Honest opinion...225 Optimax vx. 225 HO Evinrude

[uk2thdoc]

OK fellas here is the deal. I am thinking of buying an 04' Ranger 521 and I have two that I am looking at. One has a 225 Optmax and the other has a 225 HO Evinrude - the kind with the stars and stripes. I know almost NOTHING about these Evinrudes. I've been a Merc man most my life and I know in Merc's if you aren't getting a racing motor, you can get an EFI or an Optimax and that the EFI might have a tad more power, but that the Optimax will be much better on fuel. Same deal on the gas with Yamaha's EFI vs. HPDI. Having said that I need to know what motor to compare the Evinrude HO 225 against in my own mind. Is it more in line with an EFI or a Optimax/HPDI type motor?

My understanding is that the 225 HO will have significant gains in power over a 225 Optimax, but I wonder how the fuel economy compares? You could probably guess that since I'm a Ranger guy, I'm not a speed demon and with gas being as expensive as it is, I'd lean toward a more economical motor than a faster motor at this point, but I've heard those 225 HO's are great for pushing around those heavy Rangers.

Thanks in advance for your opinions.

Also, I believe that this boat got the 7 yr warranty. Is that fully transferable to the new owner?

Dan

[Smallmouthguy]

I'm sure you will get a totally unbiased opinion from this board so let me be the first . You will absolutely love the power and efficiantcy of the H/O. I have a 21X and it does an outstanding job with a reasonably heavy hull I am not sure what kind of performance and fuel numbers Ranger is getting with the H/O compared to the opti but I know where I would put my money.SMG

[Kerry201pro]

Me personally, I would go with the HO. I think you will see more punch out of it. One of my buddies has a opti 225 on Triton 21 but on the Ranger the HO would be ideal IMHO. Good luck

[RUSTY63]

The Optimax is a good strong motor and fairly fuel and oil efficient..........the Evinrude is better on fuel and oil and has a bit more power.

[302w]

go with the HO

[RudeTritonX]

First of all, give TritonRodney a call at JetAMarina (270)395-4030 in Calvert City. They sell Ranger as well, he can give you all the info you need. Secondly, we just switched from a Merc. to the Rude 225H.O. Its like night and day. Based on what I have read on the BBC you would need to compare it to the Merc250XS. Sorry Merc guys!

[mark]

You should be comparing a 225 HO to a 225 Pro XS - and I'm sorry Bomber friends, the Pro XS is every bit as strong as the HO - in fact stronger. And, you can get one...

[Roddy]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TritonRodney &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I ran a 225 HO Etec yesterday on a Triton TR21PDCX, six inch plate, two guys that weight about 470 pounds, 3/4 tank of fuel turning a 30 inch Raker prop 5750 gps at 77.5 not bad for a 225. The engine was nearly as quite as a four stroke and very smooth. It would turn a 30 Raker by my self 5850 rpms and gps at 79.3 which isnt bad for a 225. We put on a 28 Raker and it gps by my self at 78.4 but didnt run it with both, ran out of light. I just thought i would pass that along to you guys. I have allways ran a Mercury and the 250 XS is still the fastest on the water, but the 225 HO ETEC is not far behind it at all. Rodney...</TD></TR></TABLE>
Mark this Quote is from a post from a Man with a 250XS on his boat and sells both Merc and Evinrude engines, but he doesn't work for Mercury like you. I guess you have to consider your sources. RR

[RUSTY63]

But Mark, how is it on fuel?
What kind of Warranty does it have....Yes We can get one but......we would rather wait.

[302w]

HO would beat the Pro XS hands down.

[Smallmouthguy]

Here we go!!

[RUSTY63]

Naaaaaaaaa, I doubt he will come back, he seems to be a hit and run poster.

[uk2thdoc]

Thanks for the input guys. I'm pretty torn with this decision. Kind of funny how we can get so worked up about these things that we can't think of anything else. I've heard good things about the 225 HO, but in my understanding this is a different motor than the ETEC right? My understanding is that the HO is based on Ficht technology (whatever that means) and I've always heard bad things about those motors so that is what has me alarmed. Like I said, I've always been a Merc man, so this Evinrude stuff is new to me. Just trying to find out all I can before I make a move.

Dan

[RUSTY63]

The Ficht was a OMC technology, the Bomb motors are DI, the E-Tec.....well what needs to be said that has not been already, ask someone that owns one.

[White Ally02]

I dont know about the Optimax cause I aint got to drive one yet, but my neighbor has the 225ho which I drive alot and it is a fine one for sure, He has it on a tr 21 x series with the New 28 trophy which looks like it was worked from the factory and it pushes his rig to 79.6 at 5900, for a 1800# boat I think that is purty good, this is with a tourney load and one person, also the fuel economy he gets seems unreal for that size rig.


Modified by White Ally02 at 10:20 AM 2/17/2005

[ChampioNman]

Yep,
He has been cautioned by El Presidente' Twice! but still doesn't get it. Granted I will give the nod to the XS as you have a choice of GC's to run on that motor we only have one. The CARB ratings are different between motors, MERC always cries and whines when they get beat by the comp. CM

[Kenneth ALBassr]

Dan,

I do not think you will find anyone that ownes or has owned a Bombardier built 225HO say anything bad about them. I now own an E-TEC and it looks to be a really nice design by the engineers at Bombardier. Time will truely tell on he E-TEC but from what I have seen it looks real good.

You should be very happy with the Direct Injected 225HO on the Ranger that you are looking at. You should drive both boats and see how they perform. If you are not familiar with the Evinrude, this is the best way to see for yourself what they are about. The last 3 boats I have sold have been to people looking for other motors. Once they drove the Evinrude, they were very impressed and they have all been very pleased since.

Kenneth

[jimmy7]

.

[RUSTY63]

Welcome Jimmy......I see you got suckered into being a moderator Too, I stopped by to ask directions and Al stuck me here.......

[ezbassin]

I have a 2004 225 Optimax on my boat and if I had it to do over again I would go with the 225 HO if you are just comparing those two motors. If you throw the E-Tec into the mix that would be my first choice.