2024 Honda 2.3 HP outboard winterizing

[sailcapt340]

I am looking for your tips on winterizing my new 2.3 HP Honda outboard.
For my old (24 years old) 4 stroke Mercury 3.5 HP outboard, I would run it in a barrel of fresh water, then while it was running spray Fogging Oil into the carburetor until it stalled out. Remove the spark plug, squirt some 30 W oil in the cylinder, pull the handle a few times to coat the cylinder and replace the plug.
Close the fuel filter and be done.(Given fresh gas with stabilizer added)
Then while it‘s hanging on my stand, drain the lower unit oil and refill.
That’s pretty much it, and it always started up in the spring, good to go.

Now I have a new 2 stroke Honda 2.3 HP outboard and it’s not looking quite that easy.
Can anyone share how they winterize their Honda 2.3 HP.
There is a special adapter (19271-ZV1-810) to drain the oil easier than just tipping the motor over a can. Which seems like a good idea to me.
So the next question I have is….Is the lower unit oil fill the same size as my oil fill pump handle dispenser or is that unique to Honda as well?
Share your techniques.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Let the engine run out of gas. Use ethanol free gas onlyh

 

[TimFromLI]

There is usually a drain screw on the bowl of the carburetor. Open it and drain any residual gas after after letting it run dry. Same for your snow blower, generator and any other small carbureted engine. For the lower unit you can probably make a cheap adapter if the fitting doesn't fit. Most likely it will since they are both metric.

 

[dmax]

I have a Honda 2.3, to winterize I add a storage dose of Bio-Bor gas treatment, shut off the gas supply valve and run the engine until the carburetor is empty. In the spring, I add some fresh gas and start it up. Haven't changed the lower unit lube yet (5 years). Changing engine oil is a pain so the adapter may be worth it.

 

[twodzusfittings]

@dmax and I spray the the engine with corrosion inhibitor and put the cover back on.

 

[sailcapt340]

I do use Trufuel for my gas. And I just ordered the adapter for the oil drain. I think it will make the job a lot cleaner at least. Better than tipping the engine over a bucket.
I like the motor, not a real big fan of the clutch system, but getting better at controlling the lurching when I first start out. For me it was the trade off I had to do because my dinghy dock is really in the silt at low tide and it did a job on my Mercury water pump.
Thank you all for your guidance.

 

[American_Mainsail]

I think posters mostly have it covered here. Change the oil, run ethanol-free fuel through it, make sure that there's no ethanol fuel still remaining in the tank. I generally treat all of my fuel with Sta-Bil Marine 360 for extra corrosion protection. It's not absolutely required, especially when running Tru-Fuel, but I always have it on hand anyway.

It looks like that motor is air-cooled, so no need to worry about flushing the cooling system.

Run some fogging oil through the air intake, according to the instructions on the can.

Consider giving the spark plug an eyeball and replace depending on condition/age. You can give the cylinder a little bit of fogging oil while you have the plug out, again according to the manufacturer's instructions.

+1 on corrosion protection on the motor. I use Fluid Film on all my marine motors and they stay looking absolutely perfect.

 

[sailcapt340]

Got the adapter to drain the oil easier today. Looks like it will make it cleaner and easier. The opening is just shy of 1/2 inch. With a length of flexible hose in there, draining the oil into a container should work nicely.

 

[sailcapt340]

Update. The adapter works well and with the added length of tubing attached the job is clean.
But First…
You do need to lie the motor down to screw the adapter in. Don‘t try doing this while vertical, the oil will flow out.
Then stand the motor up and let the oil drain into a small container.
Were not talking much, a little over a cup of oil in the sump and the first half emptied quickly. (I didn’t warm the engine before draining the oil, only because I forgot to and had already drained the lower unit and fogged the motor.)
You do still have to tip the engine to allow the last of the oil to drain out. Looking at the sump design, it is angled back away from the drain plug just enough that the last of the oil will not drain out.
Now I will be looking to redesign my outboard motor stand to allow it to tip enough in the direction of the drain plug. This will eliminate any need to hold the motor while draining the oil.
Which was the whole idea of this in the first place.
Followed others advice and lightly coated it. All tucked away for the winter.
Be careful of the O Ring washers on the drain plug and oil fill cap. They’re slippery, fall off easily and roll.

 

[SteveHughessails]

Up here in Canada we can longer get ethanol free fuel at the pump. All fuels as of 2022 have ethanol. I use stabilizer and Seafoam in all of my yard gear, outboards and especially my radial gas engines. In my 2 strokes I use very high quality oil, Lucas, Redline or Klotz.
When I’m finished getting my outboards ready to store, I lift the leg and pull it over a few times to clear any water.