Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

Greetings,

I just put a deposit on a 2001, 13' Boston Whaler Sport with a 40HP
Mercury 2-stroke outboard. The boat and motor are in near flawless
condition aesthetically, and even under the motor cowling looks near
new.

The boat seems to have had very little use, but I want to make sure I
don't get into trouble with the engine. I've asked the dealer to do a
compression check, and pressure test the lower unit. Is there
anything else I should be concerned with? Any idiosyncracies with
this particular engine?

I've been told that the 40HP Merc. had been around for years, and is
pretty much bulletproof. Aside from it going under water, being run
out of oil, or water in the lower unit, I can't think of anything else
to be concerned with.

Will a compression test uncover any major mechanical issues?

Problem is, in my 30 years of boating, I've never owned a boat with an
outboard motor, so I'm quite wet behind the ears.

Any advice would be most appreciated...........

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

Submariner wrote:

Greetings,

I just put a deposit on a 2001, 13' Boston Whaler Sport with a 40HP
Mercury 2-stroke outboard. The boat and motor are in near flawless
condition aesthetically, and even under the motor cowling looks near
new.

The boat seems to have had very little use, but I want to make sure I
don't get into trouble with the engine. I've asked the dealer to do a
compression check, and pressure test the lower unit. Is there
anything else I should be concerned with? Any idiosyncracies with
this particular engine?

I've been told that the 40HP Merc. had been around for years, and is
pretty much bulletproof. Aside from it going under water, being run
out of oil, or water in the lower unit, I can't think of anything else
to be concerned with.

Will a compression test uncover any major mechanical issues?

Problem is, in my 30 years of boating, I've never owned a boat with an
outboard motor, so I'm quite wet behind the ears.

Any advice would be most appreciated...........

you're on the right track. Have you been out in the boat to run the
engine? It should start and run flawlessly. Are there any service
records? Can you contact the former owner?

Good luck. Nice rig.

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 10:31:44 -0400, Harry Krause
wrote:



you're on the right track. Have you been out in the boat to run the
engine? It should start and run flawlessly. Are there any service
records? Can you contact the former owner?

Good luck. Nice rig.

No, I may have made a mistake, but I low-balled the seller (local
marina that just took the boat on trade), and to my surprise, they
accepted the offer on the condition that they not have to accommodate
a sea trial. They were happy to take me on a sea trial before I made
the offer, but the salesman commented that "there wasn't enough money
left in it" for him to bother with the logistics of a sea trial. He
said he would be more than happy to let me take the boat for a trial
on my own, but I have neither the time, nor the vehicle to do it.

They still have no issue with the mechanical contingency however.
Based on the condition of the boat overall, I can't see that it has
more than 50 hours of use on it, so hopefully if the compression is
right I should be covered. After the mechanical inspection, I'll head
down there and have them start it for me just to make sure it runs
smoothly.

Thanks!

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

wrote in message
...
On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 10:31:44 -0400, Harry Krause
wrote:



you're on the right track. Have you been out in the boat to run the
engine? It should start and run flawlessly. Are there any service
records? Can you contact the former owner?

Good luck. Nice rig.

No, I may have made a mistake, but I low-balled the seller (local
marina that just took the boat on trade), and to my surprise, they
accepted the offer on the condition that they not have to accommodate
a sea trial. They were happy to take me on a sea trial before I made
the offer, but the salesman commented that "there wasn't enough money
left in it" for him to bother with the logistics of a sea trial. He
said he would be more than happy to let me take the boat for a trial
on my own, but I have neither the time, nor the vehicle to do it.

They still have no issue with the mechanical contingency however.
Based on the condition of the boat overall, I can't see that it has
more than 50 hours of use on it, so hopefully if the compression is
right I should be covered. After the mechanical inspection, I'll head
down there and have them start it for me just to make sure it runs
smoothly.

Thanks!




The logistics of a sea trial? Is it on a trailer near water? In the water?

