Outboards - When are they too old

C

Capt. Frank Miller

Active member
OK guys here is a tough question. When looking at a used motor how old is too old? How many hours is too much? What checks would you do when buying a used motor?

I have always checked the following:
run the motor check for peeing
easy starting
easy shift in and out of gear
check comresssion
check lower unit oil for water
check heads for evidence of overheating

What did I miss?
 
I think Mike hit it on the head: When parts are no longer available.
And that not only depends on the year but also the make & model.
There are some older outboards (esp Johnson/Evinrudes) that are easy to get parts for. Some other brands, not so easy.
 
Re: Outboards - When are they too old?
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When they get to be as old as Pete McMiller! who BTW just celebrated another one a few days ago.


I agree about the parts thing for older outboards. This will vary by region to some extent even with the use of the internet.
 
Yes, DAVE, I did. On the one hand........I made it to 60. On the other............damn I'm 60. And yes, the aches and pains are worse than they have been. In fact the day after the party I had tons of aches and pains from Badmitton...........................and I was just WATCHING.

When I bought my first new motor back in '75 the mechanics at that time recommended a Johnson or Evinrude because the parts were available for 20-25 years while the Mercs only about 15 years and the Chrysler/Force only about 5 years.
 
Might also depend on the size and how and where the motor was used. I have a bud who has a 6hp jonson that was built in 1968 and still runs like a top. That motor has been well cared for and has been run in fresh and brackish water and flushed everytime he has used it in brackish water.

I personally would stay away from motors that have been used to pull skiers alot. And certainly anything that's been on a bass boat. If you can, get a qualified OB mechanic to check out the motor before you buy.

I have purchased a number of used johnson/evinrudes that I have good luck with. I have had some real bad luck with mercs.

Purchased a new Yammadog coupla years ago and it's a great motor. I'm also impressed with the Evinrude E-tecs. I have just put a 200 ho on my Grady White and it's a great motor. I have talked with several folks who have the smaller E-tecs and they are very satisfied with them.

Don't expect ANY used out board to function like a new one forever. Whoever sold it or traded it did so for a reason. In some cases they were trading up but in some cases they were/are trying to get rid of a problem.

I wouldn't be afraid of one I had checked out by a good mechanic, but neither would I expect it to last forever.

MO,
Harry
 
Frank,
All good advice. The only addition I would make is to stay away from the Force (Chrysler) motors. The parts for them has COMPLETELY dried up lately. I also run some motors almost as old as Pete but they are in great shape ;-). Just like people and dogs they are all different and some are better than others. Good Luck.
 
No engine is ever really TOO old! I think you have a good handle on what to check. I'll ditto the others, Johnson/Evenrude are common and parts are easily available, even for my engines (58 35hp, 59 35hp, 64 9.5hp & 49 2.3hp). There are many gems out there, older engines from the 60's were still built with a certain amount of over-engineering, all of the parts are either replaceable of repairable. I would guess that many more suffer from neglect and disuse rather than being worn out. If the compression checks out good, runs, shifts, starts, and it looks like it hasn't been dragged behind a truck, chances are that it is a decent engine. Change out the coils if they are not new or newer. Definetly a new impeller & seals, tune up, fuel filter.

My duck boat is powered by a 59 35hp Johnson! It's electric start and has never failed to start. I admit to having gone through it with a fine tooth comb prior to risking my life with it. Coils, points, plugs, seals, water impeller, filter, yada, yada, yada. It also sucks gas like there's no tomorrow! I also have a 64 9.5hp Johnson that I can't bring myself to get rid of because it's such a fine running engine.
 
In my opinion you should try to get a motor that will use a 50:1 mix for fuel. Motors that use points could have a problem if there is to much wear at the armature plate and power head. If the power head has to much wear, there is no real fix. Also, if you can do power head removal to replace crank case seals to keep correct crankcase pressure, this could be needed in used motors. You cannot really detect if the bottom crank seal is bad and moisture has caused it to start rusting. Coils for each cylinder is good in case one goes out and you will have at least one to limp home on. The moving wire bundle for the armature plate could have almost broken wires if the bundle routing pinches the bundle to tight. Look for excessive wear on linkages and housing to see if it has been kept up with the right lubricant. The housing parts can be expensive to replace or repair along with a major tear down to replace something. Go to the library to see if there is a repair manual for the motor you are interested in and look it over for parts that you could have to replace if a major repair is needed and see if there are available. Sometimes buying a little newer and paying a little more may give you less problems down the road.

.
 
As noted above, parts availability is crucial. I had an '84 Merc 7.5hp that Merc was no longer supporting with parts, and there were limited parts available from the outfit that had bought the parts inventory.

Secondly, are you mechanically inclined to do repair work yourself? Say you have an older motor and it's popping out of gear because the clutch dogs are worn out. Bring it to a repair shop and you are quickly into a repair bill several times the value of the motor. But if you can do the work yourself, the repair cost isn't so bad.....as long as you know what you are doing.
 
ditto on parts availability.

You don't show where you live. Fresh water is an easier environment than salt water.

I apply a different factor for simple low horsepower motors (less than 15 hp or so) than larger units. If a low hp unit passes your simple checks it would be good to go for me.

I replaced an 8 year old 175 that was still running a few years ago. The cost consequences associated with repairing an older but modern (complicated) motor can be eye watering costly.
 
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