advice on buying 150hp O/B

[Boats&Outboards]

Originally Posted by Screaming04

Peter, I wasn't inferring that you were unscrupulous, but obviously the agents who gave you the information are! You just happen to be helping them reinforce the myth.

Ppenman. I'm just referring to simple maintenance. Oil changes, plugs lube etc. The owner doesn't require diagnostic tools for that. Just like a car, these modern outboards will let the owner know when they need dealer attention ( warning codes etc)

My first service was completed by me. $50 for oil. $12 for the filter. Tax included. I already had the gear lube at home. 5 years service will be a fraction of yamaha service... Especially the belt/valve service. I expect those ones will be more expensive than your last one.

No problems. Out of interest, where does it say that you need not have it dealer serviced to maintain the warranty ?

No dealer told me directly either, I picked it up from a recent thread on Ribnet from a mercury main dealer

[ppenman]

Hi,

My reading of the doc is that it states that the owner must ensure that maintenance is performed and logged. I can't find anything stating that it's okay for user maintenance to be performed. Can you please tell me which part of the manual I need to look at.

What you've said about indicator lamps is generally only true for serious faults. ECUs contain a lot more information (manufacturer specific) which may include information about the general health of an engine over a period e.g. Intermittent soak misfire which the owner probably hasn't noticed but may cause problems long term.

[Screaming04]

Right at the beginning of the manual it says that maintenance must be performed with no restrictions as to By whom. It does say that emissions service must be performed by someone certified to do so.

As to that dealer's post?! You have my opinion already. I'd like that dealer to explain why Mercury would go through all the trouble of user maintenance design, only to insist that his blokes do the maintenance?!

I've posted my documentation. I challenge the mercury dealer to post documentation stating that only a mercury dealer can perform regular maintenance.

[Screaming04]

It does not say that a dealer must do the maintenance. the owner shall ensure that it is done according to the manual. It has always been that way here. Google magnusson moss act.

Here's the Yamaha outboard warranty for Canada. Part C exclusions. Nothing about non-Yamaha dealer maintenance.

Note the one big exclusion. Warranty is void unless purchased and prepped (rigged) by a certified dealer.

http://www.yamaha-motor.ca/warranty/en/pdf/polcyob.pdf

[Screaming04]

I'm beating my head against the wall here. Nothing I can say will convince you. Here's the company promo. Lots of propaganda but maintenance is at 6:40.

Do you take the engine to the dealer to flush the salt out as well?!

New Mercury 150 FourStroke EFI - YouTube

[Screaming04]

Originally Posted by ppenman

Hi,

My reading of the doc is that it states that the owner must ensure that maintenance is performed and logged. I can't find anything stating that it's okay for user maintenance to be performed. Can you please tell me which part of the manual I need to look at.

You show me where it says the dealer must perform the the maintenance!

It suggests dealers change the alternator belt and torque the engine mounts specifically. ( note it says the dealer SHOULD do this specific maintenance, it does not say SHALL... There is a difference )

As shown above, Yamaha is the same... Leave the major service to the dealer, save the 250 quid on the oil changes.

To the original poster. Sorry this has gotten off track. Love my new merc 150. Good luck with your choice.

I'll stop now.

[ppenman]

If you re-read the posts you will see that at no point have I said the dealer must perform the maintenance so I don't understand your reply.

Anyway, if you're happy performing maintenance and possibly having problems in the event of a warranty claim then great.

Personally, having thousands of pounds invested in an engine, I'd rather not take the chance for the sake of a few hundred pounds spread over a number of years.

[Screaming04]

A trade member mentioned the "dealer" service requirement in another thread and it was posted here.

Originally Posted by ppenman

Hi,
I can't find anything stating that it's okay for user maintenance to be performed.

Originally Posted by ppenman

In the UK I believe that for the warranty to remain valid you have to be able to prove that :

1. The person performing the work is suitably qualified and trained
2. Correct equipment is available e.g. PC diagnostic tools

So yes, you can service it by yourself but can most people satisfy the above criteria.

What you "believe", is simply untrue as proven by the warranty I posted earlier. These "criteria" do not need to be satisfied. If you choose to have maintenance done by someone other that yourself, that's fine.

Please don't discourage others and perpetuate falsehoods on a forum with hundreds of people looking for information.

[clydeoutboards]

Originally Posted by Screaming04

I purchased a new mercury 150 4 stroke about 4 months ago. This is the all new, non-verado unit. So far, it has been outstanding. Quiet, fuel efficient and plenty of power/speed.

What sets it apart from other four strokes. Large 3 litre displacement, simple single cam design with a timing chain (no belts to change or valves to adjust). All maintenance can be done by the owner... Oil changes are dead simple.

It also drinks a lot of fuel compared to the others and has the slowest top speed so for me it does not tick either of the main boxes I would want based on where I live and how i would use the boat

If however fuel was not stupidly high in price and I was buying purely for acceleration then this is what I would go for.

enjoy

Dave

[gotchiguy]

Originally Posted by clydeoutboards

It also drinks a lot of fuel compared to the others and has the slowest top speed so for me it does not tick either of the main boxes I would want based on where I live and how i would use the boat

If however fuel was not stupidly high in price and I was buying purely for acceleration then this is what I would go for.

enjoy

Dave

Funny that in the test that you post it is the old VERADO model that was tested, an engine that has now been replaced with the one under discussion? Perhaps you would be willing to perform a back to back test with one of your beloved Hondas? The new Mercury 150 is not only ten kilos lighter but more fuel efficient and, as this topic reinforces, far easier for the DIY boater to work on, therefore for many people in hard to reach areas of scotland it is a much better proposition than the Honda. But wait...with the Honda they have to come back to you once a year for servicing...so no way could you sell this Mercury that doesn't, even though it would save a remotely-located boater time, money and inconvenience.

