John,

I'm no fan of Karen and as a Johnson owner and DFI fan considering
purchasing a new motor I've challenged her here to provide the kind of
backup info Bill and others have demanded... to no avail. However,
what I have decided is that right or wrong there's a sizable number of
people who are leery J/E in general and of Ficht/E-Tec in particular.
More importantly a portion of those would never buy one, new or used.
If you never plan to sell your boat, and you trust Bombardier and/or
the new owners then by all means who gives a sh*t about anyone else's
opinion. But if you ever plan to sell, you will cutting out a portion
of potential buyers and probaly will get a lower price if there's a
J/E on the back, and even more if its Ficht/E-tec.

Sorry Bill - I just call'em as I see'em, and selling a boat is a pain
enough w/o the added burden of a big 'ol question mark hangin on the
transom.

Even though I could probably save a few grand going w/ an E-tec (a
year ago my local J/E dealer qoted me a "deal" at $14,700 for a 225
that now I see on sale for $9950 plus gimmicks), I've decided to
re-power w/a Yamaha HPDI instead... unless I change my mind and decide
to squeak another year out of my carbuerated Johnson smoke machine...

FishFan