Yamaha, Suzuki or Mercury 60 HP

[3amigos]

Hi All,

Am buying a new 60hp for the boat, but undecided as to which would be the best buy. As you can imagine the Yamaha guys say theirs is better and Suzuki and Mercury say the same. It would be great to get an unbiased opinion from you all.

Thanks for your input.

Cheers,

Doug

[Mr Squidy]

Hi Doug,

I bought a 60hp four stroke Merc at the end of 2010 and have generally been very happy. Only events of real note are:

Firstly I had an issue with a fuel pump in the system failing. These things happen and it was fixed under warranty with no undue hastle.

Secondly, I live in Gymea and my local merc dealer closed down about a year after purchasing it. This left me with the nearest Merc dealer listed on the website for servicing either out liverpool way or in near the city. I emailed Merc about this and they got back to me same day with two local mariners who's mechanics they would recognise as acceptable service people without voiding my warranty.

So pretty happy with the service and resolution on those issues that i've had and otherwise it has been a fantastic motor so far.

I've got mates who swear on both the other two brands too so at the end of the day i reckon just see who offers the best deal, for me that was Merc, hence my choice.

Hope some of that helps.

Rich

[Juggs]

what engine is it replacing and what was performance like top speed and rpm and on what hull

basically the biggest contributing factor i sthe quality of the dealer doing the initial fitup, sorting out the prop and then servicing it

all brands are decent, to me the dealer matters most as all brands play up and id say about the same amount (purely guestimation before someone jumps on me about their beloved white engines)

[oz_brett]

Not sure there is a true answer to your question, When I was looking to purchase I went through the same questions. One dealer actualy said "there all prety much the same these days" but since then Ive learned of some differences...

first theres the sound - some you cant hear and others you cant talk over without yelling at each other.

Then fuel consumption - this is not just the motor it also depends on the prop pitch & design, after spending so much money on a new motor dont go cheep on the prop it does make all the difference!

Try to test drive boats with the motors your looking at and have a good listen to them at idle and flat out, dont worry too much about how they perform because thats not your boat its pushing.

Go to www.boatsales.com.au under the "news and reviews" tab check out engine reviews. I found that very helpful.

incase your wondering what I ended up with... Honda & loving it!

Brett

[Zdenk01]

I am curious to see which engine would be trouble free ( I doubt there would be any )

Now this would hard to measure.

A 10hr young engine (should be trouble free) & so should 200hr engine

There is just too many variables outside the normal service schedule that could influence

a failure.

My recommendation would be to talk to a number of Mechanics about any or all of the minor & major

failures that occur with all brands.

I hope this helps

Zed

Edited May 30, 2012 by ALPHABET

[zook2001]

I've owned both Yammy and Zuki, the initial purchase price would be less for the Suzuki, maybe somewhat offset by six monthly rather than annual serving. Yammy certainly have the advantage with he dealer network but I'd tend to choose your nearest dealer and go with his brand.

[Juggs]

I've owned both Yammy and Zuki, the initial purchase price would be less for the Suzuki, maybe somewhat offset by six monthly rather than annual serving. Yammy certainly have the advantage with he dealer network but I'd tend to choose your nearest dealer and go with his brand.

in both four and 2 strokes in the 50-70hp range yamaha were significantly cheaper then suzuki and lighter in the 70hp at least there was 20-30 kilos in it

yamaha also has the benefit of their yloan financing, which ive used to buy 4-5 outboards 2 bikes and even a gokart

also as you said a much larger dealer network then the others

[3amigos]

Thanks guys, I will speak to a mobile mechanic, I guess they would deal with most brands.

[3amigos]

Thanks for the input, I decided on the 60 Merc EFI from Leisurecoast Marine in Wollongong, they really offered the best value for money

Cheers,

Doug

[Benzeenees]

I have a Yamaha 60 hp 4 stroke on my Quintrex 490 Topender ( equiv to current 510 model). Had it for 5 years. It has never missed a beat - always starts first time. I have it serviced about once a year - sometimes that extends to 15 months. I can't compare it to other motors, but I'm more than happy with it. And it's very quiet + no 2 stroke fuel smell. If I was buying now I would get the 70 hp unit - it wasn't available when I bought my boat.