OPTIMAX LONGIVETY

[hook51]

I have a 2007 200 hp optimax, s/n 1B471947, and was told by a couple of mercury mechanics that the optimax would last somewhere between 400 to 600 hours before wearing out. I have 540 hours and was wondering about how many hours u guys were getting before serious wear.

[angle iron]

I've heard of many with over 800 hours and still running. Lot of factors to consider.

[Rick Collis]

My last Optimax went down at 1770 hours. It all depends on how well they have been maintained.

[Bryanmc57]

Mine is just shy of 600 hours and still running strong.

[JINXBASS]

I have a little over 600. Still running strong. My problem is I cant keep a lower unit together.

[lpugh]

I have a 2007 200 hp optimax, s/n 1B471947, and was told by a couple of mercury mechanics that the optimax would last somewhere between 400 to 600 hours before wearing out. I have 540 hours and was wondering about how many hours u guys were getting before serious wear.

I call BS on that one, will not be worn out even at a 1000 hours. Wear is very rarely the cause of engine failures. In most case it is because of cooling system problems, Fuel related, Carbon deposits or lubercation. It is almost always a result of how it has been taken care of, not wear with the exception of carbon induced wear (packed under rings) not alowing free movement

[JOE54]

I see several with 6-800 hrs and some in the 12-1300 , now mind you that some of these are guide mtrs meticulously maintained biyearly and not tourn fished WFO from morn to night

[EuropeanAM]

From my experience, somewhere between 1 and 4400 hours, depending on how and how often it's used, how it's maintained, and numerous other factors.

I have one customer that indeed put 4400 hours on his Optimax... when he passed away, his son got it and continues to run it. No major failures (original powerhead and gearcase), but VERY well maintained and run regularly (5+ times a week).

[agdave112]

Not sure how many hours are on my 2001 optimax 200. I’ve had it since 2008 and run it 100+ days a year

[mrc]

:)

[aarchdale]

There was another thread somewhere about what sea foam or something and one guy said he had 450 and thought that was really good lol. ITs sad how many of these things blow early in their lives. Looking at boats on craigslist and its hard to find a used boat with an Opti that doesnt have a new or rebuilt powerhead. Sold mine and it had 1100 on it. It ran great but after reading this board for a couple years and all the Opti problems, i now find it a lot more relaxing not worrying about my Opti popping everytime i launch

[blacknitro]

I have a 1999 225 Optimax with 1055 hours. It runs like a top. I use Quickleen, Quickstor and Quickare with every fill up. I also use the Optimax DFI oil. The motor was running perfect already, but I finally decided to upgrade from the old black direct injectors to the newer blue ones this week. I also recently replaced the steel reeds with TDR reeds. The timing was good for the reeds because it turned out the steel reeds had some small chips in them. For the direct injectors, I bought 12 of the blue injectors on Ebay and sent them to Rich at Brucato FIS and had them serviced. Out of 12 injectors I ended up with 7 good ones that are now cleaned and calibrated. The extra blue injector I'll save in case I ever need it. For the TDR Reeds, I followed the lapping instructions that Don has posted on the forum before. Knock on wood, my Opti runs perfect. I'm going to see if I can get another 1055 hours.

Old chipped steel reeds. Ran well even with the chips in the ends of the reeds:
Steel Reeds.jpg

TDR Reeds on lapped cages:
TDR Reeds.jpg

Old Black Direct Injectors:
Black Injectors.jpg

Blue Direct Injectors Installed:
Blue Injectors.jpg

[Charger296TF]

I have almost 800 hours on my 2006 200 Opti. I am really good about maintenance. I use all 3 Mercury supplements in my gas regularly. The first few years I drove WOT every time out, but I stopped that when I realized it was causing too many problems. I cleaned the carbon out of my middle engine relief ports a couple of years ago and sent my fuel rails to Don at EM to be re calibrated. The last few years I decided to stay under 4500 RPMs on non tournament days. I check my plugs regularly. I never blast off unless my thermostats are open (I check my Smart Craft every time) and motor reaches 120 degrees. My motor starts with one turn of the key and sounds great..... knock on wood. I will never buy a boat without a smart craft!

[wavewhacker]

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is the advantage of the blue injectors over the black or others ? Curious, I also have an all original 99 optimax. Thanks

[EuropeanAM]

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is the advantage of the blue injectors over the black or others ? Curious, I also have an all original 99 optimax. Thanks

There are essentially two (2) "series" of DI's.

-Gray (narrow pattern, higher pressure system used primarily in ProXS/XS engines (and 3 cylinder 1.5L models)

-Blue (wide pattern, lower pressure system used in Standard Optimax models).

The "Blue" injectors were originally "black". There were some early problems with soft pintle valve material (allowing the pintle to break loose and fall into the engine). Injectors with this problem were usually found within the first couple of hours of engine operation. Essentially- if an engine made it 50 or more hours, the "black" injectors will usually be just fine (and often perform better than the later BLUE injectors).

In other words- don't replace "black" DI's just because of their color. Factor in engine hours and actual VALIDATION/TESTING of the injectors.

[wavewhacker]

Thanks ��

[blacknitro]

I'm positive Don is right. My Opti runs exactly the same with the blue DIs and lived longer than most on the older black DIs. Makes me wonder if the 1999 was a good year. I simply changed them out because my mechanic has seen a lot of failed black DIs. I literally didn't want to hear the mechanic tell me that the black DIs would fail and gave in. However, the black DIs were running well in my Opti. To be honest, swapping to the TDR reeds was a similar exercise. It runs exactly the same, but I don't have to worry about the steel reed breaking off now. The changes haven't changed anything in terms of performance, my old Opti ran and still runs great.