New 25hp outboard advise. What should I get?

[Special T]

So I am in the market to purchase a 25hp outboard for my duck boat the previous one was an older Johnson 2 stroke. I want to buy a new (or almost) 4 stroke electric start It will be a prop driven long shaft that I will put a Macs skeg protector on.

Ive heard in this HP range that most of the motors are made by 2 companies.  This will be my first new motor and 4 stroke so i would love to hear your experiences and or direction to good articles on the subject.

Thank you for you input.

[Encore 280]

E-TEC all the way. Or Yamaha.

[carpsniperg2]

Yamaha has 5 years of warranty or a store rebate with the standard 3 year warranty. Your choice. Going on now I think.

I picked up a brand new 2.5 a couple months ago with 6 years of warranty for 995.00

Still looking at a 8-15 for another boat.

[Encore 280]

Hit the Portland Sportsman or Boat Show and buy it in Oregon, avoid the tax.

[Special T]

E-TEC all the way. Or Yamaha.

That yamaha F25 is looking pretty good and light to boot

[Encore 280]

Electric start and tilt will be a hit heavier but WTH, saves your back.

[Henrydog]

I have a 2007 Merc 25 efi 4stroke (made by Tohatsu).  I have electric start, and power trim as well as controls built in the tiller.  IMO well worth the extra money. 

I now have 937 hours on the motor.  Only issue I had was 2 years ago when a ground wire on the block was loose, I think in happened during a storm and some rough water.

I work in the Marine industry, and grew up in many boats.  2 thinks I will say 1) I will never own a 2 stroke again 2) power trim on a tiller is priceless

[Henrydog]

https://www.stevensmarine.com/default.asp?page=xInventoryDetail&id=8261516&p=1&s=Year&d=D&vt=outboard&fr=xCustominventory


Steves Marine in Portland has a used 30  Looking at the photo it is electric start and has power trim on the back of the tiller stick.  No sales tax in Oregon

[Pnwrider]

I go back and forth on the power trim debate on my duck boat especially for a prop. I like that my motor can kick up when it’s not locked in the down position. I hunt a lot of tidal areas and have hit my share of low ground spots at wot in the middle of the river. Just food for thought.

[Stein]

Merc or Yamaha, but I like the controls on the Yamaha better these days.  Hit the show and find a deal.  Motors are great these days, many good choices.

Every shop has parts and fluid for those two brands which is a big deal for me.


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[fishngamereaper]

I know a metric s...ton of people in the marine indusrty from dealer's, to mechanics, to captains...yamaha, zuk, Honda in that order...avoid 2 strokes. There is a reason Merc lost a government contract.

[Encore 280]

I've had E TEC  (2 Stroke) for quite a few years and never a problem what so ever. Winterizes itself and starts in half a revolution come Spring time after sitting since August. They have an excellent warranty also.  Another thing with the E TEC there's no break in period needed, start it up and go.

[Switchback]

I have a yamaha 25, one of the new ones (2018) that are real light compared to the previous gen. It's been great. Only thing is I feel like it has less torque, and I think the reason it's lighter is because it's a 2 cylinder instead of 3, and could be why I feel there's less torque than other 25s I've used. Although it could just be me, I have a fairly heavy small boat and my other experience has been with light small boats. Also not sure how much getup you really want/need with a boat full of dudes, dogs and decoys at 5am. Don't wanna spill your coffee or anything. You can also kick it into shallow drive mode real easy because of how light it is, just flip a tab and pull the motor up.
Electric start is awesome, I have that but manual tilt. You'll love it on cold mornings. There's still a pull start if you get all sentimental or forget the battery. Also - I think the yamahas are one of the few (only?) electric starts that can run without a battery? Good chance I'm wrong on that - but I think I remember reading something about it when I was looking at motors. Hate to be dead in water because of a bad battery.
The Etecs also seem pretty cool, with no break-in and self winterizing. But if it's a duck boat are you really gonna need to winterize it?

