It rattles there for sure as well every thing else...I havent had the motor long enough to experiment though. Stopping the rattles would take some time for sure but I really hate how it rattles me. Its a fast buzz...best way I can explain it....if i hold my teeth together it can feel them clattering...its not too bad at first but after an hour I just cant stand the boat. If it comes back nothing is wrong. I am definitely getting a different outboard . Test driving first though. I know its a sailboat but we motor a ton....the wind is just so erratic on the lakes. I cant tell if the motor is actually that noisy or its the vibrations that magnify it. After paying closer attention my old Yamaha vibrations can be felt through out the haul as well but it doesn't really bother me and they can be modified through throttle adjustments. This makes sense with the whole harmonics thing what Ive got going with the new motor has me struggling for a solution.
new tohatsu outboard is this normal
- Thread starter katana750
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my six saildrive does the same thing.it is also brand new but it seems reliable.i also had a new honda 8 new super quiet and smooth but like a brittish car would not start when wet a sad statement for a boat engine.give me an old evinrude saildrive( 2 stroke ) anyday.
You are one of the few people to say that. Everything else I see regarding four strokes are they are smooth and quiet. Its the biggest reason I haven't given up yet. If there were more comments like boy my two stroke sure was quiet comparef to my four stroke....I would just assume that's just the way it is and work around it too make the motoring more enjoyable.
When you say six saildrive.....does that mean six horsepower? From what I've read if it is a single cylinder it would have a tendency to vibrate more. I tried a four horse four stroke yamaha when we charter a sailboat last spring. My first thought was oh my I'm glad I don't own this motor. Ran well though and was easy to transfer to the dingy. If I was using the motor just to bomb around in I don't think I would care but a long run would drive my nuts.
Today is the day I get to compare my motor against another similar tohatsu. I am curious.
Sorry I just looked it up......that would be a tohatsu....I just couldn't remember. I looked at buying one but decided on the 9.9.....just because it had a single cylinder apparently I should have gone with the weight savings
A Tohatsu 9.8 is a 2 cylinder 4 stroke, not a 1 cylinder. It has 209cc and high output DC charger. Singles do vibrate more be it a 2 stroke or 4 stroke. Chief
in any event the 6hp tohatsu fits the bill for my 26s the boat sails in almost no wind and will sail on the poles in a gale.the motor starts on the second pull and with sail drive is has more than enough power for the few times a season i need it.
if your running your outboard so much that you think you need a heavy expensive honda you should think about buying a bass boat that's what built for.
if your running your outboard so much that you think you need a heavy expensive honda you should think about buying a bass boat that's what built for.
That was my thought as well when I bought the boat I have changed my mind since. We really only get the chance to sail on insland lakes. Its a pretty big lake but man is the wind erratic. Blows in one direction for a few hours then blows in the complete opposite direction swirls around for a bit...then stops then we drift. Wips back up randomly and we have to change reefs constantly....I gave up after awhile and just leave it with one reef and run the motor and kill it when ever I get the chance. Short and long it is pretty tuff when you actually want to get some where. It was a pleasant surprise when we chartered a sailboat for a week on the coast and sailed in one direction for pretty much a day making progress. Kicker was we only had one day out off five with wind in late march on the west coast.....what are the odds of that? I am quite envious when I hear of people just using their motor to get in and out of the habour....if that would be the case I definitely would go with the lighter motor.
I finally got to test the motor with the mechanic yesterday. We tried mine first. We put it in the tank and it ran great. According to my sound app on my phone it is about 12 db louder than my two stroke but the odd thing was the vibrations. It was nothing like I remembered. Put my hand on the tiller...practically nothing...certainly nothing to complain about. Same thing when I put my hand on the cowling. Our first thought well it must be something with the boat. All things considered I was pretty happy with that...saves me buying a new motor. I still wanted to test the other 9.8 tohatsu he had just rigged up the controls for. He didn't have a prop for it so we stole mine. Fired it up and right away that motor vibrated... more like buzzed just like mine a month ago. I could feel the vibrations in my feet about two feet away of the tank. It was running exactly the way mine was running on the boat. The level of noise was pretty much comparable to mine.
