Del,
REMEMBER BACK 9 YEARS AGO, WHEN YOU STARTED READING THIS NEWSGROUP, A
LOT OF FOLKS POSTED ABOUT THEIR FICHT PROBLEMS WITH THE '98 AND SOME
'99 150-175HP ENGINES? OMC CAME OUT WITH THE FICHT 150 IN LATE SUMMER
OF '96. IT WAS ONLY AVAILABLE IN A 20" SHAFT AND 150 HP AND THE MOTORS
MET THE 2006 EPA EMISSION LIMITS 10 YEARS BEFORE THAY HAD TO.

IN '98 THE FICHT CAME OUT WITH A 25" SHAFT FOR OFFSHORE BOATS, AND ON
THOSE APPLICATIONS, PROBLEMS SHOWED UP AFTER A WHILE IN CERTAIN
SITUATIONS. DAVID JONES, THEN PRESIDENT OF OMC, STATED THAT 1 IN 5
FICHTS WITH A 25" SHAFT HAD PROBLEMS, AND THEY WERE IN THE PROCESS OF
DETERMINING AND FIXING THEM. ALL THIS WAS IN THE MARINE MAGAZINES, ON
THE INTERNET, AND WAS SPREAD BY WORD OF MOUTH. EVEN THE AUSTRALIAN
BOATING MAGAZINES HAD ARTICLES ON THE PROBLEMS AND ON WHAT OMC WAS
DOING.

TO OMC'S CREDIT, THEY SENT OUT SERVICE TEAMS TO RE-DO ALL THE '98 AND
'99 150-175'S IN THE FIELD WITH NEW CYLINDER HEADS AND REMAPPED
SOFTWARE, SPARK PLUGS, LINKAGE, ETC., ABOUT A 4 HOUR JOB PER MOTOR. THE
TEAMS WENT ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY TAKING CARE OF CUSTOMERS AND DEALER'S
MOTORS. THE MOTORS WORKED OK AFTER THE FIXES. NONE OF MY CUSTOMERS HAD
MAJOR PROBLEMS BUT I SAW MOTORS FROM other places that did. I also did
a lot of upgrade kit installations. I still service operational FICHTS
that are still used by families every season.

Merc's problems with Optimax resulted in a class action lawsuit, and
there may be one for the Yamaha 250-300 hp problems, but OMC did not
have any due to their effort to fix engines in the field and not just
gloss over the problem.

Also in 1999 OMC came out with the V4 FICHT in 90 and 115 hp sizes, as
well as a big block 200-225hp, and these motors did NOT HAVE THE
PROBLEMS THAT THE MID-SIZED 150-175'S DID.

FOR 2000, the FICHT system was improved quite a bit and called FICHT
Ram, and really did well. It was quieter and smoother than the earlier
series, and was better on fuel use. In 2001 they came out with a new
block, the 3.3L and it is still used today, and that really made the
motors perform even better while the hp increased to 250. These
versions are still being produced today.

If the FICHT was so bad why is it still in production after 9 years?
Wouldn't you think that all you would read about was blown up motors
and powerheads stacked by the roadside? Why would a company still make
motors that are "blowing up"? Whay would Bombardier buy Johnson and
Evinrude knowing the motors were junk? Think about it !

After a rocky start, FICHT and now its new E-TEC cousing is doing well.
It is only in the mind of "Karen-down-under", without any credentials
or experience in the outboard industry that FICHT is no good.

You asked about buying a '98 150 FICHT. Well, if you believe Karen,
then there is no such thing. There could not be any used FICHTS. Every
one blew up, there are piles of powerheads littering the landscape, and
owners have something else.
I stll maintain old FICHTS for customers who are doing fine with them.