Who is the Toyota of small outboards 9.9-15 HP 4 stroke?

I would make my decision based off who near me can service what what I buy. I have a second home on the coast and my brand decision was based on local service and parts availability. I don't want down time.
 
So what are your guys thoughts on a 15 or 20 on an inflatable? I went and checked a few out this weekend. I’m not a little weak person, but they are quite a bit different than the 2 strokes in remember using when I was younger. They’re not as portable and all were over 100lbs.

This inflatable will be coming out the back of the truck, not on a trailer. Definitely something I need to consider.
 
All four-strokes are going to be heavier than a two stroke. And potentially more finicky. Two strokes haven’t disappeared because they’re less reliable, they have disappeared because of emissions requirements that have made them either outright illegal to sell or not economical to sell. They are still made and sold for most of the rest of the world.

Ultimately, a lot of these motors are pretty good. Unfortunately, I think it’s simply a truism that outboard motors, dealing with water, especiallysaltwater, and especially if there’s winter storage involved, the motors simply need regular maintenance to reliably keep them running. There’s nothing you can do to get around it, but if you do the regular maintenance, any of these motors are going to last and be reliable most of the time. Case in point, my little engine right now is a 1994 mariner 25 hp, paid $800 for it. This was the overseas-made version of a mercury at the time, and neither one was known for being reliable. This motor starts within a couple pulls every time I’ve tried, the entire time I’ve owned it, including in temperatures in the single digits and after many weeks of sitting unused. I’ve also owned a variety of Mercury and Yamaha motors, as well as some smaller johnson and Evinrude motors. They’ve all been good, but they all have their downsides, and they all have elements that I really liked about them, and they WILL all fail at some point. There’s a reason why offshore boats have more than one engine. 5-15 miles can be a long-ass way in a small boat on big water. Sometimes it goes by quick, but one little change in the weather and you’re awfully committed that far from home in a boat that small. I guess where I’m going is that you should understand the risk you are taking making a trip like that in any boat, regardless of how reliable it is supposedly going to be, and think really hard about the advice above regarding picking the engine based on the service that’s available locally. One of the reasons I’ve had Yamaha or Mercury for the past couple decades is simply because those are by far the easiest to get GOOD service for, including dealers with parts, longstanding company relationships to go to bat for you in any problem, experienced mechanics who know the quirks of your engine. I have three lousy dealers in my back yard but I do all my business and service with a dealer that’s over an hour away for that reason alone. Might be a different brand in your area that has a really good dealer.
 
Also, all this talk about dependability brought back memories of watching Babe Winkleman in the early 1980’s.

(I dont recommend getting a 1983 mariner though)
 
It’s all heavy if your over 40.
My old Zodiac was 120# and it was only a 12’er
The motor was 92#
Lifting that boat in and out the back of a truck got old fast. So did loading and unloading the motor even with a ramp and dolly.
Before I knew it I had a raft trailer for the Zodiac.
 
Small motors are typically very reliable. It's the big ones that break down more.

Have never owned a Yamaha. Johnson, Evinrude, Mercury, Suzuki, Chrysler. Always liked Johnson but had better "luck" with Mercury. Trick is to keep up on the maintenance - don't loan it out and don't let friends run the boat. (25 hp merc somehow fell off boat when "friend" took it out, thankfully it was insured and only cost me $250 deductible to replace.)

Bought a new 60 hp Merc in 2020 and it has been okay. Have couple 2-stroke Mercury's in the barn right now - 4, 15, 25 hp.

The best small outboard I ever had was Suzuki. It was a 9.9 and it pushed faster than 15 hp of other brands. It had some corrosion and we couldn't get it apart to swap out water pump. Bought 15 hp from uncle.

Wouldn't shake my head at a Tohatsu either.

Build a motor mount/lift combination that slides into your tow hitch. Picking up a 100#+ motor after a long day on the water doesn't sound like fun.
 
I live on an island and everywhere I go starts with the boat. All of the new 4 stroke outboards are reliable, not sure that there is enough difference between them to really count. Based on what I see in the marinas Yamaha is hands down the most popular kicker motor in both WA and BC. I have a Yamaha 9.9 (old) that has been bullet proof, also have a Honda 8 and Tohatsu 9.8 and Suzuki 2.5. Not a lick of trouble with any of them unless they sit for a long time (gas treatment is your friend). I'd go with what you can get the best deal on and not worry about it too much. You are going to want at least a 12' dink if you are planning on two adults and a bear or two. Soft bottom boat isn't going to plane with a lot of weight in it unless you get at least 20 hp, maybe not even then.
 
Just something to consider. If you are going to be using it in a remote area I would see what is most commonly used in that area. I have noticed that a lot of regions and communities favor a particular brand. If you have the local brand parts are a lot easier to come by.
 
Macintosh said:
Dang man, I should be calling you Gramps! What year? 197…?
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Think it is like a 1980 9.9. Im a grandpa, that’s okay.

I would bet a paycheck we could fire it up w minimal effort. Hasnt been run in about 10-15 years cause it is frozen “forward” from FL saltwater.

That was my ice duck hunting motor. Always ran even if it got overheated and or rroze. LoL!
 
Macintosh said:
Dang man, I should be calling you Gramps! What year? 197…?
Click to expand...
I had a 9.9 hsp Chrysler too. Got it on 1984 I think and it was at least 5 years old. So... your 197...? would apply to me. I'm 52, but not a grandpa.
 
Scoot said:
I had a 9.9 hsp Chrysler too. Got it on 1984 I think and it was at least 5 years old. So... your 197...? would apply to me. I'm 52, but not a grandpa.
Click to expand...
Well, 1972 was a good year for me too, brother. I hate to break it to ya, but there’s folks our age whose kids have kids…

Anyhoooo…probably not what OP is looking for. 😁
 
I made several trips back to the dealership with a brand new, I took it out of the crate ‘Zuki 25 that I bought new back in ‘19. I can’t recommend it moving forward. I replaced it with a Merc’ and have 4 times the hours on it without a hiccup.
 
Yamaha. Have had 3 of them, all various HP. 4 strokes. Run like a champ. Although I do miss my Mercury 2 stroke. She would fly.
 
There you go… every single brand of outboard ever produced… except maybe evinrude.

I’ve had great luck with mercury and Yamaha.

I try and spend the winters fishing in Florida. The guys that fish the salt flats in skiffs put a ton of hours on their motors (not uncommon to see a motor with [emoji[emoji[emoji[emoji6][emoji6]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6]]]][emoji[emoji6][emoji6]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6][emoji6]]]]k hours). They seem to really like the Tohatsu motors. Good combination of price, weight and reliability. If I was doing a [emoji[emoji[emoji6][emoji6]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6]]]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6]]] to [emoji[emoji[emoji[emoji6][emoji6]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6]]]][emoji[emoji6][emoji6]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6][emoji6]]]][emoji[emoji[emoji6]][emoji[emoji6]]] hp motor, that’s what I’d buy.


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mentioned several times already:

My understanding is Tohatsu, Nissan and Mercury, are all owned by Brunswick and the small outboards are all literally the same engine, just branded differently—like a Chevy and a GMC are the same truck, a few trim differences but the functional parts from a reliability perspective are the same—parts interchange, etc. Does anyone have actual insider knowledge of this with regard to the outboards to confirm or add nuance to this?
 
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