Here’s my take on the Mercury kickers of the last 15 years.....I currently have a 2005 on my boat. I have hated it from day one. They are rattle traps. The throttle is very hard to get to the sweet spot on my boat. I have a 19 alumaweld super vee that weighs about 2000 pounds with an average amount of gear and fishermen. For Kokanee and chinook I like a speed anywhere from 1.2-3.0 mph. It’s almost impossible to get set there. Not sure if it’s a linkage or carb issue but I know from research it’s a very common issue at least in my area of the world. When I first purchased it I asked the dealer and their response was that’s just the way they are. No fix and no suggestions. I did drill out the brass plug to access the low speed idle jet and that somewhat helped but definitely didn’t fix it. If it for a runabout then I’d say fine because they are good motors as far as reliability but if it’s a kicker application I’d be leary if you like to troll slow. I also tried a different pitch prop so I could be at higher rpm when trolling but it didn’t help. I’m currently repowering with Suzuki’s and am excited to try the EFI they offer in the 9.9. One mans opinion here obviously but I have several friends with them also and it’s the same story from them. The Yamahas get great reviews but right now with outboards hard to get you may have trouble finding one.
