyWest]

I have a Honda 2 years old. 600+ hours. I try to do the math thinking that if this were a car...

600 hours at 60 miles per hour = 36,000 miles. Would a car be considered high hours at 36,000 miles. Personally, I consider this pretty new!

[ripthevolcano]

I also look at it like Keywest. 36,000 miles. That is nothing. Actually a boat's rpm is more like city miles because of the ups and downs. If the right person takes care of it they will run forever. The key word is take care of it. I run my Chevy v-8's 200,000 miles before a rebuild. Both in the boat and in the car. Although I must confess I recently purchased a boat and it had 98hours on it.

[pksgundogs]

400 hours on a modern outboard is not high hours, but run time is only one part of the equation. You have to question what kind of maintenance, operation, and fuel has touched the motor during its 4 years. Have a competent outboard mechanic check it out.

[STGRule]

I don't know how it is on the 4-strokes but my mechanic told me that 1000 hours on a 2-stroke powerhead was re-placement time.
How long will it take you to get there? And always remember, your mileage (hourage?) may vary.

[tomictime]

to the car analogy, 1200 hours on a gas I/O and they are ready for rebuild. Boat hours are tough, tough, tough. to get on and stay on plane Load is hi and constant. Your car will cruise at 60 MPH using just 20-30 HP, some a lot less. Look at Power/T curve for O/B and figure where you cruise at - you will see boatlife is a lot harder

O/B 2-strokes in the bigger V-6 above 700 hours is iffy territory...last few posts gave excellent advice: How they were taken care of will say alot..I use OMC 2+4 and ring-free, change the plugs + am all over the lower units. Looking at 500 + hours with about 41500 in repairs so far...There was a pretty good thread going on large O/B about a month ago..there may be some good stuff there..

Not sure on newer 4-strokes...I think the jury may still be out a bit..

[Joe Schwab]

Of course mechanics will say its replacement time. Boat motors as mentioned are like cars. It really depends on who is operating them and how they are maintained. I have a good friend who ran a very successful marine shop for years. He would not "sell" repairs. He was convinced with proper care, 1500 to 2,000 hours was not out of the question. Any engine can be "rebuilt" at any time past say 750 hours. That does not mean they "have" to be rebuilt. I had a Searay with over 2,000 hours on the engine. When I bought it it had 1100 hours and ran fine. Regular service and keeping it below the red line made all the difference. The guy who bought it from me ran it for several more years.

I recently had my 1997 150 Yamaha with estimated 900 hours totally serviced, new therms, carbs cleaned, wires replaced. The mechanic suggested maybe I should start looking at a new 4 stroke soon. I replied I was out of the guiding business and would only be fishing for fun. He then replied that it should be good for another 3-4 years. 3 to 4 years use is worth a lot to me. Maybe even 5-6 years, who knows?

In the meantime I can start saving for a new one.

[Rescue3]

Typical 2-stroke operation in our business will range from 1000 to 2500 hours. Part of that is luck, and part of that is your frequency of use. An engine that sits is still being worn out while one that's used every day could easily outlast it. I've got a 150 Ficht that's got 700+ hours on it. I think about trading it in for a new 200 E-TEC, but I've already blown my engine budget for 2005 :help:

400 hours shouldn't be a problem, but you just never know. Recently, some of the Merc's in our network have lasted less than that while others are running strong after 2000 hours.

[Abalone]

If you want to check the condition of a motor take it to a service center and ask to have a leak down test done on it. This is the best methode in determining the condition of the Rings, compression, Valves etc. It don't cost very much.

Inflatable Boat center does it and they are a Yamaha dealer.

[Tinman]

My 1989 Evinrude 25 had about 1500 hours on it, and the compression was 110 in both cylinders, which is essentialy like-new condition. I have always thought that a two-stroke outboard is good for 2000 hours with proper care. Changing plugs frequently is important to fight carbon buildup.

[Satisfaction_pv]

Normally when I am guiding I replace the powerhead every year on my engine with the jet pump (normally a 1000 hours a year on Mercury and/or Yamaha). My prop engines on my big boats, that I use in the ocean, 200 hp Johnsons, I normally get 1800 - 2500 hours before I need a new power head.
Bill