Etec Oil Consumption

[Reel Blue]

I am trying to establish whether my 175 etec's oil consumption is 'normal'. I typically run the motor around 3500rpm pushing a 650 Haines Hunter Classic at around 22 knots and consuming about 24 litres of fuel per hour. What should the ratio of fuel to oil consumption be at this setting when using XD100 oil? I'm guessing about 80 to 1? Some people seem to be claiming much leaner oil consumption.

[a boat]

Hi Reel, at that RPM I would be thinking you are about right with your 80:1 ratio. What are you finding you are using? The best way to do this is either with the laptop plugged into the engine while running and not only will it give you accurate fuel usage it also gives you the oil usage in L/Hr. I am guessing though that you do not have a laptop with the software, so the other way is start with a know amount of fuel and oil and run though say 100 litres of fuel and than top the oil back up and see what it takes.

If you have a laptop and are confident with it I can download the software into it and then with the coms cable that is not that dear depending on your laptop you can see what i am talking about on the monitor screen as well as having an accurate hour meter with hours and also an RPm profile plus a heap more.

Hopefully your engine has been propped right and you are seeing 5400-5600 at WOT with your normal load.

Cheers,

Huey.

[Reel Blue]

Thany you for the reply Huey. I have the viper 13.5x17 and was told that that was the right prop during the sea trial with the new boat. It only pulled 5100RPM during the sea trial. Since then I have requested a different prop as I was concerned the motor would be working too hard and was told by my dealer that they would get back to me. I'm still waiting. I have also been told that it is still within the recommended range so if I want a new prop it looks like I'll be buying it. I even sent an email to BRP but got no reply there either. I am thinking that the 13.5x16 viper would probably increase revs to at least 5300rpm and would be a better choice. Other than that I'm unsure what prop would be best. My original question was posted as I was concerned I may be using too much oil but 80-1 would be about right. However the motor does have an oil 'smell' unlike my previous four stroke and there is oily soot on the leg underneath the water hose flushing fitting. I have been told that is is programmed for xd 100.

[GregL]

Hi Reel Blue

How old is your motor?

My Etec (225HO) used a fair bit of oil in the first 30-40hr of use but now (65hr) seems to have leaned back alot! Same with fuel to, at the start we were only getting 3 trips per tank now it's at least 5. Oil smell dies off when the oil consumption drops to.

Greg

[Reel Blue]

New in May 2007. Has 103hours on it. Overall I love the motor; what I'm about is fine tuning it to get the best possible economy and performance and double checking that everything is as it should be regarding oil consumption.

[scrat rat]

I have a 150 ETEC on signature 5.8m new May 2007 have about 50 hours (lucky guy you have 2 times what I have) what you are getting sounds about very right to me 3500 is about 25+ knots about same fuel burn maybe a bit less for me but depends on trim and conditions.

I have lighter boat and smaller engine but is very similar and If you asked me to extrapoloate from my boat to yours I would have those figures as well.

Yeap once you go over 40 hours did also notice drop in fuel consumption and oil usage has dropped off from the early part. the soot is normal and is easliy washed off at the end of the day. you will get more if you troll.

I get no smell.

Cheers

Peter

Edited January 3, 2008 by scrat rat

[Flightmanager]

I have a 75HP Etec , bought new in April , it has approx 100 hours , used 3.8 litres of XD100 . No smell or residue . From memory , after 10 hours at over 2000 RPM , oil feed is greatly reduced .

Ross

[a boat]

Hi Guys, straight off the top all E-TEC for the first 2 hours above 2000RPM double your oil so with most of you beening out of break-in mode the oil you are using is about what you should expect.

Reel, you have a too tall prop on your boat and it is not good your dealer is not prepared to work with you on fitting the right prop- if he was any good the boat should never have had that prop on it because the ideal RPm range for your engine is 5300-5500, with much better performacne and economy if propped towards the top of that range. He is right saying that it is in the recommended rev range, but it is not the best prop for your rig. If you are only seeing 5100, than I would be say you should not be running this prop and you need to try a 15 inch Viper or the new Rebel series props that on heavy deep vee boats tend to work the best. Not good to hear that he is saying you have to buy the right prop, but I can not control other dealers and unfortunately liek any industry there are good and bad guys.

