Love my Honda 2.3.....less is more on a M15 -----Original Message----- From: John Schinnerer via montgomery_boats <montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Sunday, March 24, 2024 3:46 PM To: montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com Cc: John Schinnerer <john@eco-living.net> Subject: M_Boats: Re: M17 Outboard Some of us M17 owners here are quite satisfied with our Honda 2.3HP outboards. Others consider that not enough and arguments, user reports, etc. are in various past threads... :-) In terms of new or recent years' used motors: Suzuki has a 2.5 hp as alternative to the Honda. It's water cooled so quieter at low RPMs but then a bit more more maintenance. Also has F-N shifter instead of the Honda's centrifugal clutch. They claim same weight as the Honda. If you want more HP for only another 10 lbs or so then the Tohatsu/Mercury 3.5HP is the only option at present I am aware of. If I wanted something more hp than my Honda 2.3 hp, I'd get the Tohatsu 3.5 hp. As Dave says all the 4HP from Suzuki, Yamaha, Tohatsu/Merc are 6HP carcasses tuned down to deliver less HP. Stupid, but that's how all outboard HP ranges are now, bigger motors as well. Those 4/5/6 hp units all weigh ~60 lbs. Honda has a 5 hp, which also weighs in at ~60 lbs (twice the Honda 2.3 and 20 lbs more than the Tohatsu/Merc 3.5). My M17 came with a Tohatsu SailPro 6 hp which was absurd overkill. In gear at idle it was too much speed for maneuvering in tight quarters. So IMO it's down to the Honda 2.3, Suzuki 2.5, or the Tohatsu 3.5. cheers, John On 3/24/24 03:22, Dave Scobie wrote:
Pete:
Many options ...
IMO Honda's 4-6hp motors are reliable but heavy. (To heavy!)
Don't have much experience with the newer Yamaha 4-6hp ... the old, like 15+ years ago, true 4hp motor was excellent and a great fit for the M17.
I had a Suzuki 4 (aka 4-6hp) on my M17 and it did fine.
Tohatsu are common but my experience is they are very sensitive to fuel and lots of issues with clogged carburetor jets.
Lots of opinions on outboards and many people hate or love specific motors. Discussions are a lot like discussing anchoring. Lots of opinions!!
One thing I would strongly consider is making sure you have a local outboard service business that will work on your motor type and has a good reputation. This may be more important than the specific motor because service is part of owning.
Number one recommendation is use only fresh fuel and anything older than a month needs to be transferred to the tow vehicle or lawn mower fleet. Fresh fuel!
Treat fuel with a mix of SeaFoam and Sta-Bil (yes _both_).
Don't run scared of ethanol. Nothing more than E10(some locations have E15 which will ruin an outboard!). I've run E10 and outboards for years, like 20, and never had an issue. The issue is always fresh fuel! See - https://m17-375.com/2019/04/04/outboard-motors-fuel-issues/
Run the motor at minimum once a month. Run it at home in a bucket. This is important! Lack of running causes more issues than fuel. Do at minimum a yearly oil change and be sure to service the lower end gearbox and water pump based on manufacturer service recommendations.
:: Dave Scobie :: M6'8" #650 :: Baba 30 #233 DEJA VU :: former owner SV SWALLOW - sailboatswallow.wordpress.com/ :: former owner M17 #375 SWEET PEA - m17-375.com :: former owner M15 #288 SCRED - m15namedscred.wordpress.com
On Sat, Mar 23, 2024, 09:50 Peter Metherall <pmetherall@gmail.com> wrote:
Dave - Thanks for the info. Is there an outboard manufacturer you recommend? I'm thinking Yamaha or Honda. Pete
On Fri, Mar 22, 2024 at 3:44 PM Dave Scobie <scoobscobie@gmail.com> wrote:
Pete:
A 2007 M17 should have a Garhauer OB-125 bracket and this will work fine with a 4-6 HP outboard 20" 'long shaft'. No larger than a 4hp motor is needed but there are no true 4hp motors available (all are 6hp blocks that a de-tuned to be a 5 or 4 HP output).
:: Dave Scobie :: M6'8" #650 :: Baba 30 #233 DEJA VU :: former owner SV SWALLOW - sailboatswallow.wordpress.com/ :: former owner M17 #375 SWEET PEA - m17-375.com :: former owner M15 #288 SCRED - m15namedscred.wordpress.com
On Fri, Mar 22, 2024, 15:26 Peter Metherall <pmetherall@gmail.com> wrote:
Dave - Thanks for getting back to me! The Boat is a 2007. I haven't closed on the boat yet so I will have to contact the owner and get the make of the motor mount and get back to you. Thanks again.
Pete
-- John Schinnerer - M.A., Whole Systems Design -------------------------------------------- - Eco-Living - Whole Systems Design Services People - Place - Learning - Integration john@eco-living.net - 510.982.1334 http://eco-living.net http://sociocracyconsulting.com