Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Do you prefer a Merc or Yamaha motor. Looking at the 115 hp set up. Why?

ilockmup wrote:Do you prefer a Merc or Yamaha motor. Looking at the 115 hp set up. Why?

Engines that are used for recreational use on water may only be surpassed by engines used for general aviation. That said, I don't think you will find any one of the 'majors' will let you down. My SeaRay has a Merc in it that isn't anything more than a re-badge of the 4.3 vortec.

How do you want to rig the engine? It is all about how your engine interfaces with the electronics. Do you like to know how your fuel burn is over time? Both Merc and Yammys can do that if the boat is rigged for the former or latter interface.

The only true answer I have for you is don't buy something you cant a:afford b:find parts, and last but not least c:maintain on your own.

Merc used to be the Cadillac of boat motors for decades. Competition wasn't that good from Evinrude and Johnson. Like all brands who think they have it all, they got lazy. Quality isn't what it used to be and the competition got a helluva lot better. Yamaha right now is producing some very fine product and has surpassed Merc in most categories. I recently purchased
A new toon and one of the big factors in the choice I made was that it was Yamaha powered. Too many cases of Merc problems for me.

I know there are lots of Merc lovers on this forum who will defend them to the death. Guess that's why they make black and brown shoes ...

I was one of the first Yamaha outboard owners (1985 model 115 hp 2 stroke), and have had great service. My Bennington has a F150 Yamaha, and it's about as good a four stroke motor as there is.

But if I was repowering, I'd probably go for the Mercury 150 FourStroke for $10K. They're comparable in power, but can be bought at a dealership for about $3K less than my Yamaha.

My motor came through Bennington as they're the largest wholesale purchaser of Yamaha outboards--at large fleet discounts. The price differential between the Yamaha and Mercury bought through a boat manufacturer is much less than if it was bought individually at a franchised dealer.

FYI: Merc. has just introduced a completely new, lightweight 115 hp motor.

If your boat has capability to handle 150 hp, go with the bigger motor. There's quite a bit of difference between the motors, and the 150 hp is well worth the price difference in performance.

Yamaha. They might cost more but the reliability is unmatched. When I travel by large marinas or to other countries all you see is Yamaha outboards... There is a reason for that.

I have one of each (2006 Optimax 200 hp, 2010 Yamaha F225). I would have gone for an Opti on my Bennington, but the sales guy talked me into the Yammi and I love it. It's quiet and has great fuel economy, although I have to say I really don't care about that particularly. The Yammi's impellers are built much tougher than most and I finally replaced mine even though the marina said it would probably have gone another season. I don't know anyone who has a Merc 4 stroke, so I can't compare them with my Opti.

Yamaha is more reliable, you will see more Yamaha motors on the coast for that reason alone.

In eleven years all I have done is replace the spark plugs, fluids and an impellor on our Mercury. To down grade to a 115 Yamaha from our Mercury 125 was going to cost me $2,500. I am glad I stuck with the Mercury.

I think you will be just fine with either....I have a 3 year old Mercury Verado 150 and absolutely love it! You can barely hear it running.....powerful....and no problems.

Good luck....

I recently bought my first boat and was looking at both motor options and settled for the new Merc design 150 Hp 4-stroke. I liked the lighter weight and the easy service set-up for DIY. I researched that type also on this Merc forum and the reviews all seemed favorable. http://www.bbcboards.net/mercury-motors/
The main thing what people noticed right away is how quiet it is underway. I also like the fuel efficiency on this motor. Not saying anything bad about Yamaha, I see them a lot and owned a Yamaha 4-stroke jet ski for 10 years with 90 % salt water use and it ran like new when I sold it with 750 hours.
If you like Black go with Merc, is it Grey than Yamaha...probably can't go wrong.

Mercury has had a contract with Yamaha since 2000 to build their powerheads. So Merc. = Yamaha for the most part. Especially the 4 strokes. My 2014 Merc 90 ELPT is a Yamaha powerhead.

Good info. My boat has a 90 Yamaha and all I had to rate it by was their PWC line which I have owned uterus of over the years. Sounds like I didn't go wrong with Yamaha.

Sorry Ed, but Mercury manufactures engines over 75 horsepower at its facility in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Mercury used to use Yamaha powerheads on some 4 strokes, but it's been a number of years since they built their own.

Mercury 30 Hp and less are made by Tohatsu in Japan. Mercury Marine builds 40, 50 and 60 horsepower outboard motors in Suzhou, China.

If someone is wanting to purchase a motor outright and not with the boat, Mercury outboards can be bought cheaper than Yamaha. If the boat manufacturer delivered a motor with the boat, chances are they bought the motor directly on volume purchases and the prices get closer.

Yamaha's 115 hp was new a year ago when they equipped the boat with a vibration damping shaft. Mercury's 115 hp is completely new this year, but I understand supplies in dealerships are low until 5/2015.

I'd like to see a boat test on identical boats with the Merc and Yammie mounted on them. Otherwise, I'd suggest you do a demo ride with each engine for comparison sake.

I just took ownership of a 24' foot Sylvan with a 2014 115 Merc 4 stroke on it yesterday. The dealership mechanic took me out on about an hour ride to do an initial break-in and performance test. He did nothing but rave about the 115 Merc. Says he never sees them come back to the shop and the 115 seems to get the best fuel economy of the 90-150 hp range. He had no skin in the game as he is not in sales so I take him at his word.

Didn't specifically ask him about a comparison to Yamaha though.

For guys looking for performance stats...we did just over 30MPH with half a tank of gas, two guys, a 20-25mph cross wind and 3 foot waves. The boat has the RPT planning tubes on it. Should be able to get another 3-4mph on it in calmer weather and the motor trimmed out.

If you read these posts carefully, you may soon begin to understand that this choice is s RELIGIOUS choice. It's a matter of faith. Some people believe in the "Big M", and some in the "Big Y".

I believe I'll have another cocktail.