Best 2-Strokes? Rude or Merc? Longevity, Cost, technology

[Macattak1]

Greetings,

I have been looking at fishing boats and OBs. Lund or Alumacraft. I have been looking at used and new pricing. I am really only interested in an Evinrude or a Mercury OB. I would also like to stay 2-stroke. I am hearing some opinions about the Rudes v/s the Mercs. A dealer that sells both and more really likes the Evinrude Etecs over the Merc 2-strokes. He says they just have the technology jump as they never went 4-stroke and their 2-stroke is probably the best on the market. That is just his opinion that I asked for.

I am very interested in personal opinion and experience.

I am not interested in Yamas, Hondas, Suzukis, etc.

Thank you very much.

Peace and Blessings

[PierBridge]

They are both extremely good.

Where you buy your engine will the most important decision, after sale support and a good service department are key.

Popcorn ordered....

[Macattak1]

Greetings,

Agreed. I was impressed with the local dealer I visited. He showed me several boats, gave me info and the different OBs, and priced two different boats for me. Not once did he go into the 'are you buying today' or 'how soon will you be buying' or 'our boats are way better then the other competitor boats', etc. Very nice.

Peace and Blessings

[caseymcq]

I have a subscription to Bass & Walleye Boats magazine. In most of their "shoot outs" the Merc Optimax usually does the best overall and is usually the cheapest. I was really supprised when the Opti's have done better on fuel economy than everything including 4-strokes. I have been impressed with what I have read about them.

I have a Yamaha 4-stroke so I am pretty unbiased on this topic.

[Macattak1]

Greetings,

Thanks. Opinions count. I also found Mercs page where they claim to beat out Rude in basically everything that Rude claims to be #1 at....

I will probably go Merc. But I sure wish there were others around here to speak up...???

Peace and Blessings

[DTro]

I really don't think you can go wrong with either. It's really more about how you take care of it. One of the most bashed motors is the Force outboard, but I know of plenty that are still going strong with proper care.

That's not saying you can't have problems, but just a general statement.

[TUMBLEWEED]

My 2004 Opti is everything I wanted in a main motor.

Cold or hot weather, it starts right up every time.

No more choking and flooding out. I was initialy

concerned over the price of that synthetic 2 stroke

Mercury oil @ 26 bucks a gallon!! My fears have

since been laid to rest, as I have not gone thru

as much as I thought I would. In fact, I have yet to go

through the two gallons I did buy. As for MPG, the Opti

will beat anything out there. A trip up to Ottertail

in June, highlights this pretty well. We were based out of a resort on one end of the lake, but fished the opposite

end for most of the trip. This meant a high speed run from one end to the other. Plus we used a 9.9 Merc Pro Kicker

for constant trolling while on the hot spots,and for locating the active fish. When it came time to gas it up on the road for home, it took 11 gallons!! A few trips up

to Mille Lacs,Big Sandy, and other large bodies of water have born out with similar results. My OPTI came with the

"Smart Guage" system. This system consists of a digital

guage that is on your dash. There is all kinds of things you can monitor on your OPTI. Things like MPG,MPG for trip,

voltage,oil PSI,Temp,RPM,etc. Quite handy at times

There are other things you can do and monitor, but

I listed the ones I use most. Anyways, my vote is for a Merc!!

[Northlander]

Im not a Evinrude fan at all. I had 3 of them and none of them were impressive so I went Yamaha. In your case though I would go Opti. Guys I know that have them seem to be happy with them.

[Macattak1]

Greetings,

Thanks for the info! Does you system monitor fuel flow? I mean, we can not trust the MPG read out in our diesel trucks. How accurate is the Merc system? I know you dont have an odomitor to know your exact mileage. So, I guess I am asking how accurate it is? What it measures?

Thanks

Peace and Blessings

[Macattak1]

Greetings,

Thanks for your input. What year and HP rudes have you had? Last one I had was probably an 1979 15hp. I loved it. But I know that my buddies 9.9 Merc was not as fast, but close to it. He had a 12' boat that was lighter v/s my 16' Alumacraft with a console so...

Any way. Thanks.

Peace and Blessings

[Sutty]

I have a 2000 40 horse 4 stroke Evinrude. I have not had any problems with it. I am looking at upgrading my boat next year and am thinking about getting the evinrude e-tec.

I am not a fan of Mercs but it is mainly political. I don't like the fact they bought out Lund/Crestliner and are making it tough to have a choice on what motor you buy. They also don't make motors anymore anyway just the housing and lower unit. I think the power heads are suzuki but someone else can correct me here.

According to Evinrude the new E-tecs perform better in all the tests.

I would say both companies are probably both right and wrong when it comes to the marketing. Companies always find "Statistics" to back up a marketing claim.

