2001 ELPT 4-stroke 90 Mercury??

Two Fister · 04-14-2005, 02:50 PM

I moved this over from Boats and Motors as my friend has to make a pretty fast decision. That makes me nervous in and of itself.

A friend of mine is looking at a 2001 16 ft Boston Whaler Dauntless with a ELPT 4-stroke 90 Mercury. I wasn't sure if this was the same motor as the Optimax. I've read a lot of comments on ifish about problems with the early 2000s Optimax. This motor apparently only has 120 hours on it, but they are asking a lot of money for a 16 foot boat that's in Florida.
Does anybody have any experience with these motors?
Thanks,
Dan

foxer · 04-14-2005, 03:28 PM

No personal experience but I know that the Optimax line is entirely different. In fact, the big four strokes all have Yamaha power heads. BTW, Opitmax is a two stroke

Whaler · 04-14-2005, 04:18 PM

Hi,
I have a Boston Whaler Montauk 170 with a 2003 4-stroke Merc. I have about 250 hours on the motor and found it to be cold blooded and it will foul plugs if idled for extended periods of time (use the kicker for trolling). Other than that it runs smooth, starts immediately once warmed up, and is easy on gas.
Let me know if you have any specific quesions.
Rodger

Two Fister · 04-14-2005, 09:26 PM

Foxer,
Thanks for clearing that up for me.

Whaler,
Thanks for the info. I think he's talking about not having a kicker, which I have been trying to talk him out of. Hopefully, your info will help him make a better decision.

Thanks again for the feedback!
TF