I am looking for a good 4 stroke 25 hp outboard. My choices are Mercury, Honda,Yahama, & Suzuki. Can some of you please rate them in order from best to worst of the lot. Thanks
The most technologically advanced would be the Tohatsu masquerading as a Mercury. But with technology you generally pay a price in terms of complicated systems that can reduce reliability and a dumb engine is where you indicated you want to be. The Suzuki in this size is dumb, but it's the dog of the Suzuki line as well as being a dog compared to other 25's so I would steer clear of it. Both the Yamaha and Honda are dumb, but they are solid designs that will run consistently. Between those two I prefer the Yamaha as it is considered a better performer for hole shot than the Honda. One thing to keep in mind is that all of them are so close in most respects that only a tiny degree of superiority in each is possible by any one over any other. IE You wouldn't be making a mistake in getting any of them...The Suzuki has a 6 year warranty now. That might make up for it being a turtle. The Tohatsu/Mercury is the most powerful and fuel efficient. The Honda has a good service history and Yamaha has a lot of dealers in the U.S. so you probably will have a choice over which dealer you can take it into for service. Roll the dice and be happy with any of them.
