Engine choice, Mercury or Mariner?

[Ron173]

G'day all,

I'm in process of buying a small fishing tinnie, which will have a 15hp straight 2 stroke on it.

Dealer has a Mercury or a Mariner available, both new, and same price.

I'm leaning towards the Merc, as had one before and it was ok, can anyone advise if one is better than the other in this hp size?

Rgds

Ron

[Argle]

I think you will find the only difference is the colour of the cowl and the stickers. Go with the Merc as it might have a slightly better resale - for what reason is beyond me its a bit like suzi 140 and Johnno 140 same engine different paint.

Cheers and beers
Scott

[bushbeachboy]

Exactly the same motor mate, and a beauty at that. Go with whichever colour suits you best, or whichever is priced better.

[dnej]

Ron,
Same thing really,as mentioned previously,unless ther has been a change.
If it were me , I would be going Yamaha.Where do you live?
David

[sik008]

They are both good motors and my preference would be the merc. All motors thesedays have the same technology....their isnt goin to be much difference in either of the motors... The mercs hav alot more power though. I think they are both owned by the same company! My choice was be the merc though...

cheers alex

[disorderly]

They are both good motors and my preference would be the merc. All motors thesedays have the same technology....their isnt goin to be much difference in either of the motors... The mercs hav alot more power though. I think they are both owned by the same company! My choice was be the merc though...

cheers alex

Gday Alex ,

Just wondering why you would think the merc would have a lot more power ?

Scott

[TheSaint]

Same engine mate.. Get what colour you like!

[peterbo3]

A little while ago, both Merc & Mariner 15s were rebadged Tohatsus. Have a peek at the country of origin plate on the upper leg. If it shows Japan, then Merc are still using Tohatsu. The Towies are great little motors, simple, well made & reliable. A Towie dealer may be able to give you a better price.

[bluefin59]

Hi mate i have a 60 mariner and my cousin has the same in a merc both 04 models as the others said they are exactly the same except the colour of the cowel and they are also interchangable cowels of and you cant tell the diff bluefin59...

[Shane Dyer]

MERC/MARINER........MARINER/MERC .Ask the dealer if they are the same price,if there is a difference,take the cheapest.Dont listen to anyone who tries to bag these motors as they did the old ones,they are one of the best on the market.

[2iar]

MERC/MARINER........MARINER/MERC .Ask the dealer if they are the same price,if there is a difference,take the cheapest.Dont listen to anyone who tries to bag these motors as they did the old ones,they are one of the best on the market.

Spot on.

Observationally, you may get a Mariner a bit cheaper but get better resale with from a Mercury. It's probably a perception/historical thing.

But like everyone's saying, either way, you'll be getting the same motor.

Good luck,
Mike

[sik008]

hey disordly
i hav a mate with a 15 hp merc with a 12 foot tinne and a mate with a 15 hp mariner with 12 foot tinny... The motors are not the same age but the merc smashed the mariner in a race...
Thats y i thought the merc was more powerful...

cheers alex

[saurian]

Ron , I've had a few 15 mercs with the fnr on the tiller( yank model).
If thats the one you are talking about go for it... Merc or mariner..
Once you get the hang of the gears on the tiller handle everything else seems strange......
The yank model is same /same- merc/mariner so pick a colour....lol...
Just to check does it weigh 35 kg in short shaft ???
If so yank model..
Ta

[Shane Dyer]

I agree that resale is very important but we are all learning that they are the same motor it shouldnt make anny difference to resale.I certainly would have no hesitation in buying a second hand boat with a recent mariner motor.Would you?

[Ron173]

Thanks for all replies,

Have gone with the Merc.

Ron

[Reef_fisher]

If they are the same price, ask for a discount on the Mariner. But yeah same motor.

[bastard]

I was told that a mariner is a one year old merc and that is how they sell off access stock.

[Mercury16]

is the Mariner made in Japan? is the Merc made in Japan, i had the choise of a use merc or a jap one, i chose the us and couldnt be happier, hey boysyou reckon my American 15hp merc is a tohy?

cheers Peter

[Blackened]

G'day

Wh do they produce mercury AND mariner?? Both brands have strong brand recognition in different parts of the world, It would be silly to kill one brand totally in an instant.

Both are produced by brunswick corp. Just as OMC had both evinrude and johnson.

A Mariner is a Mercury, they obtain their different cowels and serial no's in the last stage of production and go out the door as either.


I'm not sure who told you that basterd, but it may be worth asking a few more questions.

As I understand it, A US merc is just that, a US merc. A Jap merc is tohatsu based.