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:09:03 GMT, "Doug Kanter"
wrote:

The logistics of a sea trial? Is it on a trailer near water? In the water?

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a
park a few miles away. I guess they figured that based on the price
they agreed upon, they didn't want the hassle of dealing with it.

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

wrote in message
...
On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:09:03 GMT, "Doug Kanter"
wrote:

The logistics of a sea trial? Is it on a trailer near water? In the
water?

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a
park a few miles away. I guess they figured that based on the price
they agreed upon, they didn't want the hassle of dealing with it.


In that case, I'd make damned sure you can get every penny of your
investment back if you find anything major wrong after taking the boat for a
spin. If the dealer can't afford the time to launch the boat for a test
drive, he's sure as hell not going to have enough money in the deal to fix
problems for you.

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:55:27 GMT, "Doug Kanter"
wrote:


wrote in message
.. .
On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:09:03 GMT, "Doug Kanter"
wrote:

The logistics of a sea trial? Is it on a trailer near water? In the
water?

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a
park a few miles away. I guess they figured that based on the price
they agreed upon, they didn't want the hassle of dealing with it.


In that case, I'd make damned sure you can get every penny of your
investment back if you find anything major wrong after taking the boat for a
spin. If the dealer can't afford the time to launch the boat for a test
drive, he's sure as hell not going to have enough money in the deal to fix
problems for you.


Indeed, and hence the request for advice on the mechanical
inspection.....Maybe I'll get a friend with a truck to take a quick
spin in the boat before I pay for it..........

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

I just put a deposit on a 2001, 13' Boston Whaler Sport with a 40HP
Mercury 2-stroke outboard. The boat and motor are in near flawless
condition aesthetically, and even under the motor cowling looks near
new.

Marine motors dont get as dirty as automitive motors but clean is
always a good sign ...


The boat seems to have had very little use, but I want to make sure I
don't get into trouble with the engine. I've asked the dealer to do a
compression check, and pressure test the lower unit. Is there
anything else I should be concerned with? Any idiosyncracies with
this particular engine?

With a 2 stroke a compression check tells the whole story ...

I would check/replace the impeller as well...

The motor should be checked for carbonization and i would take a look
at the sparkplugs. If its carbonized (will happen quicker when it was
used for trolling) then have it decarbonized.


I've been told that the 40HP Merc. had been around for years, and is
pretty much bulletproof. Aside from it going under water, being run
out of oil, or water in the lower unit, I can't think of anything else
to be concerned with.

Will a compression test uncover any major mechanical issues?

Yes, it will for the powerhead

Problem is, in my 30 years of boating, I've never owned a boat with an
outboard motor, so I'm quite wet behind the ears.

Any advice would be most appreciated...........

I am not a pro but I dont thik there is much more you can check ...

Matt

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a


A marina with no lift facilities and no ramp? Huh?

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

"Stanley Barthfarkle" wrote in message
...

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a


A marina with no lift facilities and no ramp? Huh?



Sounds like a car dealership converted into a boat dealership. :-)

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

Stanley Barthfarkle wrote:

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a


A marina with no lift facilities and no ramp? Huh?



It's a dry marina?

I love your handle, Stanley.

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

"Submariner" wrote in message
...

I've been told that the 40HP Merc. had been around for years, and is
pretty much bulletproof. Aside from it going under water, being run
out of oil, or water in the lower unit, I can't think of anything else
to be concerned with.


Having just had a bad experience with Mercury outboards I would say that
there is additional things to be worried about.

I just bought a boat with a pair of 50 Hp Mercury four strokes. The motors
were a 2000 model, paperwork shows it was first sold in 2002. The motors had
only 16 hours on them and were still under warrantee.

The motors wouldn't idle well and bogged down and died easily when trying to
accelerate. I figured that the carburetors were just a little dirty and
that should be easy to fix. I mean, the motor only have 16 hours on them
and anything major would covered by the warrantee, right? WRONG!

