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I am looking to re-power a BW 1984 Outrage 18 ft. It currently has twin 70's original equipment motors, but I want to upgrade.

Talking to one of the boat shops in town who is Tohatsu dealer and offering nice incentives....

What they are telling me is the large Tohatsu is a re-labeled Honda. Same motor, different labels and black in color.

The 18 outrage is rated for 150 HP. The Tohatsu is 481 lbs (similar to the other 4 stroke 150s).

Thoughts people have? I hear great reviews about the Honda.

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Tohatsu, Mercury, Honda, Yamaha have all made deals and re branded each others motors in the past so I believe it. As for the weight, Pretty much any original 2 stroke 70 HP as is your original equipment will weigh 250 pounds each give or take. My experience in re powering my 1995 Dauntless was that the original Evinrude 70 hp weighed in around the same 250 pound mark and the only modern 4 stroke that was the same weight was the new midrange Yamaha 70 HP. So, I believe your boat is actually carrying 500+ pounds of motor already and would be if you repowered with the same configuration. So, if anything it seems you are gaining some HP and losing little weight.

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http://www.tradeboats.com.au/tradeabo...or-review/

My sister-in-law has an older Honda 150 on her 18. Great motor - my only complaint is that it is a monster - really looks huge on the 18.

Tim

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Oh cool, another nickname. It's a Hondatsu,not a Veradito or a Mercaha.

The Honda BF150 has a very strong record of reliability and performance. The USCG uses them to power their SAFE boats in the Northeast.

Get a competing price from a Honda dealer and see if you can cut a deal.

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Since Mercury and Tohatsu jointly produce their own 4-30 HP 4-stroke engines, now all of which are painted black, I can say that these Honda engines look better (and a little smaller) in black than in Honda's own colors!

Tohatsu does not manufacture any engines above the direct injection TLDI 115 HP, so they need this Honda deal to enter the 4-stroke higher HP markets, 75 and up. Conversely, Honda, which has nothing above the 250 HP level, badly needs market share in the 75-250 HP range. So the deal works for both.
It also increases service accessiblity for both brands, since now Tohatsu dealers can service Honda, and Honda dealerships can service these black Tohatsus.

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Many members are installing the Suzuki 140A weighing in at 407 pounds.
http://www.whalercentral.com/articles...ticle_id=6

The Tohatsu 150 weighs in at 478 pounds for the 20 inch Long shaft model.
Your Outrage takes the 25 inch XLong shaft but they don't publish the weight on their site that I can find.
http://www.tohatsu.com/outboards/150_..._spec.html

By the time you add the xlong shaft it will probably weigh in above 490 pounds.

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When I was checking for a repower of twin 150's the Tohatsu really wasnet much cheaper then the Honda but from everything I could find it really was a rebadged Honda. I would think it will hurt you on resale. I know at least hear in the Midwest Honda dealers are hard to come by and a close service center is extremely important to many buyers.

If I do repower its gonna be the Mercury 150. People love the new 4 stroke 150. parts are easy to come by and they are the cheapest I could find. I can get brand new ones from a place in Kentucky for 10k for one and 10,500 for the other side. Mercury has a rebate all the time for a additional $1000 off that. will also be lighter.

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I wouldn't stress about the weight too much - any motor you put on there is going to be lighter than the twin 70s it's replacing. Similarly, resale value may not matter to you, if you are planning to keep the boat a long time like lots of Whaler owners do. Local dealer support makes a big difference, so you'l want to make sure you have that in place.

Since I like to put maximum power on the transom, if it were me and the local dealer support and price were right, I'd go with the eTec 150HO - about 165 horses at 433 pounds in the 25" shaft. You may be able to re-use your controls and oil tank setup with the eTec, assuming your 70s were OMCs - that'll save you some bucks. The relatively new, large displacement Merc 150s seem to be getting a good rep too.

Tim

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Lots of Hondas in the PNW. Pretty popular motor for the alumimun boats

Also looking at the 140 Suzuki. I read a members report on his but he was changing props for light loads vs heavy loads.

Need to get the 70 twins pulled off then run the boat to different shops and squeeze for a deal. Mercury, Suzuki and Honda/Tohatsu all still in the running.

Scratching off the E-tech as service around me is less convenient.
The Mercury Four stroke sounds good
Suziku 150

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Would you consider the brand new Mercury ProXS 115 Fourstroke?

If you haven't studied this engine option for your Outrage 18, it might be worth a look. This version puts out roughly 125 hp, and is impressively lightweight. Even with the larger Command Thrust gearcase, the 25" shaft weighs only 384 lbs. So its power-to-weight ratio is quite good, and taking that much weight of your stern should boost performance too.

https://www.mercurymarine.com/en/us/e...ourstroke/

You could save a big chunk of money over any of the 150-rated engines.

I would like to put this engine on my 19 Outrage II, but even though mine is the same hull as yours, it has a different heavier interior adding about 600-700 lbs. The consensus seems to be that a 115 is not enough for the 19 Outrage II, but there are plenty of reports from owners who are quite happy with 115s on their Outrage 18s. And this new Merc is a more potent engine than earlier 115 options.

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I want to stay with a 150. During the summer, having a load of kids on board, the water sports would be best with all the horses and performance I can get.

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If you want 150 HP or greater, I would highly recommend the large displacement 3.0 liter Mercury 150 4-stroke. I'm hearing it is about a 165HP engine, which would make it the most powerful 150 on the market, except for the Mercury 2-stroke DFI 150 ProXS, about 175 HP. It is only 20# heavier than the 2-stroke Optimax.

Conversely, I would not recommend the Suzuki 140, which for years people have been saying is only about 125HP, nothing but a glorified 115. You may be disappointed in the performance. Compare displacement between the two 4 cyoinder engines. The Merc is 50% larger! That is a lot. They are a good deal at $10,200.

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The Suzuki 140 actually tops out at 138hp.
Here is a video of it on a commercial hull. Good full load view at 3:15 Mark
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...ORM=VRDGAR

(made link clickable)

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Slightly off-topic, but I have recently seen a Whaler in Ohio with twin 70's. I think it was a 22 Outrage. Why would anybody equip a boat as such? On this boat, it was done as a repower-you could see in the photos the original motor's transom footprint and holes.

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The 150 Tohatsu would be $9700 rigged on the boat. Pretty good deal. Amfee thousand less than the other 150s and the 140 Suzuki.

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Someone's got to test out the "off" brands!
I'm sure you'll be satisfied with tohatsu,
they've been around for years.
If there's a comparable warranty,
I'd say go for it.



Hey Bill,
Typically offshore guys do that so if one engine dies,
the second will get them home,
Better than a 10% kicker.
TP

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Tobatsu is a Honda motor. Same motor different paint job is everything I have read.

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That is an impressive price for a 150 HP 4-stroke, especially when you consider that Tohatsu advertises an MSRP for that engine alone of $17,393. Factoring installation and rigging, you seem to be getting a discount of 45% or more off MSRP. Well done!

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Going to float the boat this week with the twin 70s to ensure no issues.

Been reading more about the various, not sure one is the "best". Lots of preferences.

But also considering a Suzuki. I have a 70 HP on a 17 Montauk and am impressed with how it runs and how quite it is. The Suzuki seems to be easy for routine service.