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A Tahatsu injected 2 stroke 50 hp. has been very good to me for 12 years.

There Ya Go,
Had a 15hp Suzuki four stroke for about ten years, not one problem with it ever. Only complaint was that it did not charge the battery at trolling speed. This may be rectified by now in the newer motors. Bought a 20hp Mercury with power tilt . It too has been flawless and very economical. Charges 14 volts while trolling so battery never runs down. Dale

1963 Evinrude.

Welcome aboard new friend!

Yamaha hands down.

Had a 9.9 and a 70hp four stroke.

Also had a Tohatsu. You couldn't give me another one. It ran fine...ONCE you finally got it started. Vibrated something awful too. The Yamahas were smooth, quiet and started easily.

Pay attention to weight and horsepower.

IIRC Yamahas are lighter than comparable hp Hondas.




P

I have a 50 hp Suzuki outboard for the last 6 years best dang outboard I have ever owned ..

Fuel injected mercury 20 4s .....

I am a Honda fan. I have a 50hp that is bullet proof. I would have to stick with them if I was buying another one. Yamaha would be my next choice.

I bought a barely used 2020 Suzuki 20 hp last year for my 14 foot Grumman. Originally it had an Evinrude 35 hp. When they did away with 2 strokes on the Kenai, I put a 25 Honda on it for a few years. It worked well but I got the itch for a Go devil and traded into a 27 hp GD. Never cared for it much. It was fine for shallow rivers but not so good for other applications.

My boat went unmotored for a couple years until I found the Suzuki. It weighs about the same as an old Evinrude 9.9 four stroke I had. And seems to have as much go as the old 35 two stroke. I’m thoroughly impressed.

I bought a brand new 20hp Suzuki from OnlineOutboards in 2019. I can’t say enough good about both.

The transaction was smooth and easy, the shipping fast and free, and the lady on the phone very knowledgeable and nice. I was a little apprehensive about spending that kind of cash on something I’d never laid eyes on and the CS department was top notch. I also couldn’t find anywhere else, local or otherwise who could beat their price.

The Suzuki is quiet and smooth. It starts easy, usually on the first pull and I can troll for literally days on the 3 gal gas can, it’s really amazing how little gas it burns. I will never own another outboard that isn’t a 4 stroke and fuel injected.

A little word of caution. The Suzuki does not like bad fuel. I got a small amount of water in some fuel from a store that had a leaky tank. I like to have never got it cleared out. I finally called my buddy, who owns a Suzuki shop and followed his protocol of blowing out the injectors and fuel system and rinsing the fuel tank out with Heat and some fresh clean fuel and it was good to go. Been flawless ever since.

I've owned or own 4 strokes from Suzuki, Tohatsu and Yamaha. All have been fine and I've picked them by availability and price. My opinion is that it's hard to find a brand that is bad as long you stay away from off brand Chinese makes.

Funny since small mercs are Tohatsu’s

Been running Suzuki for 7 years without any problem whatsoever. Smooth and quiet.

Wouldn't mind Yamaha or Honda. No Mercury for me.

From a friend that went to outboard marine school.

Ole Evinrude ran a machine shop, and they had a company picnic on an island.

They decided they'd like some ice cream, but a wind came up, and when the rowboat got back, the ice-cream had melted.

Monday morning Ole mounted a gas engine, twisted a flat iron for a propeller, and the outboard motor was born.

^^^^^^This^^^^^^^^^^^

I do not really know what the charge rate is on my 20 hp Tohatsu at idle. I do know that I ran the battery down with the electric trolling motor one day, too low to start the Ford V8 302 which is the main drive motor. But I had enough juice to fire the kicker motor. (or I could have broke down and yanked on the starter cord).

The main jet pushes the boat around 30 mph. The kicker idles at 1 mph and makes 7 mpg at WOT. We were seven miles from the dock, so it took us one hour to get there. The battery was charged enough to start the V8 when we got to the dock.

Today, the kicker and the MinnKota are wired into a group 27 deep cycle, while the V8 runs from a brand new group 27 SLA car battery. But I can run the main engine and dash from either or both, if need be.

The boat has three 25 gallon fuel tanks. I plumbed the kicker directly into the port rear tank, which is filled with ETOH free 91 octane. Squeeze the bulb to prime the fuel line and it fires on the first or second rotation, even the first time when it was brand new.

I was told by my boat mechanic that outboards do not have generating capabilities, unless they are electric start. Maybe he lied to me. Maybe things have changed.

My Yamaha F8 will charge my main batteries and it’s pull start.

I'm not sure about now, but Tahotsu's warrantee was about 2x longer than the others. IIRC, it was 4 yrs for non-commercial use and 2 yrs for commercial use. The others ranged from none to 1 year for commercial use.

He lied or doesn't know.

My 7.5 Honda pull start has been charging batteries for decades. There is a power outlet on the right side, and I have two power cords for it; one to use, and one to misplace.