Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

[phatmanmike]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

The outboard guys just get defensive because they typically pay twice as much for the same ammount of horsepower.

all of my motors ( all outboards) have been purchased used and VERY CHEAP!<br /><br />

After owning several smelly outboards, and then getting a modern I/O, I won't buy anything two-stroke ever again

thats hwy i repair and fix what needs repaired and fixed and tune them to run better than new! ever heard of synthetic two-stroke outboard oil? i use it religiously. no smell, no smoke, and none of my motors idle badly at all.<br /><br />to each his own!

 

[Zerex]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

I'm in the exact same 'boat' as Cliff. I want to purchase a 16'-18' bowrider this winter aswell. SO being an upcoming new boatowner I'm paying close attention to this thread as this is what I'm still up in the air about.<br />So maybe someone could answer a couple questions I have. What is roughly considered low hours for 1 year of boating? When do the big maintenance items or repairs appear on both OB's and I/OB's (ie 500hrs, 1000hrs?)<br />The last painful question i have is about doing it yourself. I'm an competent auto mechanic and fabricator would I be able to use my skills to perform most repairs on either motors or does most work require special tools or talents.<br />Thanks for any replies form another NEWB

 

[AaronG]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

Some people may only put 10 or so hours on a boat a year, but just because a boat has low hours doesn't mean its in good shape. <br /><br />I keep my boat in a slip right down the street from my shore house. My wife and I take it out all the time. Not just for fishing or tubing, but we also use it to go our friends houses at the shore, and to resturants and such. At the shore, it replaces our car! With all that use, we put a lot of hours on it. Probably 100 a year. I was told by a marine tech that if you are putting 100 hours a year on a pleasure boat, you definately have your priorities in line! I do! <br /><br />Both I/O's and outboards need maintence every year. On both you need to be changing the lower unit's oil, You should also be fogging them every fall and changing the plugs every spring. <br /><br />Every other year, you need to be doing the water pumps impeller. <br /><br />Winterizing an outboard is much easier, because they are self draining. Winterizing an I/O is much more involved. There are a few ways to handle getting the water out of the engine and antifreeze in, but all of them require at least an hour of work<br /><br />You also need to be changing the oil in the I/O every year. Thats not a big deal. Just a little more involved then doing it on a car. <br /><br />The I/O also has the bellows which need attention every few years. The bellows seal water out of the I/O's driveshaft, its shift cable and its exhaust. If they fail, the water can ruin components, and possibly allow the boat to take on water. Most of the problems you hear about with I/O's are from people who never look at the bellows, and then when they fail, it costs 4 x more to fix then if they had just replaced them preemtively. <br /><br />Its tough to say what needs to be done at what hour interval. On an infrequently used boat, it could take 20 years for it to reach 500 hours, on on a boat like mine, it may only take a few years. <br />At the shore, with salt water, most raw water cooled engines don't last 1000 hours. Outboard or I/O. I figure I'll get 5-700 out of mine. At that point, I'll be putting a fuel injected 350 in it with fresh water cooling!

 

[Mnemonic]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

I have had outboards and my current boat is an I/O. I like both, but i lean towards the i/o. I like having my swim platform without a gap in it, less noise, and in my experience more reliability.<br /><br />Considering I am in salt water, if i were to buy a NEW boat, it would have to be a under-deck I/O with fresh water cooling. <br /><br />In my opinion, the only outboard I would consider getting nowadays would be a Merc Verado... I had the pleasure of going on a 24' center console with 2 verado 250's and i was simply amazed at the fact there was no noise (practically silent, the only way you can tell it was running was by the telltale) and the power was unbeleivable.

 

[txswinner]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

I am sold does Ranger have an I/O bass rig.

 

[sixysixss]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

I just went through this same decision making process. I ultimately purchased a 19'bowrider with Johnson 150GT outboard. The main reason I opted for this particular boat/engine combo, besides the price and condition, was all the room inside the boat with the outboard. The inboards and stern drives I looked at took up a whole lot of space with the motor. The outboard solves that problem, and with 3 kids, friends, ski gear, innertube, wakeboard, etc., the boat fills up fast!<br /><br />Having had the boat for about 3 months now, it does seem to be a bigger gas hog than I thought it would be. I figured that the fuel usage for a V6 would be pretty good, but I was wrong. I'm also pretty handy at turning a wrench. The outboard motor is, however, a little intimidating at first. I'm sure that I'll get used to it with time. In fact, I'm going to replace head gaskets on it this weekend, so we'll see how it goes. It is also easier standing up to work on an outboard, rather than laying, squatting or otherwise getting yourself into strange and awkward positions to work on an I/O. <br /><br />In all, each has its ups and downs. I didn't let the type of motor influence my decision as much as the price and condition of the boat and motor I wanted to get. I will also say that in my search for an older boat, it seemed that the outboards were better maintained by their owners than the stern drives I looked at. I don't know what that tells you, if anything, but it made it easier for me to decide to buy a well maintained outboard.<br /><br />Hope this helps and good luck.<br /><br />Rob S.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

Zerex<br /><br />Most boats don't see more than 10 hours a year, they get used a bunch the first year, less the second and then somthing goes wrong with the boat or trailer (from neglect most of the time), so it sits and doesn't get used. Or it gets kept at a storage facility and is forgotten. My boats see ten hours a day when I'm fishing, and at times I fish 5 days a week. Most of my motors (6, from 6hp to 200hp) are from the seventies, have not been rebuilt and run great. They have been used in fresh and salt water with no big problems.

 

[sergioy]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

txwinner - I have seen a ranger with an I/O, once in KS. I couldn't stop starring, or perhaps it was the babe in the bikini. <br /><br />I currently have both a ski boat with a I/O and a bass boat with an outboard. I can go out with the family and run the ski boat to death pulling tubes, skies, wakeboard, and just cruise. The most I have ever used is maybe 10 gallons of gas. The I/O is amazingly effecient gas wise.<br /><br />Then there is the bass boat. It will run like a bat out of hell, but it drinks the gas like it doesn't care. Now I don't have any experience with the newer more efficient outboards, but I also can't afford them.<br /><br />I don't really mind doing maintenance on either, course the outboard is a little bit easier.

 

[Triton II]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

4-stroke OB every time! Quiet, fuel efficient, no smokey exhaust to upset people and lots of room in the boat. Also consider weight - OBs are generally lighter than IBs or IOs for the same horsepower, for instance Mercruiser 5.7L 260HP inboard weighs 888lbs without a transmission, shaft or prop, a Mercruiser stern drive 250hp weighs 950lbs including drive, whereas a 4-Stroke Suzuki 250 OB weighs 590lbs with transmission and prop.

 

[Drybo]

Re: Sorry, one more I/O vs Outboard question:|

Just thinking out loud, why do the pro's in the ocean fishing shows(tv) always seem to have twin and now three large outboards?