New 8 hp outboard motor reviews
- Thread starter domalon
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Don,
I would check out the Tohatsu 9.8 with the 25" shaft for your boat. One of my friends just bought one last year for his Seaward 22 and it pushes that boat right along. It's a nice quiet sweet little engine I think.
Don: It seems to me that opinions about brands of outboards are like opinions about makes of cars: everyone has their own pet peeves and preferences. Someone may hate Chevys, but that doesn't mean you will too. Pick an outboard based on the features offered, and your comfort level with your dealer or servicer.
After sailing my Oday 23 for 11 years with two different outboards, I offer these suggestions:
If you are replacing a two stroke with a four stroke, you will have to upgrade the bracket too. Brackets rated to accomodate four strokes (not just the extra weight, but the extra torque as well) will be too wide to fit on the supporting transom wedge. Your local stainless fabricator should be able to make you a plate that can be bolted to the wedge that will accomodate the new bracket. Or, you can build a new wedge.
You should buy the longest shaft available. The prop on my 20" long shaft cavitates when I make a very sharp turn, or in any kind of seaway. Longer is better. At least a couple of manufacturers offer 25" models. I would look into those.
Electric start is a beautiful thing. I love the convenience, but my wife thinks it is a safety necessity. In an emergency, I don't know if she could use the pull start; she is fine with the electric start.
Good luck, and happy hunting.
After sailing my Oday 23 for 11 years with two different outboards, I offer these suggestions:
If you are replacing a two stroke with a four stroke, you will have to upgrade the bracket too. Brackets rated to accomodate four strokes (not just the extra weight, but the extra torque as well) will be too wide to fit on the supporting transom wedge. Your local stainless fabricator should be able to make you a plate that can be bolted to the wedge that will accomodate the new bracket. Or, you can build a new wedge.
You should buy the longest shaft available. The prop on my 20" long shaft cavitates when I make a very sharp turn, or in any kind of seaway. Longer is better. At least a couple of manufacturers offer 25" models. I would look into those.
Electric start is a beautiful thing. I love the convenience, but my wife thinks it is a safety necessity. In an emergency, I don't know if she could use the pull start; she is fine with the electric start.
Good luck, and happy hunting.
i have read that tohatsu makes the small outboards for mercury and nisson. only difference is the price.
i have a honda four stroke that runs great. i think dealers and repair shops locally available is probably the most important thing to consider if you are not a motor head.
i have a honda four stroke that runs great. i think dealers and repair shops locally available is probably the most important thing to consider if you are not a motor head.
I bought a Tohatsu for mine last year and it runs great. I have a little 4hp long shaft, which works just fine for me on our inland lake. And I use ethanol free gas, which really helps with starting.
If I were somewhere facing choppier waters on a regular basis, I'd agree on getting the longest shaft possible. Once the boat starts moving, the stern sits a little, but I imagine having another 5 inches would help a lot at slow speed in rough water.
If I were somewhere facing choppier waters on a regular basis, I'd agree on getting the longest shaft possible. Once the boat starts moving, the stern sits a little, but I imagine having another 5 inches would help a lot at slow speed in rough water.
On the O'Day 222 that I sold earlier this summer, I bought a Tohatsu 6hp 4-stroke long shaft and really liked it. I had it for about 5 years. It moved the boat well and was reliable. I was always careful with the gas though, using pure gas as opposed to 10% ethanol blend whenever possible. I talked to a Tohatsu dealer and he said that the biggest problem they have had with all the outboards (Tohatsu included) was old gas with ethanol, and that it gets old within a month. I would the blended gas only if I had no other choice.
I bought the Tohatsu online and was very happy with the transaction. I did have a dealer within about 50 miles that would service it if I had problems, but I never needed to do that. I changed the lower unit oil annually and the regular oil twice a season.
Good luck,
Dave
I bought the Tohatsu online and was very happy with the transaction. I did have a dealer within about 50 miles that would service it if I had problems, but I never needed to do that. I changed the lower unit oil annually and the regular oil twice a season.
Good luck,
Dave
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