Four Stroke versus ETEC

[TheRealAndy]

You hit the nail on the head as I have replied it seems that the prices are the same no matter which engine. The warranties are about the same as well, so it seems that it is up to the dealer who makes the best offer, I have though some reservations on the merc four stroke, some issues there.

I would give the merc a miss. We have a merc 4 banger on the back of our yacht club rescue boat, its noisey, vibrates, the control box on it is crap. Thats compared to my yam 4 banger and the honda 4 banger on the other rescue boat.

I must add, there is nothing wrong with the merc when it comes to reliablilty or performance, its exactly the same as the honda and yamaha, just all those other little things I dont like about it.

[stinky-stabi]

I got a brochure on opti's during the week and they blow etecs out of the water! But id still go a Yammie F60 absolutely brilliant motor...

but the e-etec blows away the yammy ......baited an waiting.lololol

[Skusto]

they would all be pretty much the same i really dont think u would be able to pick much difference in all of them, go with which dealer is the best for servicing and if its still between to or more go with the longest warrenty, we have a yamaha atm and are goin to suzuki next due to dealer and warranty.

[Mindi]

I have a Yammy 60 4 stroke EFI and am absolutely delighted with it. Pushes a boat really too heavy for it by propping it right... I expected a hole shot weakness but to tell the truth it hasnt turned out like that. I would equally have taken an ETec if it was on the boat I bought....no hesitation but now that I have the Yammy I love it.

[NAGG]

my 60 4 stroke Yammi is now coming up to 3 years of age ........ used a fair bit too & its running great Quiet , vibration free , starts quickly ..... & fuel efficient.

I just carried out a oil (sump & gearbox) change which took me only around 1 hour (pretty clueless) ...... & except for a little mess - it was a painless exercise & at around $80 for filter / oils ........ I can skip a $400 ish service thus extending the service period.

I cant say which motor will be best ......but the 60 Yammi is well proven & regarded.

Chris

[stilltryin]

It seems to be down to the four strokes. I pass my thanks to all that replied and appreciate your views and thoughts either way. I do use my boat a fair bit and on the last trip was doing eighty kilometers a day in a round trip fishing at Weipa. The current motor which is a two stroke did it without problems but the fuel was a bit heavy compared to my mate who has a yammie. As trips like weipa are regular the four stroke might do the trick. Now for a bit of negotiation at the boat show next week.

[aaron_gilmour]

Go the honda if you can afford it!!! prob dearer than the yamie and etec but with the blast tecnology etc its absolute amazing. No more should the 2 bangers say they have better hole shot!!! best bet is to test drive a few baots with the motors you wnat and do a water test.

If the honda is out of your budget the yamie is a proven and great motor. for the record i own a optimax but will be moving to the honda very soon. i have also owned merc 2 strokes and yamie 4 bangers as well.

cheers

[TheRealAndy]

my 60 4 stroke Yammi is now coming up to 3 years of age ........ used a fair bit too & its running great Quiet , vibration free , starts quickly ..... & fuel efficient.

I just carried out a oil (sump & gearbox) change which took me only around 1 hour (pretty clueless) ...... & except for a little mess - it was a painless exercise & at around $80 for filter / oils ........ I can skip a $400 ish service thus extending the service period.

I cant say which motor will be best ......but the 60 Yammi is well proven & regarded.

Chris

My yam(50 4stroke) is 5 year old and has just clocked up 600 hours. Does not miss a beat.

[FNQCairns]

Go the honda if you can afford it!!! prob dearer than the yamie and etec but with the blast tecnology etc its absolute amazing. No more should the 2 bangers say they have better hole shot!!! best bet is to test drive a few baots with the motors you wnat and do a water test.

If the honda is out of your budget the yamie is a proven and great motor. for the record i own a optimax but will be moving to the honda very soon. i have also owned merc 2 strokes and yamie 4 bangers as well.

cheers

So what is blast really? Variable valve timing and a rest from lean burn technology when the throttle is jacked open??

There is nothing new out there that I know of but would like to know about it if there was.

cheers fnq

[black runner]

So what is blast really? Variable valve timing and a rest from lean burn technology when the throttle is jacked open??

There is nothing new out there that I know of but would like to know about it if there was.

cheers fnq

Your right FNQ, just a marketing label for the smarts that exist in all 4 banger efi ecm's. The Honda 60 doesn't have variable valve timing but should breathe well with 4 valves/cylinder albeit 3. Given that it's a newly developed donkey it should theoretically be an improvement on the yammie 60 efi (which I use and am extremely impressed with). Will be interesting to see how both the new Suzi and Honda stack up.

The tough job for both Honda and Suzuki will be to tick all the boxes that the yam 60 has been doing since 2002 and Yamaha don't really need to tweak the 60 too much in resonse as the specs of the Honda and Suzuki are virtually the same as the 7 year old Yammie (or 5 years if comparing the efi version).

The next generation 4 banger will undoubtedly be direct injection.

Cheers

[TJ Bear]

Would go for the EFI Yamaha as as others have said it has the runs on the board for years and I could take it to Yatla Yamaha for trouble free service, which is probably more important to me than anything else.

[Mindi]

my 60 4 stroke Yammi is now coming up to 3 years of age ........ used a fair bit too & its running great Quiet , vibration free , starts quickly ..... & fuel efficient.

I just carried out a oil (sump & gearbox) change which took me only around 1 hour (pretty clueless) ...... & except for a little mess - it was a painless exercise & at around $80 for filter / oils ........ I can skip a $400 ish service thus extending the service period.

I cant say which motor will be best ......but the 60 Yammi is well proven & regarded.

Chris

Chris

As another clueless home servicer a couple of tips on our identical motors part from experience with mine and part from a friendly local Yammy mechanic....

When you change the plugs (dead easy at $5 each) be sure to restore the plug leads the way they came off....it is NOT the same as what looks to be the order when they are disconnected...ie the first two leads actually cross over....when you cant find a straight 18mm tube spanner for the plugs anywhere go to a mower shop...I found one at supercheap in the end for $2.99. It is not a very common size.

You will need to get professional service after a couple of hundred hours if not a bit sooner...the two things the motor is prone to are (1) corrosion sticking the thermostat open which stuffs up the operation of the new model EFI ones no end so that needs prevention. I am thinking of also finding a salt removing rinse aid product to flush with..? and (2) The valve clearances do need checking and adjustment after significant hours.

The waterpump impeller needs replacement after similar time or earlier depending on how much sand you pump with your water. Be very sure that a good looking impeller is not reinstalled by you or a mechanic....never reinstall them.... (ask for the old one). I figure as a general rule as long as it pumps water strongly through the telltale then it is cool...(sorry)

Good motor huh..?

[bassfanatic5]

I do not want to cloud the issue but surely OPtimax or another brand of DFI would also be a worth consideration?


I think if you make it an Etec vs 4 stroke and leave out the other DFI's out there (Yammi included) you are only looking at half the field.

Brett

Brett, I dont think Optimax or Yami HPDI are made in a 60hp? May'be i'm wrong!

Stilltryin, They are all good choices, i had a 445 hornet with a 60etec and have 5 mates with 445 hornets with different brand 4 bangers, I found the etec's lower idle of 450rpm and slower trolling speed great for impoundment fishing when the fish were taking really slow moving lures but apart from that I would own any of them.

Cheers Damien

[stilltryin]

come on boat show

[zenpaul]

for the past 2 years ive been running a suzuki 90, cant fault it. although the servicing a little pricey, feul usage 1L/1nm this is on a 5.5 glass boat. when it comes time to upgrade however it would be a toss up between suzi or honda.