The good thing I do know now is my outboard is capable of running smoothly and with my fingers crossed it is an issue with the propeller...doesnt make a lot of sense but who knows. Im going for one last time to the lake this weekend with my brand new seven pitch prop. I am hoping this will be the answer or I see many very long trips back and forth to a dealer trying to find what causes the problem.
The good thing I do know now is my outboard is capable of running smoothly and with my fingers crossed it is an issue with the propeller...doesnt make a lot of sense but who knows. Im going for one last time to the lake this weekend with my brand new seven pitch prop. I am hoping this will be the answer or I see many very long trips back and forth to a dealer trying to find what causes the problem.
Yes your right. My previous sentence was worded funny. I didn't buy the six because it was a single cylinder. Went with the 9.8 because it had two cylinders and the larger alternator. Although the six was lighter and quite a bit cheaper.
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Nope.... that wasnt the problem. Might be the boat who knows although I tried the motor on the dingy with pretty similar results. We are going to try a yamaha this weekend. It was kind of interesting with the phone app. The Nissan is an easy 13 db higher siting in the cock pit at just over half throttle...5.7 knots but putting the phone on the cock pit cushion was really interesting. With the old Yamaha and the little app it read 70 db. The new Nissan maxed it out at 103. I couldnt get it to measure until I backed off to less than half throttle. I know the accuracy of the app may be suspect but at least its something tangible you can use to compare motors with. Ill let you know what happens after we try the yamaha for the people still following along. Man I wished I lived in center that sold outboards....this all day driving thing for information is a bit tiresome ....oh well once we find something we like we will be good for along time.
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I just got back from trying the yamaha. A twelve hour exercise but it was a very nice day . It was a good news bad news scenario. The good news is I have learned I dont hate all four strokes and I found great customer service. The bad news is what to do? The 4 stroke yamaha does vibrate a bit more than my two stroke and it is a little bit louder but all in all a very nice motor. Certainly can carry on a conversation in the cock pit and doesnt vibrate every nut off that isn't a nylock or loctighted on. I think the difference is maybe the Nissan has a crazy fast short pitch vibration but not really sure. The Nissan at full throttle is a good ten decibel higher than the yamaha but at 3/4 throttle the difference isnt a big deal but the comfort level is night and day.
Now I guess my decision is do I just sell this Nissan at a big loss? It would make a great kicker... at low rpm I have very few complaints.... or try to convince Nissan the motor vibrates too much. Im not really sure how they would even dignose that. It didnt seem that bad in the test tank..Unless they have the exact same motor to try on the boat to compare and even if they agree....how can you fix it. The mechanics words were it is kind of loud and he agreed it vibrated the boat but tough to tell if that is normal. There could be so many things that it might be or its just an inherent trait of the motor. I dont think is the case because so many people on this site with the exact same boat dont seem to have a problem. I keep seeing the words quiet and smooth. Based on my motor these would not be the first words that pop in my head. Its just not feasible to drag my boat to next closest dealer....
I think I might post something in the general section to see if anybody has noticed yamaha being a much smoother and quieter motor. After searching the web I dont think I ll see much. I got the distinct impression that most outboards now are pretty much in the same league. Ill also try writing a letter to the company I bought it from and the factory now that I know the problem isnt all in my head... it cant hurt and it will be good test of customer service...From the one call I made to them so far I dont see it as lost cause. The guy I talked to was even open to me just letting him listen over the phone. Ive taken a few videos but diagnosing with a video would be a tough call.
Now I guess my decision is do I just sell this Nissan at a big loss? It would make a great kicker... at low rpm I have very few complaints.... or try to convince Nissan the motor vibrates too much. Im not really sure how they would even dignose that. It didnt seem that bad in the test tank..Unless they have the exact same motor to try on the boat to compare and even if they agree....how can you fix it. The mechanics words were it is kind of loud and he agreed it vibrated the boat but tough to tell if that is normal. There could be so many things that it might be or its just an inherent trait of the motor. I dont think is the case because so many people on this site with the exact same boat dont seem to have a problem. I keep seeing the words quiet and smooth. Based on my motor these would not be the first words that pop in my head. Its just not feasible to drag my boat to next closest dealer....
