Merc optimax 90hp

[stevej]

Anyone run a 2008 era merc 90 optimax ?

The boat has 500 hours with a service every year

anything to look out for or to check has been done.
nearly all the run time is 50-100 percent throttle

[gazza2006au]

Over heard a guy at the boat ramp say with the same engine he went out to botany fads and back on 17 litres this was about 6 yesrs ago

[disorderly]

New boat or just turning the Renegade into a race boat..?

[stevej]

Another boat

[gazza2006au]

Noel should know a bit about this engine thats if he is not busy punching on with drunken relos lol

[shaungonemad]

Noel should know a bit about this engine thats if he is not busy punching on with drunken relos lol

Sounds like we missed something?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[gazza2006au]

Sounds like we missed something?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Just in relation to Noels other post about about christmas arguments/fights lol

[Noelm]

It's a 13 year old motor, used in salt water, lots of the early Optis broke the bolt holding the compressor on, the compressor flying around under the cowl did a good job off cleaning up bits and pieces, the alternator was also known to have "issues" I would think by now it would have the upgraded bolt (if it fits in the age bracket) but, like everything second hand, look for verifiable service records, pay your cash and hope.

[stevej]

Just planning to buy it to run a Few cod and bass comps then sell it on a few years
Will have a second look

Not selling the renegade will just swap the sounders between the boats

[gazza2006au]

It pays to check second hand part availbility, my engine is a 09 and a lot of parts are no longer made

[Cobbo1]

Had an 05 Opti 135, my dad has had a lot of boats and described it as the best outboard he's had, we ran it for about 300 hrs (560 when we sold it) only real issue we ever had was the level sensor in the oil tank (1 litre) under the cowling played up one day in Moreton Bay, as soon as it gave the error we headed home and hit 30% mark it went into limp mode even though it was full and still feeding from the under floor tank, but still allowed us to get home. Had to buy a whole tank as the sensor wasn't sold separate which cost just under $1000. The guy at the dealership told us even if it went to 0% it would have just stayed in limp mode but continued to run.

[Noelm]

Would the guy at the dealership rebuild your motor WHEN it failed from lack of oil, there is no "limp mode" the motor is telling you that you ignored the warning sound, and stop now...limping with no oil will cook a motor, just like a dead water pump will.

[gazza2006au]

I would have thought a late model out board would go from beep beep beep to beeeeeeeeep alerting u you must stop the engine

[Cobbo1]

Would the guy at the dealership rebuild your motor WHEN it failed from lack of oil, there is no "limp mode" the motor is telling you that you ignored the warning sound, and stop now...limping with no oil will cook a motor, just like a dead water pump will.

Misunderstood what I was saying there I think Noel, there was still over 8 litres of oil in the main tank plus the 1L under the cowling, the sensor under the cowling failed making the computer think it was running out, I never suggested running an outboard without oil...
And yes there is a limp mode, the revs were restricted to 2800 rpm if I remember correctly, this happened as soon as the level read 30%, even though it was actually full.

[Noelm]

Had an 05 Opti 135, my dad has had a lot of boats and described it as the best outboard he's had, we ran it for about 300 hrs (560 when we sold it) only real issue we ever had was the level sensor in the oil tank (1 litre) under the cowling played up one day in Moreton Bay, as soon as it gave the error we headed home and hit 30% mark it went into limp mode even though it was full and still feeding from the under floor tank, but still allowed us to get home. Had to buy a whole tank as the sensor wasn't sold separate which cost just under $1000. The guy at the dealership told us even if it went to 0% it would have just stayed in limp mode but continued to run.
Nope, it clearly says 0% I can assure you, zero oil, the motor is toast, people call it "limp mode" but in reality it's RPM reduction, telling you the motor is sick and the alarm either failed or was ignored, continue limping and your in trouble, that said, lots of motors go into RPM reduction because of a failed sensor, but, you need to know, you could have litres of oil left, but the motor is not receiving any, it will fail with dire consequences.

[bluefin59]

[/B]Nope, it clearly says 0% I can assure you, zero oil, the motor is toast, people call it "limp mode" but in reality it's RPM reduction, telling you the motor is sick and the alarm either failed or was ignored, continue limping and your in trouble, that said, lots of motors go into RPM reduction because of a failed sensor, but, you need to know, you could have litres of oil left, but the motor is not receiving any, it will fail with dire consequences.

