Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos

Posted by ursaminor on 08/12/12 - 11:57 AM

Hello all, I've been lurking on this great site for some time now. Unfortunately, the original 90 Hp Mercury on our 1989 Montauk 17 has failed and we'll be looking into repowering the boat. I've spent the last hour or so going through older threads and reading the articles on engine mounting and so on. I'm leaning towards the 90 HP Evinrude ETEC and would like to confirm the following with anyone else who currently is running the 90 ETEC:

-It looks like the engine should be mounted as high as possible; at least two holes up, preferably three.
-Propeller choices would be a BRP Viper 13 7/8 x 17 or a 13 1/4 x 15 Stiletto Advantage if available from the dealer.

Additionally, which type of oil are current owners using? (XD 50 or XD 100) I like the option of the XD100 but I'm curious if anyone finds this to be an advantage in the real world.

Any other feedback (performance, experience good or bad with these engines) would be appreciated. This is new territory for me, I've always run Mercury engines in the past. Thanks in advance, I know this topic is brought up frequently and appreciate everyone going through it one more time.

Posted by Buckda on 08/12/12 - 12:18 PM

Re: XD-100 oil.

Part of my answer depends on your local dealership network. If someone nearby sells XD-100 in bulk, so you can buy it by the gallon in your own container - saving about $5 per gallon - it works in your favor. I ran a pair of 90 HP E-TEC engines on my 18' Outrage and only used them with XD-100 on the XD-100 setting. I ran more than 400 miles without needing to add any oil at all to the reservoir on one trip...with plenty left over.

...but XD-100 is expensive. You won't need more than two gallons a year - at the most! unless you really, really run your boat hard.

Good luck.

Dave

Posted by ursaminor on 08/13/12 - 1:50 PM

Thanks to all for the feedback on the oil question. The dealer i've spoken with has suggested the XD 100 oil and if we go with the ETEC, I'll have them set it up for that oil.

Does anyone have any input on my mounting height and propeller assumptions above? I'd like to have the conversation on set up before I sign up with a dealer. It seems from reading several other threads that there's a lot of "that's how we've always done them" going on at the boatyards. I'd really rather get it set up right the first time and hopefully get the boat back on the water before it's time to put it away until next year.

Posted by tedious on 08/14/12 - 4:56 AM

From your original post, are you committed to buying a prop from the dealer? You'll get a much better price on a Stiletto from an online place such as Dan's Discount Props.

I don't have a Montauk, but from other posts, if you fit a Stiletto you'll want the motor either as high as it can go, or one hole down from that. Many seem have found the boatyards want to slam the motor all the way down, the way it used to be 25 years ago. Don't let them do that. You may want to have that discussion before you buy - if they won't install it the way you want, and let you use a prop you bought elsewhere, head for the door.

Tim

Posted by ursaminor on 08/14/12 - 5:57 AM

No, I haven't committed to anything yet. I'm trying to get my research right ahead of that. I know the Stiletto prop comes highly recommended and as far as I can see so far the new engine does not come with the propeller. This is a long term investment in the boat, we want to be right. Thanks for the input!

Posted by ursaminor on 09/04/12 - 10:05 AM

UPDATE

We took the plunge and repowered the boat with the 90 HP ETEC. The dealer was very interested in the set up research and installed the motor exactly as I requested; two holes up and with the Stiletto 13.25 x 15 propeller I provided. (Thanks to Carom's owner Tim for the Dan's Discount Propellers tip!) I picked the boat up this past Saturday and the performance is nothing short of amazing. The throttle response is instantaneous, the motor is significantly quieter at all speeds than the old Mercury and turbine smooth over 1,200 RPM. I have noted an occasional harmonic shaking of the hand rails and windshield from idle to around 1000 RPM but nothing objectionable, the old motor had a similar issue at just above idle as well. A slight throttle adjustment seems to take care of it in most cases. I saw 41 MPH at 5,200 RPM / WOT using the GPS app on my phone. I'll have to bring my handheld GPS with me next time and see if there's any difference between it and the phone; the dealer claimed they saw 43 MPH on their GPS. I'm not going to lose sleep either way, it's plenty fast. We tried a little water skiing as well and pulled my neighbors 180 lb. son out on his slalom ski without even using full throttle. The boat sits pretty much the same in the water as with the previous engine and planes out at right around 12 MPH as it did before. Thanks to all for their input and to the webmaster for taking the time to put together this terrific resource.

Posted by contender250 on 09/04/12 - 1:31 PM

#12

ursaminor: I'm not sying that XD-100 is bad oil but, here me out, If you have a problem with your engine while under warranty, they could give you a hard time because you did not use Evinrude oil, I would have the dealer (in writing) state that its ok to use another brand of oil....

Posted by ursaminor on 09/04/12 - 3:27 PM

#14

Phil, Joe,

Thanks for the suggestions. I may try raising the motor one more hole over the winter. The dealer was concerned about water inlet pressure if we went up the additional hole. I do have a water pressure gauge installed and want to get some readings to compare to before I raise the engine. I had only brief periods of WOT as the lake was quite busy this past weekend. If the weather cooperates this coming weekend I'll try to get some more complete data and use the handheld GPS this time.

Contender 250,

Thanks for your concern but Joe is absolutely correct, XD-100 is an Evinrude product and in fact the engine is programmed by the dealer to run on this oil. I'd have to return to the dealer to switch to their XD-50 version. Unlike conventional / old school 2 strokes the ETEC uses a pressurized lubrication system so only a small amount of oil is consumed and is never mixed with the fuel in the combustion process. The engine came with a 3 year warranty plus a two year extension on top of that as part of BRP's current promotion. I'll be playing it "by the book" for sure.

Posted by Mtierney on 09/04/12 - 7:16 PM

#15

Here is the deal on xd100. It costs much more than conventional oil, but you end up using much less on the xd100 setting. The computer controlled oil injector goes from around 50:1 on the conventional setting to about 75:1 or more on the xd100 setting. So in terms of cost, it is a wash. The xd100 smokes less and smells a little sweeter, hence I use it to appease the wife. I had one issue while on Nantucket island trying to find it, but it can be bought online at DOMO.com and shipped to you cheaper than most dealers. You end up filling the reservoir much less often, and since I always have an extra gallon on board, I find it a little more convenient.
If I ever repower my whaler it would be an Etec 90, but I would guess my 2stroke yammie will last until propane or electric or some new fuel is found.

Posted by Mtierney on 09/04/12 - 7:22 PM

#16

The computer also injects a little more oil during the "break-in" period, therefore the user doesn't need to worry about running at WOT, and that is how there is no break-in period. It will also fog itself using the same oil, you'll have to read the directions on how to do that though.