2009 , 150 optimax?

[wishinfishin]

A motor came up for sale I was looking at and did some searches and found mixed reviews .

But wanted some input from anybody willing to shed some light on this motor as I'm not familiar with them.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

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[hard knox]

I owned a Optimax 225 from new first 2 years it was great then started having problems went to the dealer a dozen times they never could fix it ! Mercury decided to blow it and put a fully dressed power head on it it lasted a little over a  year then that power head failed .They also require a OPTIMAX synthetic 2 stroke oil that is about 28 bucks a gallon .In my opinion it would make a good boat anchor but thats just me i would run as fast as i could and get a yamaha 4 stroke . Had a 115 and now have a 225 hp and love them !

[whaler1]

X2

[Sk8man]

I think you'll find mixed reviews on just about any outboard and you can't assume that everyone takes care of them in the same way for starters and it makes a difference. I've had a 135 Opti since it was brand new in 2002 and it is basically the same as the 150. It has been a very good reliable engine. I  broke it in carefully and have used non ethanol gas and the Mercury Optimax synthetic oil since day one. By the way it is about $50 (including tax) per gallon today. Although it trolls down I don't use it for that because that can load the plugs up pretty good so I use my 9.8 for that and the 135 for getting from place to place. I've been very happy with the performance of mine but again, I take good care of it too. I use fuel stabilizer year round and keep my gas tank full (much to the dismay of my mechanic buddy who  doesn't believe in it)

[whaler1]

Yamaha


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[fizbot]

Make sure it has never run in salt water! On east and west coast you go through engines fast and its not uncommon for people to dress them up and try to sell at a premium in lake country.


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[wishinfishin]

Appreciate all the feed back and good points brought up.

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[Sealegs]

I’ve got two of them on the back of my boat, Mercury Quickleen and Seafoam at each fill up, can troll all day with no fouling.  Bulletproof IMO

[John nastasi]

I have a 2007 115hp E-tec The motor has been great .I troll with all the time.It is just as quiet as a 4 stroke with less weight & less maintenance'great on fuel & basically no fumes.They also winterize them self.

[wishinfishin]

So far the reviews are 50/50 which is what I came up with before I posted here.

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[Sk8man]

Even with new motors or cars etc. you have a 50/50 chance much of the time, but again if they are taken good care of and properly maintained (winterized, new pump and impellers etc.) I've had two outboard mechanics tell me that the Opti's are great engines and they don't see many in for repair and these are guys I know and trust their judgment and information and one of them is with a mainly Honda outboard dealership but that deals with fixing/maintaining all brands of outboards.

[bandrus1]

Sk8man is right. You are going to have a hard time finding universaly rave reviews on any motor.

[DoghouseII]

My experience has taught me to never go back to Mercury outboards. I had a 50hp merc on my boat for 8years, had issues from day one and chased them till the day she puked. Repowered with a 90-hp 2stroke Yamaha and put 3 times as many hours over 18 years on that motor without a literal hiccup. I have also seen very good reliability out of  bandrus1's ETEC. Yamaha or ETEC get my vote. Good luck with your choice!

[Bosun Cowboy]

Yamaha


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X2. Most reliable outboard engines on the water


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[wishinfishin]

I have a small yammy on my jon boat boat, 10 years old and no problems. I take care of it.

The optimax is for a bigger boat and happens to fit the budget , I'm just not familiar with them .

Whatever the big motor I get , the boat will also have a kicker

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[Sk8man]

19 minutes ago, wishinfishin said:

Whatever the big motor I get , the boat will also have a kicker

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Good thinking.

[Offshore IV]

Wow, Mercury's getting some hate here lol When i was looking for a repower on my boat, i was torn between the merc and the yami, albeit 2017 model 4 strokes. The mechanic who had over 30 years in dealing with both brands told me that the older mercs were problematic but he reallly liked the new 4 strokes. One thing that stuck with me: he said that he had a guy come in with a blown lower unit on his yami. turns out he forgot to add gear oil after removing the old gear oil, so he ran it dry. The mechanic called yamaha and told them the story, they laughed and paid for the new LU for the guy. He said the Merc guys never would have paid. That's a big difference to me. There are tons of 2016, 17 and 18 year model motors that can be had brand new for deep discounts. Ask around. That's the way i would go (and is the way i did go). 

 

Two places i never want to be stranded: in the air and on the water. 

[Brian S]

Wow, Mercury's getting some hate here lol When i was looking for a repower on my boat, i was torn between the merc and the yami, albeit 2017 model 4 strokes. The mechanic who had over 30 years in dealing with both brands told me that the older mercs were problematic but he reallly liked the new 4 strokes. One thing that stuck with me: he said that he had a guy come in with a blown lower unit on his yami. turns out he forgot to add gear oil after removing the old gear oil, so he ran it dry. The mechanic called yamaha and told them the story, they laughed and paid for the new LU for the guy. He said the Merc guys never would have paid. That's a big difference to me. There are tons of 2016, 17 and 18 year model motors that can be had brand new for deep discounts. Ask around. That's the way i would go (and is the way i did go). 
 
Two places i never want to be stranded: in the air and on the water. 

Kudos to Yamaha for replacing the lower unit for that customer. Hard for me to believe that's the norm. I wouldn't expect a manufacturer to make expensive repairs due to my negligence, but again very cool that Yamaha did it. Never really hear anything negative on their newer 4 strokes.

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[Offshore IV]

I actually ended up with a 90 merc 4 stroke for various reasons, and i love the engine for sure. zero problems, designed really well and with a DIY maintainer in mind. I'm sure the Yami engine would be superb as well.

 

Not to get off the topic of the post.

 

I see very few opti's on the lake. Most run yamaha's. I was under the impression they were made more for bass boats..