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Does This Make Sense to Buy a 19-Year Old Outboard Motor?
wrote:
: I would like to know if this is a good idea to buy a 19 or 20 year old
: outboard motor. I am planning to buy a used boat, and add a new motor
: in it. But most used boats come with old motor -- not that many places
: sell only the hull. I am wondering whether those old motors are any
:
good in general.
I'd worry about the hull before I worried about the outboard. If you buy
a 90 HP Mercury outboard, for example, you'll be in for a cost of about
$5,500 new. If you later find rot in the transom or the stringers, you
may be in for a $7,000 rebuild job on the hull.
My approach would be to have an expert examine the boat hull (a local
boat hull repair person or a marine surveyor). If it's good, don't
worry about th engine if it also appears in good shape (the surveyor
could tell you). Then later if you need to buy a new motor, at least you're
putting it on a hull that is of good condition.
It's typical for many hulls to show their "weaknesses" after 20 years
in the form of rotting floorboards, rotting transoms and rotting stringers.
The guy who rebuilt my hull simply got a 3/4" socket (from a socket wrench
set) and tapped in various places of the hull. If it made a sharp sound
the wood wasn't rotten. If it sounded dull, it was.
There are some very reliable, old outboard motors out there. Yes, the
newer ones run much more smoothly and efficiently, mostly due to
environmental law changes but I wouldn't jump too quickly at the
idea of buying a 20 year boat without thoroughly exammining the hull
along with the engine and keeping it "as is" if it appears to be in
good condition.
barry
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