New outboard- want opinions

Pirate Lady

Well-Known Member
Jun 2, 2020
7,574
Chesapeake Bay, Middle River
Boat Info
Sundancer 250 ‘91
Engines
7.4 Bravo 1
I need a new dinghy outboard. In the 2.5 - 3.5 range.
Mercury made by Tohatsu- mixed reviews 50/50 middle of price range.
Yamaha - great reviews, heavy, expensive.
Suzuki - great reviews, lightest of the bunch and cheapest, some cheap plastic parts require care when using. Exposed cables don’t run thru tiller handle, kinda looks cheesy.
Honda - the name says it all but most expensive. 50% more than a Suzuki.
What say you?
 
I'm also looking.

Other factors:
  • Does it have forward and reverse gear (Is that important)?
  • Does it have a handle throttle?
  • Is it 2-stroke (requires mixing fuel) or 4-stroke?
  • Where to store it when not in use?
  • Is electric good enough yet?
 
Mercury made by Tohatsu- mixed reviews 50/50 middle of price range.

I had a 15hp Mercury pull start (stolen) and now have a Tohatsu 15hp electric start and I am happy with both. I do like the electric start better -lol. Both are super easy, they start immediately.
 
  • Is electric good enough yet?
A 2.5hp is more than enough power to get most dinghies to hull speed, but not enough to get on plane. An electric motor like a torqeedo will push a dinghy to hull speed. If the price and the range works for you, then they are a great option. Lightweight, clean and quiet.
 
Outboard shop on my marina is an authorized Suzuki dealer. Did you buy local or online? Place called online outboards has for $800.
I ordered from the cheapest place online. No one had it locally, nor did they seem to want to order one.
 
I dont think any of these motors will be unreliable. Get the one that has the features you want and tickles your wallet.
 
No first hand experience bht one of the guys in our marina has the 4hp Honda and it’s really loud. Not sure if the smaller ones are the same but his doesn’t have through the prop exhaust so it’s noisy
 
I have a 20hp Tohatsu on my dinghy and I love it. It is super quiet and always starts easily. Pull start, always starts on the 2nd pull. So quiet I can pull into the slip with a dock neighbor sitting in a chair with his back to the slip and he wont hear me come in. Highly recommended.
 
We bought a new 2.5 yamaha 4 years ago. Can't say I would recommend one. We sold it after only two seasons. Idled rough and would overheat if held close to wide open for a few minutes. Brought it to the shop a couple times thinking warranty but got bills both times with a lame excuse as they couldn't duplicate the problem in their tank. Wasn't happy with the pee stream going into the boat when reverse was used either.
 
What went wrong with the old motor?
 
I need a new dinghy outboard. In the 2.5 - 3.5 range.
Mercury made by Tohatsu- mixed reviews 50/50 middle of price range.
Yamaha - great reviews, heavy, expensive.
Suzuki - great reviews, lightest of the bunch and cheapest, some cheap plastic parts require care when using. Exposed cables don’t run thru tiller handle, kinda looks cheesy.
Honda - the name says it all but most expensive. 50% more than a Suzuki.
What say you?
I purchased a Suzuki 20HP earlier this spring. Love it , light weight and very quiet.
 
Based on some of your posts maybe this is a better option :D:)
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Got both obs from outboard direct .com

Check the fine print as some sites have free shipping but no returns at all
 
I've had Johnson, Evinrude, Merc and Yamaha. Currently have a 15 Yamaha on a 320 Mercury dinghy. They ALL have there issues, fuel. The ethanol wreaks havoc with the carburetors and fuel lines. Past that all have been rock solid. I can't imagine that Suzuki is any different.

Depending on the weight in the dinghy will depend on what the hull speed will be, all dinghy's are planning hulls and don't have a hull speed, but there is a displacement speed which changes based on the weight in the dinghy. Most dinghy's need at least a 5hp to reach that when two people are in the dinghy.
 
@Pirate Lady why not fix the old motor? Wouldn’t that be cheaper? I scored a 4hp Mercury for free a while back off Craigslist because the previous owner thought it was broken beyond repair. Turns out all it needed was a tuneup, impeller, and a new cooling water feed tube. $100 in parts and took me two hours in labor and now it runs great. You gotta make time for maintenance or maintenance will make time for you.
 
I love those old 70’s mercs. Run forever, till the gnat came out. That’s okay though gnat idles smooth and I have four extra pull cords and three plastic propellers. I have so many parts for that thing including a new power head. I will be running that POS until my little boat starts leaking.
 

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