Honda 2hp clutch prop vs Yamaha 2.5hp

[Malcolm Young]

I posted this to the wrong forum at first. Trying again.I am thinking about getting a new outboard for my tender. At the moment I am considering:- an aircooled Honda 2 hp with prop that uses a centrifugal clutch to simulate neutral - 27lb- a water cooled Yamaha 2.5 hp with a forward and an actual neutral - 37lb.I prefer the smaller 4 cycle engines as the larger ones start to get kind of heavy to lift up to the big boat. While I can physically lift more it isn't much fun as the dinghy isn' t that stable a platform. (I don't want davits or a motor lift for various reasons). Some questions:- Is the clutch action on the Honda reliable?- Is there any problem with the air cooling on the Honda? Does it have an irritating weedeater sound as someone indicated to me - not sure they really knew or were just sounding off.- What are your experiences with these and other engines - fuel economy etc.- Are their other 4cycle engines that I should consider?

 

[Droop]

Here is the deal

I have the Honda and I don't like it but:- Is the clutch action on the Honda reliable?Yes, but when the engine is cold you can not lower the throttle enough to stop the prop. This is kind of dangerous.- Is there any problem with the air cooling on the Honda? Does it have an irritating weedeater sound as someone indicated to me - not sure they really knew or were just sounding off.The air cooling works pretty well. It is louder but not as bad as you think.- What are your experiences with these and other engines - fuel economy etc.The oil system does not work very well. It is hard to fill. Hard to tell if it is fell. Overall poor design. Fuel ecomy is good.- Are their other 4cycle engines that I should consider? No, but if I had it to do over I would buy a 2-cycle!

 

[Merrythought]

Yamaha 2.5

I have the Yamaha 2.5 and love it. It starts every time, is quiet, and is used to push a zodiac 9.2 with two people and 2 standard poodles. It does the job very well.

 

[Randall]

Honda 2 hp

I also have the Honda, and Droop's answers are pretty much in line with my views as well. I would add though, that I purchased this model because it's used on a hard dinghy that has a 2hp max, and that I wanted the absolute lightest engine possible. I've owned lots of Honda products over the years from cars to lawnmowers and found they all performed very well. Given it's design parameters, this product performs well too. As for the sound, you don't have to wind the thing out to get a hard dinghy up to speed. So at a moderate throttle level, it isn't that loud.