1997 20 Dauntless Re-power

[B200 Driver]

Hi folks. I am a new member and need some advice on my 1997 Dauntless 20 purchased one year ago.

I have a blown motor after one season. The current engine is a 2001 Mercury 225 EFI Saltwater series . Has anyone had this era engine rebuilt for $5,000 instead of re-powering with a newer engine, like a Merc OptiMax, a Yamaha F200XA V6, or Suzuki DF200 or DF225?

I want to get the best return on investment and best reliability from the next outboard engine I buy.

I am concerned about the transom weight limit--from what I can see it is 540-lbs, based on other posts, and also the maximum power rating of 225-HP. We mainly use boat for water skiing and cruising. I am concerned about the weight of the Yamaha F200XA that's being recommended by the marina. The weight also could affect the scuppers self-bailing, as I keep the boat on a mooring.

Any suggestions on rebuild v. re-power?

Any suggestions on the most reliable engine choice?

On a four-stroke-power-cycle engine or staying with two-stroke-power? Thanks

[jimh]

Regarding having an engine re-built: when an outboard engine power head is rebuilt, the outcome will depend almost entirely on the skill of the person performing the rebuild. Usually a rebuild of a power head involves correcting some sort of catastrophic failure in the cylinders. If the rebuilder is very skilled, is a reliable operation, uses the finest materials, has all the proper machines needed, a rebuilt engine could be quite nearly like a new engine--of course depending on how many components get replaced instead of reused. Because the outcome is so dependent on who does the work, you cannot just assume that one rebuilt engine is as good as another. A rebuilt engine might last you only one season--or it might run for ten years. It is just not easy to predict which outcome you will get, unless you really know the person doing the work, that guy has some track record and reputation, and you also fix the original problem that caused the catastrophe in the first place--which may not have been the fault of the engine but could have been external, like a fuel system problem.


To me, investing $5,000 to rebuild a 2001 Mercury 225 EFI is not a great investment. I have serious doubt that immediately after taking delivery of your rebuilt 2001 engine that could sell it for $5,000. You could test this theory by looking around for used Mercury 225 EFI engines that are a bit newer and are in perfect condition. See what sort of money they can fetch on the market. Also explore the value of your present engine as a scrap engine--good for some major parts. Also, some of the older Mercury engines are favorites with drag boat guys or race boat guys, and the engine might have some value to them you did not anticipate.

For a random data point to compare: in 2009 I sold a 1992 225-HP engine, an Evinrude. The engine was in flawless condition, ran perfectly, had been very well maintained, looked like new, and had several new electrical components, was entirely a freshwater engine, and was really a creampuff. The engine was 17-years old. Your 2001 225-HP engine after a rebuild will also be about 17-years-old. Now in general I would say that an all-original engine in excellent condition is probably worth more than an identical engine that suffered a major catastrophe and had to have its powerhead rebuilt. I can tell you that after having my engine on the market for about eight months I finally took an offer for it that was much less than $5,000--and it was the only offer I had received. This experience is why I think that if your spent $5,000 to rebuild your 17-year-old Mercury 225 I doubt you could then immediately sell it for $5,000.

[jimh]

Re most reliable outboard engine: there is really not any hard data about reliability of outboard engines, other than a few really bad examples to avoid. In today's world, no manufacturer can make an truly unreliable engine, as they would go out of business in three months if they did.

You can, perhaps, judge the manufacturer's faith in his product by his warranty offer. If you buy a new engine and it comes with six years of warranty, maybe that is a better engine than one that comes with two years of warranty. Outboard engine makers often use warranty length as a sales promotion device. If I were buying a new engine, I would study the warranty promotions and try to buy a new engine during some period when there was a big warranty promotion going on them. Those offers usually coincide with end-of-season (Fall) or start of season (early Spring).

You might also look at how much recommend service is needed to maintain an engine. Some engines need quite a bit of annual service; others only need service at periods like three or five years or certain use-hour benchmarks.

[jimh]

Regarding getting return on investment from buying a new outboard engine: good luck. Modern outboard engines are priced more like jewelry than machinery. Buying a new engine when you have a running old engine is something of a irrational and emotion decision. Boating is supposed to bring pleasure--it is called pleasure boating, after all. There is pleasure in having a new engine, one that runs great, sounds great, starts great, does not emit clouds of smoke, sips fuel, is quiet, has modern electronic instrumentation. Those are are nice fun things to enjoy. That is your return on investment.

[B200 Driver]

Thank you to all that have replied to my post. If you were me, would you buy a new engine or rebuild old one? Considering age of boat [it is] in good condition.

If I were to buy a new engine, can you recommend which engine in the 200 to 225=HP range would be:

--most reliable, and
--meet the transom weight limit of 540-lbs?

[Jefecinco]

I would replace the engine rather than rebuild it unless Mercury Marine has a factory rebuilt power head but but availability is unlikely after all these years

The question I would be trying to answer for myself would be should I buy a late model low hour two stroke (Optimax or E-Tec but not Yamaha) or four stroke. Dealers specializing in repowers could well have some trade-in engines that will meet your requirements.

Otherwise I would be shopping for a new four stroke engine. If a Suzuki meets your power and weight requirement I would be using an installed price including controls as a baseline. I would select Suzuki as the baseline because the brand has become a value leader. Depending on how highly you value a long term warranty that's another factor for the spreadsheet. Power, weight, installed price and warranty seem to be the most important factors although availability of local dealer support can be very important. How you weight the factors is the more subjective part.

Good luck.

[jimh]

I would not rebuild the damaged Mercury 2001 225 EFI two-stroke-power-cycle engine.

I recommend an Evinrude E-TEC G2 225 H.O. It weighs 558-lbs, 18-lbs more than the 540-lbs you specify, but that does not deter my recommendation because the engine weight includes the steering system components that are separate on other engines and weigh at least 20-lbs, if not more. See

http://www.evinrude.com/content/dam/evi ... _225hp.pdf

If you buy it soon, the engine will have a six-year-warranty.

Compared to the engine you had been using that has now failed catastrophically, you will have in the E-TEC G2 an enormously advanced technology. See

http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/022663.html

and

http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/023026.html

The E-TEC G2 74-degree engines have been in production for over three years, and the "bugs" have been worked out of them. You'll enjoy five-year intervals between recommended maintenance in normal usage.

For information on a recently re-powered Boston Whaler that installed an E-TEC G2 225, see

http://continuouswave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=2190&p=12672

[B200 Driver]

Thank you all.
Great advice. Much appreciated

[Acseatsri]

I would also look at the Yamaha 4 cylinder 200 at around 500 lbs. We have a couple of them at my marina and all seem happy with them. My friend has one on a 21 Parker and it performs quite adequately coming out of the hole.

Did the dealer recommend the 6 cylinder because he has it in stock?