I think I might post something in the general section to see if anybody has noticed yamaha being a much smoother and quieter motor. After searching the web I dont think I ll see much. I got the distinct impression that most outboards now are pretty much in the same league. Ill also try writing a letter to the company I bought it from and the factory now that I know the problem isnt all in my head... it cant hurt and it will be good test of customer service...From the one call I made to them so far I dont see it as lost cause. The guy I talked to was even open to me just letting him listen over the phone. Ive taken a few videos but diagnosing with a video would be a tough call.
If you still have the rubber pad I'd try without that. Our 9.8 isn't...
...mounted in the stock position but on a higher mount I made, all very rigid and we motored hundreds of miles with no vibration or noise complaints at about 1/2 throttle, 4 1/2-5 kt. If anything I would think the mount I made would make vibration worst with the longer lever arm that it creates but it has not been a problem. Nothing like what you are describing. Something is wrong and I don't think it is the Tohatsu.
See if you can find another S owner that would let you put your motor on their boat.
I'd buy another Tohatsu in a minute and we did also buy their 3 1/2 for the dinghy and again love it.
Good luck,
Sumner
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Hi Sumner welcome back
That would be too easy....It would make my rather long winded post very short if I could try another Tohatsu on my boat. I would have a fast definitive answer in about five minutes. I tried a second Nissan in a tank that came off a sailboat that broke free and crashed onto the rocks that had damage to its leg and no prop. It seemed to vibrate more than mine....not too surprising. It still belongs to someone else and probably not the best control motor. After the tank test i was pretty confident it was something with my boat. After the next time out I tried without the rubber pad and new prop, I had second thoughts. So that's why I tried a completely different motor expecting it to be the same as my Nissan but it was a night a day difference. The yamaha was a bit noisier and a few more vibrations than my old two stroke but nothing compared to the Nissan. My wife and i both agree we could motor for a few hours quite comfortably with the yamaha.
The big problem is Tohatsu isnt that popular here. Ive only seen one. The dealer although helpful is on the other side of Kootenay lake and doesn't have any more motors. The next dealer is in Calgary 400 km away...not sure how intimate they are are with the motor either.....they dont even advertise Tohatsu motors on their web page. I took an educated gamble and bought the motor online. In hindsight I regret it but when I was looking I was faced with a 1500 dollar more expensive motor and a days round trip or get one delivered to my door and everybody seemed happy with the Tohatsu or in any case one brand of outboard wasn't particularly better than the next
I actually like the Nissan...fits in the well nicely, I can carry it easy enough,tilts easily,easy to start and has a permanent start cord, but after two months of asking people what they thought of their motors....Thanks for all the replys, taking it to a dealer, scouring the web, trying different ways of mounting, and finally trying a completely different motor I am really starting to think its the motor. The vibration seems to almost disappear if I run the motor without the prop but I dont know if that really means something. Ive tried a different prop....no difference. I think I just got unlucky and am living in a really inconvient spot for outboard purchasing and diagnosing. Now if I could power the boat with a quad or a snow mobile I would be buried in choices
That would be too easy....It would make my rather long winded post very short if I could try another Tohatsu on my boat. I would have a fast definitive answer in about five minutes. I tried a second Nissan in a tank that came off a sailboat that broke free and crashed onto the rocks that had damage to its leg and no prop. It seemed to vibrate more than mine....not too surprising. It still belongs to someone else and probably not the best control motor. After the tank test i was pretty confident it was something with my boat. After the next time out I tried without the rubber pad and new prop, I had second thoughts. So that's why I tried a completely different motor expecting it to be the same as my Nissan but it was a night a day difference. The yamaha was a bit noisier and a few more vibrations than my old two stroke but nothing compared to the Nissan. My wife and i both agree we could motor for a few hours quite comfortably with the yamaha.