[Henrydog]

I have a yamaha 25, one of the new ones (2018) that are real light compared to the previous gen. It's been great. Only thing is I feel like it has less torque, and I think the reason it's lighter is because it's a 2 cylinder instead of 3, and could be why I feel there's less torque than other 25s I've used. Although it could just be me, I have a fairly heavy small boat and my other experience has been with light small boats. Also not sure how much getup you really want/need with a boat full of dudes, dogs and decoys at 5am. Don't wanna spill your coffee or anything. You can also kick it into shallow drive mode real easy because of how light it is, just flip a tab and pull the motor up.
Electric start is awesome, I have that but manual tilt. You'll love it on cold mornings. There's still a pull start if you get all sentimental or forget the battery. Also - I think the yamahas are one of the few (only?) electric starts that can run without a battery? Good chance I'm wrong on that - but I think I remember reading something about it when I was looking at motors. Hate to be dead in water because of a bad battery.
The Etecs also seem pretty cool, with no break-in and self winterizing. But if it's a duck boat are you really gonna need to winterize it?

My 07 Merc is battery less if needed.  You pull the cord once to give it a charge...then it fires right up.  The real reason I am reply is you feel you need more torque drop the pitch of the prop...or go to a 4 blade.  Mine is on a light Lund it too me a couple of trys to dial in the best top end vs low end.

[Chesterdog]

My buddy in Eastern Wa just upgraded to a brand new merc for his fishing boat. He's looking to sell his 25 hp. He sent me the flyer yesterday.  Nothing wrong with it at all. Just wanted a bit more hp because his fiberglass boat could handle it. It's a steal imo.

[throwingsticks]

I know a metric s...ton of people in the marine indusrty from dealer's, to mechanics, to captains...yamaha, zuk, Honda in that order...avoid 2 strokes. There is a reason Merc lost a government contract.

I didn't know mercury lost the gov contract, that seemed like a huge amount of their sales... Go to any fishing village from here to AK and you are likely to see yammies hanging off 90%+ of the boats. However, for the little 25hp, I am not up to date, but it use to be that tohatsu would make most of them anyway, so you are just paying for your favorite color and name on the side.
second the avoid etecs....

[Badhabit]

Not to hijack the thread, but do you actaully check how many rpm's your small engine is turning? Years ago I had a Evinrude 15HP 2 stroke maybe 1989 or so and if I recall correctly max rpms was 7000. It took trying a few propellers to find one that would spin that high with a light load. But when I did get it dialed in it was the best running engine I've owned.

[Henrydog]

You put a tiny tach on 1 spark plug.  Tracks hours and rpms.  They run about 25 bucks

[Badhabit]

They should come stock on a 4 stroke since you have to change the oil and filter. With that said tiny tachs are a great investment.

[Encore 280]

Another reason to go E TEC, no oil changes, no timing belt changes, no break in.  Only down side, not that many shops equip'd to work on them. Check the E TEC website.

[fishngamereaper]

Another reason to go E TEC, no oil changes, no timing belt changes, no break in.  Only down side, not that many shops equip'd to work on them. Check the E TEC website.

  common...I can change the oil in my yami twice a year for the cost of two gallons of xd100 oil...and the timing belt is on average a 1000 hour service..unless you charter it takes most guys 5-6 years to hit 1000hrs.. I'm glad you've had good luck with your etec..

But I've run them professionally and know guys that had them for personal use ..all garbage..

[Encore 280]

Not any different than Ford, Cheby, or Dodge, Ford rules as does E TEC. 

[throwingsticks]

Not any different than Ford, Cheby, or Dodge, Ford rules as does E TEC. 

hope you have AAA and BoatUS 

[fishngamereaper]

Not any different than Ford, Cheby, or Dodge, Ford rules as does E TEC. 

Oh, now u Wana start that conversation.... 

I digress, back on topic.

[KFhunter]

We got 3 Suzuki's between pops and I

20hp  ss tiller 
10 hp kicker
140hp

all late model 2017 ish


not a lick of problems with any of them, been great

[gutsnthegrass]

Is it true that Tohatsu makes all the 25hp and under mercury motors?  Is Tohatsu a good brand? 

[Encore 280]

I have a 2012 6hp Evinrude and a 2016 9.8 Evinrude made by Tohatsu. Don't know how long that's been going on or if it still is.

[Henrydog]

Is it true that Tohatsu makes all the 25hp and under mercury motors?  Is Tohatsu a good brand?

Yes and Yes.