Each motor had four carburetors and eight carburetors were seriously
corroded inside from having gas sit in them for 2 years. I would have
figured that gas in a carburetor was something that the carburetors would
have been built to survive, but I was wrong again. Mercury would not honor
the warrantee because they claimed the damage was due to neglect.

So, I learned two things: Mercury doesn't build their motors to survive
sitting around unused for periods of time, and Mercury has terrible
warrantee coverage!

They also have a **** poor customer relations department and to top it off
they don't stock parts for their motors! It took me three months to get
replacement carburetors.

You say this motor has been "used very little", which sounds a lot like my
case. I would certainly recommend hooking the motor up to a hose and running
it. Make sure it starts, idles and can rev up without any hesitation.

Rod McInnis

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:34:49 GMT, something compelled
, to say:

On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:09:03 GMT, "Doug Kanter"
wrote:

The logistics of a sea trial? Is it on a trailer near water? In the water?

It's on a trailer, but the marina doesn't have any lift facilities, so
the boat would have to be towed to the nearest ramp, which is at a
park a few miles away. I guess they figured that based on the price
they agreed upon, they didn't want the hassle of dealing with it.

Well, you can probably assume that the boat floats. I'd ask them
to start the motor, a dealership should have the wherewithal to
do that somewhere on the premises. Shift it into forward and
reverse, gun it a bit. Chances are it will be just fine.

Is there any kind of warrantee? Like thirty days or something?

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

On Tue, 22 Jun 2004 14:25:08 GMT,
(Submariner) wrote:

Greetings,

I just put a deposit on a 2001, 13' Boston Whaler Sport with a 40HP
Mercury 2-stroke outboard. The boat and motor are in near flawless
condition aesthetically, and even under the motor cowling looks near
new.

The boat seems to have had very little use, but I want to make sure I
don't get into trouble with the engine. I've asked the dealer to do a
compression check, and pressure test the lower unit. Is there
anything else I should be concerned with? Any idiosyncracies with
this particular engine?

I've been told that the 40HP Merc. had been around for years, and is
pretty much bulletproof. Aside from it going under water, being run
out of oil, or water in the lower unit, I can't think of anything else
to be concerned with.

Will a compression test uncover any major mechanical issues?

Problem is, in my 30 years of boating, I've never owned a boat with an
outboard motor, so I'm quite wet behind the ears.

Any advice would be most appreciated...........

The compression test came in at 125 (top cylinder) and 123 (bottom
cylinder). Are these good numbers?

Also, the marina agreed to a sea trial. I misunderstood them when
discussing this. I guess they just don't want to put a tech in the
boat with me, but they'll let me take it out by myself. They have a
ramp that I was unaware of.

Thanks!

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

"Submariner" wrote in message
...


The compression test came in at 125 (top cylinder) and 123 (bottom
cylinder). Are these good numbers?


Yes, those are good number.

Also, the marina agreed to a sea trial. I misunderstood them when
discussing this. I guess they just don't want to put a tech in the
boat with me, but they'll let me take it out by myself. They have a
ramp that I was unaware of.


Problem solved!

Take it for a ride, if you like it, buy it!

Rod

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

"Rod McInnis" wrote in message
...

"Submariner" wrote in message
...


The compression test came in at 125 (top cylinder) and 123 (bottom
cylinder). Are these good numbers?


Yes, those are good number.

Also, the marina agreed to a sea trial. I misunderstood them when
discussing this. I guess they just don't want to put a tech in the
boat with me, but they'll let me take it out by myself. They have a
ramp that I was unaware of.


Problem solved!

Take it for a ride, if you like it, buy it!

.......and be sure your wife understands that expenditures like this one go
into the budget under "health care".

Outboard Engine Advice Needed Please - Mercury 40HP
 

On Thu, 24 Jun 2004 20:10:16 GMT, "Doug Kanter"
wrote:

......and be sure your wife understands that expenditures like this one go
into the budget under "health care".



Too funny, but true! Now where to expense the lift? 8)