Any tips on buying second hand 2004 90 hp mercury 4 stroke?

[Wigs17]

I'm looking at a 2004 90 hp mercury 4 stroke outboard for my 17.5 foot (5.3m) sundowner boat. Tacho says 149hrs and reputable dealer says it's very clean and it's the same power head as yammy 100hp 4 stroke.
I a bit clueless when it comes to looking under the lid of an outboard so any advice on what I need to look for, ask or get checked would be great.
I plan to use the boat for about 2 weeks over Christmas each yr to do open sea fishing (15km off shore) so I won't be hammering it, just needs to be reliable, hopefully for next 10 yrs.
With it already being 10 yrs old I understand there's an element of risk but with my budget it looks about as good as I'll get.
anyone out there got the same motor? Has it been reliable?

[Rip it up]

I can only speak for the last 30hrs I have put on a 80hp Yamaha 2004 model.

I like it a lot. Heavy for its size compared to other brands. But has plenty of grunt and torque.
Does need a good n70, high CCA batteries to spin the big girl into life. Just needs high cranking voltage to turn over for some reason. Once turning over it fires very quickly.

Carbies do have some fine orifices in their design. And hate dirty old fuel. So install good quality fuel filters. If you plan to store the boat long term, then drain the fuel.

I'm still working out my fuel economy. Because I've been trailing different motor setups, heights, props etc.


Damo's dodgy boat building factory.

[Fed]

Weight could be worth checking with Sundowner (175 Kg?)

1000 MCA or 775 CCA they need a Suzuki white wire.

[Wigs17]

Thanks for replies.
I've read about the carbies. Would it be worthwhile disconnecting the fuel line from the fuel tank at the end of flushing the motor and letting the motor stop on its own once all the fuel is used up? Does this "drain the fuel" in the carbies? Or is this bad for the motor? I suspect you mean loosen the nuts on the carbies to allow the fuel to drain that way???
Thanks for battery advice, I'll be sure to ask the dealer what setup I have and ensure it's sufficient.
The weight, I'll check too.
Any tips/areas I could check easily to asses for corrosion?

[scuttlebutt]

check the steering arm where it bolts onto the motor. They all seem to rust there and it's a big job to replace.