What outboard do I need?

[IH82BL8]

I have a dinghy without an outboard. How many horsepower outboard do I need for a 10-11 ft inflatable to shuttle one adult and two kids or two adults between anchorage and shore? How much should I expect to spend on such an engine used but ready to go?

Thanks.

 

[Lost Parent]

I use a 2.5 yamaha on my 11ft zodiac

 

[Delezynski]

I have a dinghy without an outboard. How many horsepower outboard do I need for a 10-11 ft inflatable to shuttle one adult and two kids or two adults between anchorage and shore? How much should I expect to spend on such an engine used but ready to go?

Thanks.

IH82BL8,

You will most likely get a lot of replies. A LOT depends on what you "want". We use a 3.5 2 cycle to-hot-to when we were cruising the West Coats and Sea of Cortez. It worked out fine for us.

BUT, a LOT of people feel they "NEED" a speed boat.

Greg

 

[Sailm8]

Re: What outborad do I need?

I have a 20 year old nissan 3.5 2 stroke that I have finally had enough of its problems. I use non ethanol gas but still need to disassemble the carb and clean it before every use. We have a favorite anchorage and it is about a 45 minute ride to our favorite beach. I have a line on a 6hp Tohatsu 4 cycle at a decent price I will be looking at Monday. Hoping to cut down on the travel time and the headaches.

Not looking to plane just move a little faster. At 58lbs I can still lift it with one arm from the dink to the boat.

 

[BoonMcGee]

Re: What outborad do I need?

I use a 4.5 hp Yamaha 4stroke to move a 10 foot west marine/zodiac dinghy. Does a great job.

 

[dilligaf]

Different outboards for different jobs

We have used a 20hp 4 stroke for getting us to dive spots 1 mile away or more with two people but only the 4 hp for getting us to shore in the So. Pacific.
We have a 11' hard bottomed dingy and use it for everything including diving. Sometimes it takes a long time to get to the dive spot so we use a larger engine. In Fiji it can be 2 or more miles to the dive spot.
Bill

 

[Sumner]

Re: What outborad do I need?

How fast do you want to go and which inflatable is it with what bottom. A 5 HP would get one person up on plane on our 9 ft Zodiac but since there was usually 2 of us we went with a 3 1/2 hp 4 stroke Tohatsu and just putt along happily and with hardly any noise. It is light, starts right up and no complaints so far.

I'd think you are probably going to need at least an 8-10 HP minimum if you want to get up on plane. If you don't need that then I'll bet the 3 1/2 would work and is easy to get on and off on the water.

We got the used 5 HP Nissan for I think $500-$600 and it had a new impeller and other maintenance done to it and has never given us a problem but now it is parked and we use the bought new 3 1/2 from onlineoutboards,

Sum

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[smokey73]

Re: What outborad do I need?

If you end up getting a used 4hp Nissan there is a little trick to making it a 6hp for about $125. The 4hp and 6hp Nissans are exactly the same engine with the only difference being the carb (at least for the ones in the 2000 to 2008 range). You can buy a new 6hp Nissan carb (check the model numbers to make sure everything matches up) online, swap it out, an bingo - you have a 6hp. The carb works great and its a cheap way to get a little more power at a low $/hp price. Just a thought to keep in mind. May still not get you up on a plane though.

 

[seadaddler]

Depends

As everyone has already said what you want to do and also depends what deals on a outboard is available for you.
I have a 9'6 with aluminum floor and my 8hp does everything I want it to do
and others I have seen with same size dnghy with a 4 hp does a good job with 2 adults.
nick

 

[Bill1565]

I have a dinghy without an outboard. How many horsepower outboard do I need for a 10-11 ft inflatable to shuttle one adult and two kids or two adults between anchorage and shore? How much should I expect to spend on such an engine used but ready to go? Thanks.

.
Used a 15 hp 2 cycle with our 11 footer. Planed easily with 2 adults and 2 large dogs.

 

[Jerry Clark H356 SV Persi]

I use a 4hp, 4 stroke Yamaha on our inflatable Avon 310. It will not plane with two of us, but at low throttle or high throttle goes about 4 MPH (per my Navionics app on Iphone)

I would not recommend it because I can't keep it running unless I use it once a month or more. I have rebuilt carb several times and use non-ethanol gas with Stabil, but the jets are just too small and get easily clogged. I am currently having problems and debating whether to sell it and get a Lehr propane or try to convert it to propane. The Lehr 2.5 would be enough, but only has forward, no reverse. I like having both forward and reverse, but that means 5hp, $600 more and higher fuel consumption.

Has anyone converted an outboard to propane using an internet purchased kit?

 

[Bad Obsession]

One big consideration is weight. Are you going to lift it on and off of the boat often? Are you storing on your stern rail? How much weight are you comfortable moving to and from the stern rail? Do you plan on using the boom to help transfer the engine or any other mechanical assistance?

Those questions will give you more answers than anything else.

I spend a lot of time towing my dingy. On my Catalina 30 I tow the hard dingy and use a 2.5 hp 2 stroke Nissan. I can lift it on and off easy. My cruising grounds is the Chesapeake Bay and I can normally anchor pretty close to where I go ashore (having a draft that is slightly less than 4' helps).

In the end, do you need to plane through an anchorage or are you just using the engine to get from point a to point b? To me, I think it is inconsiderate when someone goes flying through an anchorage in a dingy at full speed.

 

[Chris Patterson]

The kids on their sport boats seem to think little of it..

 

[IH82BL8]

do you need to plane through an anchorage or are you just using the engine to get from point a to point b?

The latter. I think that my crew would be content at displacement speed. Just getting from the hook/mooring to shore/harbor.

 

[higgs]

How far away from the dinghy launch is the boat?

 

[zeehag]

i have a torqueedo t1003s i traded a spinnaker for , it worked great getting my wb8 to beach--i am sure it will do wonderfully well with my 10 ft wb, as well... not anything like those minnkota ones. doesnt need external battery. solar charges also with its own designated panel. tells you how long you can go before having to charge. silent. can hear nature around ye and doesnt scare cool birds in mangroves.

 

[Ken Cross]

My 2 horse Honda weighs 27 lbs. It's pretty easy to take on and off the dink. I rarely fully open the throttle. It depends on how far I want to go. It's also easier to stay dry by going slow.

 

[rufus1138]

if you are going to go for the two hp range get an old two stroke, they're stupid easy to maintain, almost indestructible and weigh half of what you will put up with from a 4 stroke, in this kind of application its the only thing that makes sense, carry a 2gal jerry can with you to top off the motor mounted tank if you're that worried about range. point being the weight difference makes it a no brainer, you can get them on craigs list on the cheap and they're just as quiet as the 4 stroke models in this power range.

 

[fingerlakesailor]

Why not go electric. I just got one for my boat . I use on my S2 6.8 and on my fishing dingy. Super light. Very reliable. Very competitive pricing.

 

[rufus1138]

lol competitive with 300 bucks or less?