Correct no oil equals catastrophic failure , my old 140Suzuki I was shares in was lent to someone they took the boat out of bribie and ran it dry of self feeding two stroke and melted the big end to the crank so bad it had to be welded up and repaired and was never the same . This is the reason I never share boats and never lend boats , I also would never buy a rebuilt engine ever at least on a boat . Matt

[disorderly]

This is the reason I never share boats and never lend boats , I also would never buy a rebuilt engine ever at least on a boat . Matt

Thats good advice Matt...best not to lend boats, mowers or wives...;);D

[scottar]

Wives are only lent out on one stipulation.......no returns permitted. Transfer of registration will be permanent.

[BigE]

ran a 90 opti for a while and while i run forstokes now i would rate it as the best 2 banger i ever had and the fuel econ wa exceptional.

What I can say is there are some tricks to seting them up. Mine was rigged new and i was happy with it and i thought it was pretty good for a 2 stroke. Anyhow a change of residential address lead me to get it serviced at another dealership, the owner gave me a call and asked if i would be interested in dropping some coin on a refit as when doing the service he noticed some thing " he would do differently when fitting up" I wasnt sure but decide to trust him and spent the extra coin over the service. All i can say is WOW it was like it had 20 more horse power and got better economy. If you get one definately get some who "knows" opti's to set it up correctly. apprently they respond to expectional fit up protocls like big fuel lines without bends or kinks and loads of pure clean 12 volt power with solid clean wiring connections. I know mine was like two different engines.

BigE

[stevej]

The oil res under the cowling gravity feeds if oil is in there it goes into limp mode
The alarm is for the oil sensor under the cowl failing so a visual inspection of oil in the cowling tank would still get you safely home

well until that reserve tank empties

there is an additional alarm for the vacuum system which transfer oil from the main tank to the reserve

im at work so don’t have time to look up the link that gave the info will look for it in a few days

[Cobbo1]

[/B]Nope, it clearly says 0% I can assure you, zero oil, the motor is toast, people call it "limp mode" but in reality it's RPM reduction, telling you the motor is sick and the alarm either failed or was ignored, continue limping and your in trouble, that said, lots of motors go into RPM reduction because of a failed sensor, but, you need to know, you could have litres of oil left, but the motor is not receiving any, it will fail with dire consequences.

Nope, reserve under cowling was full and still feeding fine, it only went into limp mode when the sensor said it was at 30% and we never actually went to zero, keeping in mind the level in the reserve never actually dropped at all, the sensor just told it that it was running out slowly, as Steve said it gravity feeds out of that tank so if there’s oil in the tank it’s getting oil. The mercury dealer went through it all with us and explained that it goes in to limp mode at 30% to reduce the amount of oil being used so you can get home. As I said, at no point did we even come close to running out of oil, and we stopped every 15 minutes to take the cowling off and check, you clearly have no clue about the matter yet you keep trying to tell me I’m wrong, I can assure you at no point did we run without oil.

[Noelm]

Not going to argue the point, just read carefully what you said the mechanic told you...over and out.

[Cobbo1]

Not going to argue the point, just read carefully what you said the mechanic told you...over and out.

😂😂 just like a woman, leave the room instead of admitting you’re wrong

[Noelm]

Had an 05 Opti 135, my dad has had a lot of boats and described it as the best outboard he's had, we ran it for about 300 hrs (560 when we sold it) only real issue we ever had was the level sensor in the oil tank (1 litre) under the cowling played up one day in Moreton Bay, as soon as it gave the error we headed home and hit 30% mark it went into limp mode even though it was full and still feeding from the under floor tank, but still allowed us to get home. Had to buy a whole tank as the sensor wasn't sold separate which cost just under $1000. The guy at the dealership told us even if it went to 0% it would have just stayed in limp mode but continued to run.
See where you said 0% that is NO oil, not a failed sensor, not a broken oil system, NO oil, limp home all you like, NO oil the motor is rooted, limping or not, that's final word from me, you can dispute what you said, you call me names, but please don't make things up, I've been in this rodeo for a very long time.

[Cobbo1]

See where you said 0% that is NO oil, not a failed sensor, not a broken oil system, NO oil, limp home all you like, NO oil the motor is rooted, limping or not, that's final word from me, you can dispute what you said, you call me names, but please don't make things up, I've been in this rodeo for a very long time.