The big problem is Tohatsu isnt that popular here. Ive only seen one. The dealer although helpful is on the other side of Kootenay lake and doesn't have any more motors. The next dealer is in Calgary 400 km away...not sure how intimate they are are with the motor either.....they dont even advertise Tohatsu motors on their web page. I took an educated gamble and bought the motor online. In hindsight I regret it but when I was looking I was faced with a 1500 dollar more expensive motor and a days round trip or get one delivered to my door and everybody seemed happy with the Tohatsu or in any case one brand of outboard wasn't particularly better than the next
I actually like the Nissan...fits in the well nicely, I can carry it easy enough,tilts easily,easy to start and has a permanent start cord, but after two months of asking people what they thought of their motors....Thanks for all the replys, taking it to a dealer, scouring the web, trying different ways of mounting, and finally trying a completely different motor I am really starting to think its the motor. The vibration seems to almost disappear if I run the motor without the prop but I dont know if that really means something. Ive tried a different prop....no difference. I think I just got unlucky and am living in a really inconvient spot for outboard purchasing and diagnosing. Now if I could power the boat with a quad or a snow mobile I would be buried in choices
The one difference I have noticed before a bought the motor was that you and few other people have made mounts. Looking around the marinas it seems the vast majority of sailboats have some sort of mount. Mine is attached directly to the boat. I have been tossing the idea of mounting a Garlick motor mount on to the back of the boat and isolating the vibrations as much as I can. I also had a similar thought that it might make it worse. The yamaha doesnt fit in the well very well. Havent really made any decision yet and it wasnt until yesterdays yamaha test drive that I came to the conclusion I may have a wonky motor. I was hoping it was just an inherent trait of four strokes and I would have to work around it. I tried the motor on my dingy as well....makes the whole thing buzz and its made of rubber. I can only imagine whats its like on a aluminum boat.
Just another update. I mounted a garlick motor mount onto the back of the boat. I wasnt sure if I was going to like it and was a bit concerned it would make things worse. I was wrong on both accounts. I actually like it quite a bit. It completely solved my problem of slow speed steerage when their isnt enough water for the rudder and it was an improvement on the vibrations. I am no longer numb after using the motor. I am still going to write tohatsu and see what they think. I just have trouble believing yamaha is such a drastically more refined motor. It is more expensive but I just figured I was paying for a name. My last thought I had that could be causing my problem could have been that the transom on the boat was maybe a bit soft but that theory was shot down when I mounted the bracket....the plywood was perfectly sound. I think Sums and a few other transom modifications I saw were more compact than my motor mount but I think it will work for me. Probably not great for boat performance but again thats not a big deal we have way more days without wind than with. It is a pretty rare day when we go out that we have wind all day. I'll let you know what Tohatsu says but I am pretty sure Im going to take a loss and sell this motor. It just doesn't compare with the yamaha we tried.
If you still have the rubber pad I'd try without that. Our 9.8 isn't...
...mounted in the stock position but on a higher mount I made, all very rigid and we motored hundreds of miles with no vibration or noise complaints at about 1/2 throttle, 4 1/2-5 kt. If anything I would think the mount I made would make vibration worst with the longer lever arm that it creates but it has not been a problem. Nothing like what you are describing. Something is wrong and I don't think it is the Tohatsu.
See if you can find another S owner that would let you put your motor on their boat.
I'd buy another Tohatsu in a minute and we did also buy their 3 1/2 for the dinghy and again love it.
Good luck,
Sumner
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[/FONT]Sorry Sumner I actually miss read your statement. I just got hung up on finding another Tohatsu outboard. There is actually another 26s at our marina. That could work if the fellow was accommodating but on the other hand Im also out of ideas on what I could do if I put my motor on his boat and it is the elusive ...smooth and quiet....I am looking for. I already dragged my boat home for the winter maybe if I dont get any hits on the motor I'll try again in the Spring. The yamaha was awfully nice and it would put an end to my trial and error quest albeit at a pretty good financial hit.
Just to follow up on the Nissan. I still have to be convinced about the motor but I am extremely happy with the customer service. They got back to me right away. They read through this whole thread and even let me take the motor to a Mercury Dealer for the service. I just got this back from them today.
He checked the lower unit and it was all good. It actually ended up being a carburetor adjustment issue and idle speed. The carburetor running lean(not enough fuel) will definitely cause a motor to have a rough running issue and vibration. He said he has test ran it and it is better.
I would have to say I was hoping there was something wrong with the lower end... it would make more sense to me but at this point I'll take anything. I just need to wait for some less solid water and give it a try.
He checked the lower unit and it was all good. It actually ended up being a carburetor adjustment issue and idle speed. The carburetor running lean(not enough fuel) will definitely cause a motor to have a rough running issue and vibration. He said he has test ran it and it is better.
I would have to say I was hoping there was something wrong with the lower end... it would make more sense to me but at this point I'll take anything. I just need to wait for some less solid water and give it a try.