I believe it'd be the same for the mariners.

A mariner IS NOT an inferior engine, they just don;t hav the brand recognition as a mercury has.

Please anyone correct me with factual information if the need arises.

Dave

[BM]

This thread is going in circles....

Yes a Merc is a Mariner these days.

Mercury entered into a 10 yr agreement with Yamaha in approx 1972. So for 10 yrs we had the familiar grey and red Mariner outboards that were actually Yamahas. Easy to tell. Look at the round fuel pumps and the dead giveaway Mikuni (Jap) carbs.

In 1982 approx the agreement expired and Yamaha were introduced into the country as Yamaha. Mercury then began production of Mariners which were simply Mercs. After all, there was 10 yrs of history and sales of Mariner engines so owners of the original Mariners would quite conceivably purchase another Mariner which by then was in reality a Merc.

Many companies will have multiple input into a particular industry as it increases your market share overall, even though its the same product. Simply because some people have preconceived ideas and they won't listen to reason or fact and maintain their ignorant position. This makes the whole concept viable (how silly is that!!!!!)

As far as I am aware pretty much all Mercs up to about 30hp are built by Tohatsu. Technology sharing or production sharing has been going on for many years and is a smart way of reducing production costs.

So, to sum up:

Since approx 1982 A Merc is a Mariner and vice versa

A Johnson is an Evinrude and vice versa and has been since around 1915 approx. Although presently the Johnson brand is slated to be killed off completely or almost completely and BRP will be only offering Etec technology direct injection 2 strokes. The technology sharing agreement BRP had with Suzuki for the 4 stroke development is now over and 4 stroke Johnsons no longer exist.

Mercury and Yamaha joint ventured for their 4 stroke engines also. I believe that union is about to or has already ceased.

Hope this clears up a few things.

Cheers

[fishin_till_late]

The Jap merc's/mariners 6hp, 8hp and 30hp are marketed as a "lightweight" model.
The 15hp jap merc/mariner's are marketed as the 15hp super.
If it's not a LW(lightweight) or super model it's US, if it is LW or Super its Jap.
Also generally the US models have the gears located in the tiller where the Jap's are just on the side of the motor.

[Mercury16]

your Spot on Fishin_till_late

[KGW3]

I have a new (2yo) Mariner 50 ELPTO. It's a USA made model and comes with a "Mercury" owners manual. The online parts guide shows EVERY part the same except the cowl cover. I have always liked Mercs/Mariners and just about all criticism of them comes from old neglected motors that have failed.
There aremany 20-30 yo Mercs still running today.. My last one was a 1980 Blueband that was sold still running with 120-130 psi in all 4 pots.
I think ALL modern OB's are good these days, whether they are Jap, American or even soon to be Chinese. This is due to competition.

[Noelm]

it is kind of unusual to have a dealer selling both Merc and Mariner, they where usually different (although the motors are the same of course) but I guess there is no real reason not to have both, just a tad unusual, I also believe that the Mariner brand is now discontinued over seas, there was a very big difference in sales figures, so they are ditching Mariner, but will keep it here is Aus for a while yet (I think)

[Noelm]

hey, just on the gear shift on the throttle 'twist grip" when I got my first Merc with that I thought it was a kind of silly idea, but after having it for a couple of years, I wanted a new motor and went for another merc, just because it had the throttle gear shift (I tried a couple of "normal shift" motors) works really great and much better to use, that idea was used way way back (in about 1978) on the old Volvo outboards, the motors where really sh!t, and the twist gear shift seized up after about 6 months, but thankfully Mercs work a treat.

[DR]

unless things have changed in the last few years, while thay may be the same motors, put a Merc next to a Mariner & look at the quality of paint finish. might give an idea to why Mariners are always a bit cheaper, less attention to detail in certain to keep price down a bit , maybe?????

[KGW3]

My Mariner seems to have nice paint.. Except when I did a bit of dredging with the prop in that damn Pumicestone passage.

[Noelm]

they are built and painted by the SAME spray painters in the SAME plant.

[DR]

they are built and painted by the SAME spray painters in the SAME plant.

the ones i looked at when i bought my Merc. i doubt that very much. mine is US made mariner wasn't
Mercs were deep, rich with max gloss. mariners paint was applied a lot thinner & did not have same depth/amount & gloss, looked that prep was not as substantial.

[Noelm]

becuse the merc IS a gloss black (and looks good) whereas the Mariner is a sort of flatish silver metalic, it's the way it is supposed to be, the very early "tower of power" silver mariners where gloss metalic silver and very bit as glossy as a Merc.