I don't know if this engine is old enough to have been derated by the
use of a thicker head gasket to compensate for poor quality fuel. So,
you may not get the 90 HP you're expecting.

I don't understand what this means. Please clarify. Thanks.

If it hasn't been rebuilt yet, it's a ticking time bomb. Factor in the
cost of a rebuilt power head ($1800 - $2000) when negotiating final
price. The good news is, if it lasted this long, the previous owner
took care of it.

I see. This means a rebuilt motor is better than an old motor that has
not been rebuilt yet.

If it has been rebuilt, don't forget all the other original and
expensive to replace parts that were reused, i.e. the starter ($200),
alternator ($300), lower unit ($1000).

I see. This means a rebuilt motor is a good value, and I should
consider it.

Now that OMC has changed hands, I don't know how long spare parts will
be available. Don't forget, 90 HP Evinrudes were available with the
FICHT nightmare. If it's a FICHT, that should be the deal breaker,
unless he's willing to deduct the full value of that motor from the
sale price.

I will have to research on this FICHT issue to know what this is all
about. Thanks for bring this to my attention.

Jay Chan

Jay,
Due to the lower quality of fuel, OMC decided to lower compression by
replacing cylinder head gaskets with thicker ones. The lower
compression lowered the horsepower rating a bit.

John

Due to the lower quality of fuel, OMC decided to lower compression by
replacing cylinder head gaskets with thicker ones. The lower
compression lowered the horsepower rating a bit.

Thanks for the explanation. Seem like this is not something that I need
to worry about because I don't really care about having a lot of
horsepower.

Jay Chan