I also suspect it may not be set for XD-100 if you are saying you are smelling oil, but again the only way to confirm that is with the laptop, but at least it will not harm you like the carbon monoxide that comes from other technologies used for outboards. When set for XD-100 your oil usuage should be about a 1/3 less the factory setting for any TCW3 oil.

If I can be of further help please ask and stay on top of the dealer becasue he has done you no favours by propping it to only reach 5100 RPM and he should help you out with the right prop.

Cheers,

Huey.

[Reel Blue]

Thany you Huey. I will be in contact with my original dealer again to see if I can resolve the prop issue. I will arrange for the oil to be checked next week at another ETEC dealership closer to my home and check if it is indeed programed for xd 100.

[On Edge]

Hi Reel Blue,

"Without Prejudice" I purchased a new e-tec late last year, I also had issues with motor not being propped correctly and also had a few dramas with the dealer in regards to them supplying me with the correct prop & not to mention that the boat leaked like a sieve from engine mount which I resealed myself. After the dealers second failed attempt at propping my boat correctly I did some of my own research & came to the conclusion that I had to reduce prop size in order to reach an optimum performance level (5300-5500). On the advice given from BRP (Bruce) & Solace Props I then approached my dealer whom did not want to exchange my prop, after demanding the prop to be exchanged or for me to be reimbursed the value of the prop so I can buy the correct prop elsewhere they then agreed to swap props over but not return if I was not happy with the new prop. I can only tell you that the new prop worked spot on to say the least & I can also tell you that know matter how sincere a dealer may sound or willing to lend a hand you must remember that the bottom line is "MONEY" not good old fashioned service those dealers are extinct or just to hard to find. As I was once in your shoes I strongly suggest that you contact BRP Technical division and speak to Bruce & Bruce only & contact Solace Props gather your info & stand your ground with your dealer as I did. With no thanks to a very arrogant dealer I now enjoy excellent fuel & oil consumption from my e-tec the best of luck to you Reel Blue & if I can help you Please PM me.

[slinkymalinky]

G'day Reel Blue...

I worried about mine for a while but because it didn't seem to be using enough. I've only got a little E-Tec 75 with about 120 hours on it. It averages about 150-200:1 with XD100 (and at the price, it needs to!!)

I run my motor in the harbour so most of the hours are 3500-4000 RPM zipping from one spot to the next with occasional live bait trolling runs at idle.

Cheers, Slinky

[Reel Blue]

In an earlier post I stated that it looked like I'd be buying a new prop as my dealer had told me that the current prop was operating within the recommended range. The dealer did promise to get back to me and at the time I posted I was indeed still waiting. At no time was I told that they wouldn't assist. I am happy to report that my earlier assumption was incorrect. I have been dealing with Queensland Boating World (QBW)at Maroochydore and the managing director, Scott. Today they provided me a brand new 15.75x15 Rebel stainless prop as a direct swap for my 14.75x17 Viper prop. There was no charge for this and I'll water test the prop tomorrow. Hopefully it will suit the boat and seems likely to as it has been recommended by several people. QBW staff were extremly helpful and I have always found them this way. I will have the oil consumption tested shortly by a BRP dealership closer to my home as I did not tow the boat to Maroochydore. If the new prop is more efficient I'll end up using less fuel and oil anyway and so far it has still proven to be very economical; as mentioned earlier I am simply wanting to fine tune everything to get the most from it.

[a boat]

Hi Reel, good to see the dealer has done the right thing by you and swapped the prop for the correct one. The 15 inch Rebel are great props suited for the torque curves of the E-TEC and work best on heavy deep vee boats like yours.

Go out and enjoy now,

Cheers,

Huey.