if you were to buy a new 25-40hp, what brand would YOU buy

Well i think i might possibly sort of kinda maybe have the wife talked into letting me buy a new motor. Looking at a 25-40hp tiller. My dad swears by evinrude and johnson. As far back as i remember we've only had two,motors. A 25hp evinrude and then a 25hp johnson we've had for the past 10-12 years. Im really wanting to try a Tohatsu but im not too crazy about the no pullstart thing. Ive heard alot of good things about Yamaha. And i know nissan amd tohatsu are the same. Not crazy about mercurys but never had one, only heard stories from people. So what is your.brand of preference?

Yamaha is my preference. Evinrudes spend too much time with the mechanic from what I've seen.

4-strokes or 2-strokes. If you want a 4-stroke, it won't be evinrude since they only have e-tecs. Honda specs look nice until you see the price tag. I'd shop around and consider the price, weight, fuel economy, charge from the alternator, and everything else since all of the brands cost a pretty penny. Also consider who you will take it to to have it serviced.

Ive never owned a four stroke but am just looking at new outboards in general. I dont care whether 2 stroke or 4 stroke. I know the e tec is 2 stroke and the tohatsu is a 2 stroke as well. Im just curious as what evetyones preference is or what they would buy. My mind is pretty much made up on a tohatsu or a yammy.

Pretty much my standard reply these days is buy the brand where you have a nearby servicing dealer. All are very good reguardless of brand and most if not all have at least a 5 year warranty. The question is would you rather drive across town to get those warranty repairs done or drive 50, 100, 200 or more miles to do the same.

tnriverluver said:

Pretty much my standard reply these days is buy the brand where you have a nearby servicing dealer. All are very good reguardless of brand and most if not all have at least a 5 year warranty. The question is would you rather drive across town to get those warranty repairs done or drive 50, 100, 200 or more miles to do the same.

Click to expand...

Make's a good point....definitely something to think about.

If were talking 40hp Tohatsu aprox 205lbs;Yammy 40 aprox 220 lbs ;E-tec aprox 250 lbs.The people I know say Tohatsu are bullet proof,there lightest .But above Guys mentioned Dealer and its really great to have a dealer you can trust and one that takes care of business and takes care of you!!! I own a 93Johnson 40 ;a 2003 Merc 50hp and a 2003 150 VMax Yammy..They all have been Good to Me. But if I were in market for 40hp I would buy aTohatsu...cva34

Called earlier and a Tohatsu from the marine place by me is cheaper than online. Now just gotta keep sweet talking the wife......

Where are you.
Johnson Evinrude are made by Bombardia now arent they?
I was in the Factory the day they sent everbody home.

My choice would be to buy the newest 'Used' you can find.
And I'd still stick by Evinrude Johnnson.

Southwest Louisiana. If i can find a decent used etec id be happy but everyone who has one is hanging on to them. If i can find a good used motor thats only a year or two old and price is right ill jump on it. But now that i have money to possibly buy new i want to. Its worth the peace of mind to me.

I will give an example of why I suggest buying what is serviced nearby. I bought a brand new 20hp Merc 4 stroke in Jan of this year. I had been looking at Tohatsu since the same motor was about $200 less. After a little thinking I went with the Merc since the only Tohatsu servicer was in Memphis which is 80 miles away where as we have a small local shop that now only does repair work and have been a Merc dealer for 40 plus years. They were once a boat dealer also. I also felt on down the road the Merc label may bring a few more $$$ if I ever decide to sell it. 2 weeks after I received the motor from the internet seller I got a factory recall on the motor concerning some crankcase bolts that may not have been torqued properly at the factory that could cause an oil leak. I contacted my dealer who had not received the notice on these yet, but he contacted Merc and said bring it in after I got the two hour initial break-in done. About a week later I left it with him and the next day I received a call to come pick it up since it was already done. This recall required pulling the powerhead to access the suspect bolts. I had not bought this engine from him and have only done business there a couple of times in the last forty years, but was given fantastic service at no charge. This shop is maybe 15 minutes from my home!!!

If, and when i buy me a river jet, i will probably go with a mercury, or yamaha..havent heard of the Tohatsu motors???

Here's a picture of one. I think they look the best out of other brands. They have also proven to be reliable down here in SWLA. Theyre the same as Nissan, and to my.understanding all 25hp and under Mercurys are made in Tohatsu factorys by Mercury technicians. They're also fairly cheaper than the other brands as well

Waaaay baaack in my Motorcycle racing days, Tohatsu and Hodaka were "NEW" kids on the Block.
It turns out they were new to America. They are very old Jap products.

The last time I was in Lake Charles there was a Boat and Motor shop just south of the East-West freeway.

Lake Area Marine?

Can't recall the name but I liked the guys for their work ethic.
I bought some stuff for my Boat there. A flood on Bundick rolled my boat and I last all the loose stuff in it.
I sure did like Southern LA.

Its probably Lake Area Marine. Theyre well known for their customer service. I agree i like south LA as well. But i like south MS better

Honda =D> ...or Yamaha
Dan

dont have any experience with new motors but if the 25-40hp rudes are half as reliable as the pre 1990's johnny/rudes i would go evinrude. but im a DIE HARD OMC guy, id put a pre 90 OMC 25-40hp against any brand new tohatsu,merc,honda,yamaha etc.... in terms of reliability and toughness any day of the week. now they may not be as fuel efficient and quiet as the new motors on the market but mpg and noise dont bother me. now that being said my buddy has a 09 BF40 and when ive been in the boat its ran like a top. id buy a 20-25yr old OMC and spend the other 3 or so grand on a new TM,electronics,gear etc...if it were me.

If it was just me id probably buy used,my neighbor has an early 90's 40hp evinrude. I thought about trying to beat him out of it. He never uses his boat. But my three year old loves going with me amd my youngest is a year and a half and id like to get him out on it too. But if i can afford new i would like to have the reliability since my kids will be with me.