I would say you are safe which ever Evinrude you buy

[TUMBLEWEED]

I'm not really sure of the accuracy of the smart-craft

system? It does read current consuption of fuel, ie

gallons per hour XXX. A dealer would know more about

such specifics. There are things like "press of a

button winterzation". The motor will double the oil

used, same for the initial break-in. The only down

side as I see it now, would be learning some of the

maintenance steps so I can do them on my own. One example

is that the OPTI's use a water seperator. The book

says once a year to drain it. I haven't done it myself

yet, but my dealer's wrench guy is going to show me how.

I hear one of the plugs is a bear too,plus they

are quite a bit more $$$ than a standard plug.

Ah well, when you wanna play with the big boys

you want the newest stuff....

[cold one sd]

Quote:

---

I have a 2000 40 horse 4 stroke Evinrude. I have not had any problems with it. I am looking at upgrading my boat next year and am thinking about getting the evinrude e-tec.

I am not a fan of Mercs but it is mainly political. I don't like the fact they bought out Lund/Crestliner and are making it tough to have a choice on what motor you buy. They also don't make motors anymore anyway just the housing and lower unit. I think the power heads are suzuki but someone else can correct me here.

According to Evinrude the new E-tecs perform better in all the tests.

I would say both companies are probably both right and wrong when it comes to the marketing. Companies always find "Statistics" to back up a marketing claim.

I would say you are safe which ever Evinrude you buy

---

According to Mercury the Optimax outperforms Evinrude. I don't know or care. Merc is now making all their own outboards from 75 hp and up. I don't know about the smaller ones. I have a Merc 15 4 stroke that has a Yammy powerhead and a 9.9 Pro Kicker that is a Tohatsu. I also have a merc Verado that is all Merc. I haven't had anything but Mercs since 1980 and have no problems at all. I don't think there are any bad outboards out there anymore and you can have a problem with any of them. I have looked at a Lund catalog the other day and you can still get a Honda on a Lund.

[solbes]

I can't comment on the newer motors, though I hope to be able to in a few years. For now I'm running with an '84 Evinrude 90 Hp. That thing is a beast! I've had it for 5 years now and not a single problem.

Unfortunately OMC has been gone for quite some time now. My father in law had problems dealing with Bombadier on his newer Johnson O/B. Not positive they still own both Evinrude/Johnson though.

[RK]

Hiya -

I really think you have a great problem, so to speak: choosing between two pretty appealing options.

I've run Optis for the last several years and have loved them. Other than one defective part, which was quickly fixed by Mercury, they've been pullet proof. Last fall my Opti started on the first turn when it was 9 degrees... Fuel consumption at cruising speeds is very good, and they have a nice power curve - good out of the hole for sure, which is important to me when I'm in big waves. I'd buy another in a second.

I've heard lots of good things about Etecs as well and actually got a chance to run one this summer. Hard to get too thorough an opinion in a couple days, but perforamance was impressive. They're quieter than an Opti, and offer some nice features like easy winterizing and no break-in period.

About the Mercury guages - once you get them calibrated for fuel consumption, they're very accurate. Once you see how much your gas consumption goes up when you firewall it, you'll be really inclined to back off and run at cruising speeds... Watching your MPG can get addictive

Good luck with your choice.

cheers,

Rob Kimm

[78cj5]

I have a 2001 Merc 40 (Lund, cabin), a 2004 E-Tec 40 (Pontoon, cabin) and a 2006 E-Tec 90 (Mr Pike in the cities).

I currently favor the E-Tec's, but I have never had an issue with either Merc or Yami. The real reason I favor the E-tec's not only because of the performance, but more importantly it is a motor that the "masses" do not have.

I like new, innovative, different gear. I like the fact that people are consistently commenting or asking questions about my E-Tec. I enjoy the gear as much as the fishing.

In general, I have no brand loyalty...Period.

I am currently looking at Kawasaki, Honda, and Yamaha ATV's. I ruled out the Can-Am (BRP) because I did not like the chassis design at all.

Next year, I will probably buy a 3/4 ton diesel. Chevy, Ford, Dodge...(Evinrude, Yami, Merc). They all all good products, so In this case, I am going to buy the best deal.

I do not like the fact you are basically locked into buying Merc if you buy Lund (at least Brunswick is making difficult to do otherwise). I am glad I got my Lund this year with the E-Tec.

[Macattak1]

Greetings,

Thanks. I am kind of leaning towards Evenrude as that is what I have had and had good luck. They have excellent technology and the market is not flooded with them. That last one is kind of a double edged sword. However, it appears that they have a premium price?

I have seen Merc's response to the Rude claims. But I have not seen Rude's claim in writing how they tested it to be better than Merc's. So kind of makes me think of the king with no clothes on...

I prefere not to follow the masses either. Not that they did anything bad, but more that I like to be a little different. Just not at the cost of my wallet or repairs.

Peace and Blessings