(JB) wrote in message ...
well, not exactly. It's the same motor that is produced by Tohatsu (and for
Nissan as well). The Tohatsu 9.9 weighs 81.5 lbs according to their website
(www.tohatsu.com or www.nissanmarine.com). So the Tohatsu is actually the
lightest one I've seen and theirs has been out on the market since last
fall sometime (I saw it at the Miami boat show and heard it was released in
'03). I think the difference in weight is because Merc uses a shift-in-the-
handle and the Tohatsu/Nissan uses a side shift. Bottom line though is, the
Merc is NOT the lightest weight on the market and it's made for them by
Tohatsu.

Interesting that the Merc version is 9.9 HP and the Tohatsu is 9.8.

The timeline is something like this, from what I've been able to tell
in doing research along with several friends who've bought this type
of product. For a while Tohatsu was making a 9.9, 15 & 18 2stroke all
on the same powerhead, (the 18 had a little more bore). Then they
added an 8 and 9.8 2stroke on the same powerhead and significantly
lighter. Then came 4strokes, 9.9, 15 & 18 all on the same powerhead.
Meanwhile, Honda paired their 9.9 with the 8 and paired the 15 with
the 20 instead of the 9.9/15 pairing they had before, sort of like
Tohatsu's trend with the 2strokes. Then Tohatsu made an 8 and 9.8
4stroke on the same powerhead (which outdid Honda for lightness). Next
the Tohatsu 2strokes are gone and they've dropped the 9.9 4stroke as
well, so they're left with 8/9.8 and 15/18 pairs like Honda's 8/9.9
and 15/20.

Merc started with Yamaha powerheads and Merc lower units on their 9.9
4stroke. When Tohatsu started making 9.9 4strokes Merc switched to
Tohatsu midsections but kept their own gearcase and the Yamaha
powerhead, perhaps because Merc was now making much of the powerhead
themseves from Yamaha's design (I never got the whole scoop on that
issue). By that time, a Merc 15 4stroke was added also with the
Tohatsu midsection but the 9.9 and 15 were different powerheads from
each other while sharing specs with the Yamaha 9.9 and 15. So Merc's
9.9 and 15 4strokes were a mix of up to 3 manufacturers' parts and
were about the same weight as Tohatsu's 9.9/15/18 of approximately 117
lbs. Now Merc has the whole Tohatsu 8/9.8 (or 8/9.9) but with their
own hood and tiller/shifter, and they have dropped the older heavy 9.9
model.

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