So I've been looking at purchasing a used Bass boat for almost 6 months now, and Counting. And I'm noticing that most dealers and even private owners all mention how many Hrs are on the outboard. So the question is how many hrs are Too Many? And let's just go ahead and say that the outboards in question have been well maintained.
A well maintained motor good outboard motor should last 1200-1500 hours.
When you say " last " what do you actually mean by "last" ? Are you saying after 1500 Hrs it's ready to Blow up? Or will probably need to be replaced or rebuilt?.
Kinda like a well maintained car should go 150k to 200k...and a well maintained Japanese car does 300k. Except an outboard rpms are much higher. That's a tough decision, if the boat owner was meticulous with their boat care, that more than likely extended to the outboard. It's always a crap shoot, but you can hedge your bet by taking it to a mechanic for a look over
2005 Nitro NX 882
2002 Mercury 175 EFI
if hours are a big deal to a boat shopper they should buy new an start fresh.
Well ssmithboats , I'm wanting a 20' or 21' bass boat we all can't afford the new one.
Probably not rare for a work or ocean motor to go 3000-5000, but a bass boat on a small lake that turns on 30 times a day and runs 2 minutes at wide open may only make it 600 hours. The whole hour thing is just one part of the puzzle, maintenance and use decide a lot. Getting a unbiased 3rd party mechanic to give it a once over with a compression test to show consistent pressures in the good range is a best purchase practIce
I agree with the above on over 1000 hours and also have it checked out. Another thing can be too few hours. If you find say a 10 year old boat but motor only has 50 hours you need to find out why, how it was stored, things like that. Sitting that much it might need some work too.
2008 Skeeter 21I. Yamaha 250 Series II.
2011 Toyota Tundra Crewmax 4x4.
Yup, those rarely used garage kept creampuffs usually have their own set of problems. I'd rather have one that has some wear and tear and been used and maintained on a regular basis.Originally Posted by 99R93S
2023 Xpress H18 with 115 SHO and Powertech NRS4 21p
8" Bob's Action Jack
Garmin Echomap 12, 10, 9, and LVS34 networked with Netgear Switch
Ultrex
Trick Steps and Ramp N Clamp
Pulled by a 2016 single cab HEMI Ram
Treat others like you want to be treated when on the water EVEN WHEN IN A TOURNAMENT! No fish is worth having a confrontation because you cut someone off or came in on top of someone.
I'm not trying to be an ass or tell you what to do but I will give you some free advice from someone who's been there done that. A used boat is a crapshoot and can bite you hard when you least expect it to. I learned the hard way about buying boats that were a little TOO USED and also those that looked good but had hidden problems that would have required me to rip the floor up to find them. If you're worried about engine hours or reliability more times than not it's way better to buy a lesser boat new or barely used WITH WARRANTY STILL AVAILABLE than it is to buy an older, bigger, and faster rig. Having fine wine taste on a beer budget gets expensive fast if you're not careful and very lucky. Nothing wrong with buying an aluminum bass boat or a newer glass rig in the 18' range.
You can consider my advice if you want...or not. But if you do buy that older 20-21' boat and suddenly get hit with a very expensive rebuild that will likely take forever right now if the shop is worth using (good shops are backed up in my experience) or a hull that you didn't catch hidden damage on at least you can't say I didn't warn you. When you're shopping for an older boat you need to weed through the crap to find the one that MIGHT treat your right for at least a few years. All that said, even a newer boat can be a ticking time bomb if the previous owner was an idiot.
2023 Xpress H18 with 115 SHO and Powertech NRS4 21p
8" Bob's Action Jack
Garmin Echomap 12, 10, 9, and LVS34 networked with Netgear Switch
Ultrex
Trick Steps and Ramp N Clamp
Pulled by a 2016 single cab HEMI Ram
Treat others like you want to be treated when on the water EVEN WHEN IN A TOURNAMENT! No fish is worth having a confrontation because you cut someone off or came in on top of someone.
Well said...... Advice taken...
There are good boats out there tho. Take your time and do all your due diligence if you find one you like. It can feel discouraging at times trying to find a good one or the one you really want. Patience can suck but don’t settle.
2008 Skeeter 21I. Yamaha 250 Series II.
2011 Toyota Tundra Crewmax 4x4.
I wouldn't hesitate at all to buy a use boat with an outboard that has a good track record. I would avoid a 1st gen Optimax, Evinrude FICHT, and even some of the later E techs are questionable. Mercury Carbed or EFI motors, and Yamaha OX66 motors are the most reliable.
Used boats and motor are not voodoo and folks buy them successfully all the time. Yes boat motors run at higher RPM's for extended times vs cars and the engineers know that and is designed as such. It is not like they take some random motor and put it on a lower unit taking nothing into consideration. You will find 4 stroke stuff with 1000's of hours that runs great.
I do not know of any of the recent 4 stroke motors you cannot plug into and get hours with a breakdown of the range they were run in. Most (if not all) 4 strokes show historic alarms/events like over-revs and over-heats. If you are looking at a 2 stroke do a compression test. Get an inspection cam off Amazon for 20 bucks and look into the cylinders.
The OX66 is a beast. There are bunches of them still running on commercial boats on the NC coast and I would take one over the HPDI SI or SII. The old carbed OMC's are pretty decent motors for the most part.
Unless buying new, there will be risk involved. Hours is just one metric and you can have too many or even not enough. Look for a boat that has been used 50-100 hours per year AND has maintenance records. You can also minimize risk by going with a 4 stroke. They are just more reliable.
I whole heartedly agree with looking at smaller (18’ minimum) with a 115 or 150 if they are newer. Also, check out every pump, light, switch, and general wiring condition. Plan to buy all new batteries. They always seem to die when you get it home and it is best to buy them in sets. Take the time to do a test ride AND have a good mechanic do a check out of the boat/motor to include a compression and leakdown test. Do all this and you will minimize the risk you are accepting.
USN Retired
2020 Basscat Caracal
2020 Mercury 225 ProXS 4s
Anything over 500 or 600 would make a trip to the outboard shop to check out the condition would do it for me. Have seen a few motors from the 60's and 70's which are still used every summer here but not on bass boats. Was told my Opti XS was a 2000 hour motor..........guess we will find out.
I wouldn't say that, depends on what 2 stroke you are comparing it to, many are just as reliable or more reliable than the 4 strokes.
This means is not incorrect
06 SB nailed it. 50-100hrs a year are typical/average/expected numbers.
I had an 2006 Optimax 225 blow up at 10 years old with around 350hrs.
Once they hit 10 years old, it''s expected there will be repair bills coming. Maybe not today, but those repairs should be budgeted for.
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