I would not trust that magazine test test any way, few of the engines are propped correctly. The optimum operating range for that 150 etec is 5500 to 5600 at WOT. No wonder it is not returning the best figures. Doesn't say much for the quietness and smoothness of these wonderful four strokes when the decibel reading is almost identical to, and at some points greater than that smoky old two stroke etec. Perhaps you'd like to measure the pollution coming out of the exhaust too? CO levels would make interesting reading considering Honda's "ecomo" push....

That's before we even mention the over 27kilo reduction in weight between the Honda and the Etec. The only place the etec falls down on in that test is in the fuel economy but it is significantly overpropped and therefore labouring so there is no way it could achieve its best fuel economy.

[CJL]

Originally Posted by clydeoutboards

It also drinks a lot of fuel compared to the others and has the slowest top speed so for me it does not tick either of the main boxes I would want based on where I live and how i would use the boat

If however fuel was not stupidly high in price and I was buying purely for acceleration then this is what I would go for.

enjoy

Dave

I've now got one of the new 150 four stroke from Merc and it is amazing. It is not thirsty at all and we're very happy with it. More to the point the purchase price was streets ahead of anything else on the market!

I've tried Honda's in the past and the early 50hp 4 strokes were terrible. The servicing costs were terrible as well.

PLEASE don't bang on about fuel economy! Most leisure users don't even come close to recovering the costs. The main drivers will be purchase costs, servicing costs,

CJL

[jezza2011]

according to thet vid you do it yourself and scan the barcode and it connects you to your maintenance records? nice.
so that looks like you can and are encouraged to do the simple servicing yourself.

nice

[clydeoutboards]

Originally Posted by CJL

PLEASE don't bang on about fuel economy! Most leisure users don't even come close to recovering the costs. The main drivers will be purchase costs, servicing costs,

CJL

Sorry I disagree as that depends on the user and hence varies from person to person as they all have different purchase criteria.

Many people buy Yams and Honda's because of their reputation , others dont think the premium price is worth it or can not afford it. Luckily for Yam and Honda many people do think the premium is worth it otherwise they would not sell many engines!

As for fuel economy, well again this depends on the person as our customers range from very few hours to over 300 and at the higher end of these it does make a huge difference so sorry we will need to agree to disagree. If it will not be used much i.e. very few hours then most buy 2nd hand as they would not make saving in fuel a new engine would give them.

Interestingly we also sell to various clubs and upfront money for a yam / honda is not a problem as this comes from a government grant ( loto funding for the last one that now has a Honda 150!) but the day to day running costs are paid for by their members so economy is vital to therm.


Dave

[ppenman]

Originally Posted by Screaming04

A trade member mentioned the "dealer" service requirement in another thread and it was posted here.

What you "believe", is simply untrue as proven by the warranty I posted earlier. These "criteria" do not need to be satisfied. If you choose to have maintenance done by someone other that yourself, that's fine.

Please don't discourage others and perpetuate falsehoods on a forum with hundreds of people looking for information.

I'm sorry but you're not even reading your own 'evidence' correctly. The manual clearly states that certain parts of the 100hr/annual services onwards must be serviced by an authorised dealer. Now if a person is happy to take this risk then I would advise them to contact their dealer or importer to set their mind at rest.

[Screaming04]

Originally Posted by clydeoutboards

It also drinks a lot of fuel compared to the others and has the slowest top speed so for me it does not tick either of the main boxes I would want based on where I live and how i would use the boat

If however fuel was not stupidly high in price and I was buying purely for acceleration then this is what I would go for.

enjoy

Dave

Please add the disclaimer to your sig. "I am a Honda dealer, my posts are hugely biased." That way people can read them for what they are. Pure rubbish.

Your statements regarding fuel use have no basis in fact. This is not a Verado. It is also not an overweight pig, developed 15 years ago.

[clydeoutboards]

lets also be be honest hear as you state you dont trust reviews in magazines so where do you get your information from to say your engine was any good at all! how many people did you speak to and how many engines do you see each year?

I work with them for al living and would have a yam or honda over any mercury all the time. I just wish we also sold yam.

if however I lived in Canada where fuel was a lot cheaper and I did not need the yam/ honda reliability then I might possibly consider one and then buy a tohatsu

[peterwhite]

http://www.mercury-marine.eu/media/8...arranty_en.pdf

take a look to clarify warranty terms for mercury and mariner in Europe. Would guess that the others have something similar as the rules in the eu are slightly more strict on servicing than in the us. Same as with servicing cars has to be done by at least a registered motor engineers using genuine parts

[gotchiguy]

Originally Posted by clydeoutboards

I...would have a yam or honda over any mercury all the time.

Why do you promote mercury and mariner on your website homepage then?

[ALANT]

Same as with servicing cars has to be done by at least a registered motor engineers using genuine parts[/QUOTE]

Think you will find that is OEM spec or higher it doesn't need to be original (Quinton Hazell went to court with Ford who said there parts were inferior so couldn't be used for warranty claim, Ford lost as Quinton Hazell made ford genuine parts). Won't bother me I can't afford a new car and do all my own servicing anyway.

[yam man]

I worked for main dealer who supplied mercury outboards , mercruiser and yam diesels. As long as genuine equipment or oem spec parts were used and competent person fitted the parts. A warranty a claim was never refused .