Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I know that I'm likely really opening up a 'real can of worms' here but.......I would like to hear your opinions on the BEST Pontoon Boat motors (i.e. Brands)........especially in the 40-90hp range.

Let me be diplomatic, as the motors from Honda, Yamaha, Mercury, ETEC and Suzuki are all perfectly good. They all have slightly different personalities, but you really couldn't go wrong buying any of these major brands.

But let me vote for Yamaha 4 strokes, as they perform very well for the ways most people use pontoon boats. I see more late model Yammie's all over the world in commercial use.

I prefer the 75 Yammie over their 70 hp because of much more cubic inch displacements. The Yammie 150 hp appears to be the standard of the industry at that horsepower.

The Mercury 150 Fourstroke is going to be tough competition, as they're substantially less expensive than the Yamaha 150 hp, can be used with conventional gauges and don't require expensive fly by wire controls. The Verados are good, but they're just too much $ to setup.

The ETEC's now seem to be the standard of the industry in 2 stroke motors. But many professional bass fishermen continue to use the Mercury Optimax XS series without complaints. Merc 2 stroke motors appear to be aging technology--not that anything's wrong with them. 2 strokes might be preferable for someone that does heavy skiing, tubing and water sports.

Yamaha SHO's are very light in weight @ 175/200/225/250 hp, and they're strong performers. Dealers have told me they like Yamaha's regular 200/225/250 motors just as well in tritoon uses. ? ? ? When you get into the big horsepower motors, someone else will have to comment, as I have no experience.

That is a very simple answer , one that runs.

I agree with bamaman on this..... most of the major manufacturers will suit you just fine.... but I can tell you that the yamaha 4 strokes are good motors. My son has a yamaha 115 on his boat, and I have a yamaha 75 on mine... his motor is 5years old, mine is going on 3 and neither of us has had any issues with the motor. Now having said that I can tell you that a friend of mine has a honda motor on his boat... that thing is really quiet, but I can't speak to it's dependability...

All I have done on my 10 year old Mercury is change plugs & fluids. My oil sensor is not currently working properly, but that is not too expensive of a fix.

Theer are few motors out there that people are consistently having trouble with. Occassionaly someone gets a lemon in all of them.

there is no one answer. lots of good motors out there. my first though is "who is going to be working on the motor?"

if its not you, then buy the brand that makes service the most convenient to you. the closest honda repair shop for me is hours away. fortunately, i do the vast majority of my own work.

if i were starting fresh, i'd probably give the nod to the current crop of yamaha's.

Some may be "as good as" but none are better than a Honda

we have put 200 hours on our Yamaha 150 HP 4-stroke and it hasn't even burped,no issues what so ever. My Dad had a Yamaha 75 HP 4- stroke and put over 1000 hours on it and it ran with no issues.

My 2004 Yamaha 60 4 stroke is on it's second boat and not a problem in 8 years.

The_Hellbilly wrote:Some may be "as good as" but none are better than a Honda

I'll second that.

Best part to me about our Honda is how quiet it is.

IMHO:

Mercury, The new ones seem to have more problems than most judging from many of the posts on this forum. There supercharged models are still working some bugs out.

Evenrude: Two strokes are sadly going to be extincted due to the EPA. I love the power to weight ratio of two strokes but 4 strokes don't score cylinders. Haven't heard much about there longevity but their are many positive reports on this site.

Honda: What can I say, it's a Honda, Very reliable but parts are expensive and there is very little aftermarket support compared to the others.

Yamaha: I own one, 700 hours in 5 1/2 years without a problem. Probably the number one choice of most boaters out there. They made Mercury powerheads for a few years even. That speaks volumes to me. If you don't want any drama, get a Yami.

slingshot wrote:OMHO:

Mercury, The new ones seem to have more problems than most judging from many of the posts on this forum. There supercharged models are still working some bugs out.

Maybe I missed a few but I have only heard of one having a problem with the "new" mercury.I have one of the new Merc's 150 efi 4-stroke with 115 hours this year and no problems. Mercury did have a recall with the alternator rubbing against the block with some of the 150 efi 4-strokes.
Friends of mine that have the Verdos haven't had any problems. As stated before yamaha, honda, evinrude and mercury build very fine engines. There can always be a lemon with any manufacture. Everyone has their preference.

I'll have to throw my vote to the Yamaha 90hp 4-stroke. We have a 2003 model (the first year they came out) and the only issue we have had was my own fault when I grounded out the electrical system and fried the voltage rectifier/regulator on the motor.

We do a lot of slow puttering (around 3000RPM) and I've always heard that is hard on a 2-stroke. Haven't had any problems with the 4-stroke.

If you want to get there first buy a Mercury.

If you want to get there and back buy a Yamaha.

Gee, if you put a Yamaha, Honda, Tohatsu, or any Japanese engine on your boat, you can park it right next to your Toyota, Honda, Kia, or whatever. When the American economy goes down the toilet, DON'T ASK WHY.

I have a Merc. Most of the other 'go fast' boats I've had were American Powered. Parked right next to my Ford truck. They all perform about the same, cost isn't that much different so why not buy the American engine. Mercury Marine has been around for years and has alwaymanufactureded quality products.

Oh, my boat is parked right next to our Harley Davidson street bikes, and Polaris Quads. Haven't owned a foreign vehicle in years.