🙄 not sure how else to get this through your thick skull, at NO POINT did we run out of oil, the level in the reserve tank DID NOT DROP, the sensor failed and began to think it was running out, quite a common issue with these things if you google it. I put another 300 hours on this thing after this incident (which was fixed by replacing the sensor that failed). I don’t care how long you’ve been in this rodeo, you’re ignoring basic mechanics and acting like you know all about it even though you weren’t there at the time, I’m not making shit up and I really couldn’t give a #### if some stubborn old fool on the internet believes me or not, I was just trying to help you see reason but that’s clearly beyond you and all your wisdom after spending so much time in this rodeo. Let me reiterate, at NO POINT DID I RUN WITHOUT OIL.

[Cobbo1]

 not sure how else to get this through your thick skull, at NO POINT did we run out of oil, the level in the reserve tank DID NOT DROP, the sensor failed and began to think it was running out, quite a common issue with these things if you google it. I put another 300 hours on this thing after this incident (which was fixed by replacing the sensor that failed). I don’t care how long you’ve been in this rodeo, you’re ignoring basic mechanics and acting like you know all about it even though you weren’t there at the time, I’m not making shit up and I really couldn’t give a #### if some stubborn old fool on the internet believes me or not, I was just trying to help you see reason but that’s clearly beyond you and all your wisdom after spending so much time in this rodeo. Let me reiterate, at NO POINT DID I RUN WITHOUT OIL.

Oh and just in case you didn’t understand, I never ran out of oil. This was checked very frequently by stopping and removing the cowling to verify on the way back to the ramp to ensure we didn’t.

[Noelm]

OK, see you all around some time....can't argue with someone who plainly typed something, but then says that's not how it is.

[stevej]

Cobb you wrote the mechanic said if the oil dropped to 0 the engine would run in limp mode still

It probably would for a few mins if your lucky, but would seize the engine

[Dignity]

Cobb you wrote the mechanic said if the oil dropped to 0 the engine would run in limp mode still

It probably would for a few mins if your lucky, but would seize the engine

My interpretation of what Cobbo meant to type was "The guy at the dealership told us#even if it (the sensor) went to 0% it would have just stayed in limp mode#but continued to run as oil was still feeding into the motor."
THAT was how I read it as I also have the habit of dropping some words which can lead to misinterpretation.
The oil sensor failing was quite common and there were work arounds. Had a mate who'd done it (the work around) and he ran it like that for several hundred hours before upgrading his motor.

Now what was the original question posted?

[Cobbo1]

OK, see you all around some time....can't argue with someone who plainly typed something, but then says that's not how it is.

Literally two sentences prior to what you highlighted: “even though it was full and still feeding from the under floor tank”


Cobb you wrote the mechanic said if the oil dropped to 0 the engine would run in limp mode still

It probably would for a few mins if your lucky, but would seize the engine

see above


My interpretation of what Cobbo meant to type was "The guy at the dealership told us#even if it (the sensor) went to 0% it would have just stayed in limp mode#but continued to run as oil was still feeding into the motor."
THAT was how I read it as I also have the habit of dropping some words which can lead to misinterpretation.
The oil sensor failing was quite common and there were work arounds. Had a mate who'd done it (the work around) and he ran it like that for several hundred hours before upgrading his motor.

Now what was the original question posted?

Thanks Dig, glad to see someone can read an entire post around here. And yes, way off topic after I simply tried to provide some input based on my experiences, only to be told I’m making things up and that I’m wrong in every way, this forum really has become a joke, a bunch of people sitting around in a pissing contest.

[stevej]

No need for the personnel insults and then claim the moral ground,

easy enough to clarify a statement like a adult

I read it as your mechanic told you the engine could run with 0 oil and seems others did too.

[Cobbo1]

No need for the personnel insults and then claim the moral ground,

easy enough to clarify a statement like a adult

I read it as your mechanic told you the engine could run with 0 oil and seems others did too.


Read through my posts again, I tried to clarify several times but Noel decided he knew better and I was wrong and making stuff up. Someone wants to call me a liar I’ll insult them as much as I like.

[disorderly]

So which way did you decide Steve..?

It obviously sounds like they are very frugal on the oil use...;)

[stevej]

Going to have another look and fit a new Yamaha 90 if I take it