Best outboard and Size

[Catigale]

Your comment on the dealer's willingness to "swap the engine if you arent happy" has me a bit worried...

That isn't a profitable exercise for the dealer and makes no business sense, ergo, it's too good to be true.

There are gray market Hondas on the market which carry no warranty from Honda. Pauls got caught with one of those.

Caveat emptor.

[vkmaynard]

Are you planning to tow any kids?

If so you will need to power up.

Can you find someone with a higher powered X to check out the ride?

Victor

[Obelix]

I have to aggree, the E-Tec 60 is reasonable quiet and very economic. No complaints at all.

Obelix

[DaveB]

Bob, another point is the E-Tec puts out 3-5 amps battery charging at Idle and 10 amps at 1000 rpms. I couldn't get figures at 2000 rpms for cruise at 6 knots but I am sure they are well above 15 amps and much more than my Honda BF 50 that puts out max.10 amps.
I just completed a 5 day cruise in the Keys and glad I had twin 27 group house batteries as the motor doesn't put out unless you are doing 1500 rpm's and even than probably less than 5 amps. I came back with 12.1 volts left in the house Batteries with a 63 quart Edgestar refig.
Those who do longer than a couple of days and have Refrigeration will do well with the e-tec lower rpm's for higher amps.
Here is a interesting e-tec spec. site.
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/refere ... _e-tec.pdf

Dave

I have the Etec 60 and love it..don't get the great top speeds of the larger motors (18 MPH) but the fuel economy on our cruises is really great,,2000 rpm 6kts .4 -.5 gph and LEAKS' is heavily loaded with fridge, 3 batteries, solar panels, honda genset, arch and dinghy on davits off the arch. Also have a honda 2 hp on transom mount for trolling or the dingy..We sleep in the V berth so the rear berth is loaded with food, clothes, rain gear and an inflatable 2 person kayak....fully loaded boat and trailer are around 6k lbs (stock trailer, larger axle with 6 hole 15 in. wheels....bob

[sailor141]

Victor,

I was actually interested in finding someone to do a "ride along" with to see the potential. I live in Beaufort County NC. There aren't a whole lot of macs around here. There are two 's here, one with a 50 2 stroke and one with a 60 4 stroke. I haven't been on the one with the 60 but I did crew on the with the 50. I wasn't to impressed with the 50's performance. I think the E-Tech is the way to go.

[mikelinmon]

Cheaper to keep her, E-Tec 60 wins hands down. Service once every 3 years, much better fuel economy at low speeds. They all burn similar amounts at full power given equal displacements, bigger motors burn more, period. Speed, the E-Tec is faster for a given hp. No evidence to refute those points. Most other stuff is an individual personal opinion mix, which color is prettiest (Merc) or Suzuki, which is lightest(newest Honda 50), which dealer is closest to your boat(???), which motor mechanic is most friendly(???), softest noise at idle(Honda), quietest at full power(86 decibles E-Tec but it is still too noisy), price(???) Vested interest in E-Tec, (yes, they pay my bills)
Mike Inmon

[vkmaynard]

You're in luck. Eric Hardtle has a 90 on his X and he lives in New Bern, super close to a Neuse River launch. PM him.

His 2002 Suzuki is about 90 lbs heavier than the current 90 with a little larger cowling. He has A LOT of mods on his boat.

But you'll get the idea when you ride on his boat. It goes.

You can also come to Apex and I'll give you a ride.

Victor

[sailor141]

VIctor,

Thanks for the invite. I actually have met Eric, but the last time I saw him and his boat, it had a 60 on it. That was back several months ago. I need to get the wife out to see the potential of the boat when outfitted right. When the admiral's happy, everyones happy . I'm thinking I might also need to replace my steering cable. I see alot of posts about them failing and I would hate for that to happen after spending the money to install a new motor.
Thanks for all the advice.

[vkmaynard]

I just helped a another 26X owner replace his steering cable in my front yard. Third one so far.

[pmcco]

That would be me. Victor and I replaced my cable in about 3 hours. I haven't been able to take my out since, but with it siting in the yard the string is 100% better. I can now turn the wheel with one finger! My neighbor thinks I'm crazy
Patrick

[David Mellon]

I too have an ETEC 60. I have had it serviced once and the cost was low enough that I have forgotten it. My buddy has a big Honda that needs yearly service for a whopping $600 a year. That's on a fishing boat which he takes out more than I take out my 26M but still....
The low end torque on my ETEC impresses everyone who takes a ride. It starts even when the batteries are low, it charges them at an idle too. I can hand start it if necessary. The smaller cowling allows easier access through the stern bay. It's light weight is an advantage. I use a gallon of oil a year, while it is a special oil the cost is negligable. The engine is quiet at idle and does not smoke. MacGregor has even chosen the ETEC 60 as its stock engine. If I had to drive a long way to a dealer, at least it's only once every three years.
I've never had an issue with it other than once when it got wrapped up in seaweed and I had to raise it to clear it, if that can be considered a problem. Frankly I am thrilled with my engine.

[Catigale]

I wouldn't buy an ETEC unless I had a dealer in my backyard with access to water for testing, after reading Leons experience with three levels of ETEC support

I'll credit ETEC for good support, but if they were an hour away that story would have been different

[bscott]

I think Leon's experience was the exception, not the rule. BRP has updated the E-tec 60 from Leon's 06 to current models and his midrange hesitation problem has been history for quite some time now.

Bob

[ROAD Soldier]

I see a lot of advertisement education here. When I was a kid the saying was "I saw it on TV so it must be true", now a days you can replace that with I read it/found it on the internet it must be true. When in most cases in all actuality, it is anything but true. I have the old reliable Honda 50HP carbureted engine. I see constant stream of advertisement on well fuel injected outboards are more reliable then my engine, yet my engine starts everytime and runs year after year. Yes if you leave untreated fuel in the carbs during a long storage period the fine jets will cored shut. So don't be a dumb behind and do that. If you do like the previous owner of my boat someone like me (A Mechanic) will buy your boat for thousands of dollars less then you wanted to sell it for. Then put in a couple of hundred dollars worth of parts into it and have a perfectly running engine. God bless girly men for not having mechanical abilities allowing me to get things I could never afford otherwise. Now am I saying the carb Honda is the best choice for the Mac 26X no I am not. It all depends on your situation. There are days I would love to run 25 miles away at the Chesapeake Bay bridge fish all day and comeback the same day in day light. Unless it is June this is not possible with a 50HP Honda so for me a 90 would be better however I can't afford one at this time. Now for that size it brings me to 3 possible candidates, a Suzuki like Vic's, an ETEC Evinrude, and the Tahutsu. If I was to get a really good deal on any of these like if someone neglected one of them to the point it wouldn't start I wouldn't complain about getting anyone of them at a very cheap price. Now if I had the cash to buy new it would be Vic's Suzuki because I have seen it run next to a 90HP ETEC and like the idea of no oil or oil injector to mess with. The more complicated you make something the more points of failure you have period whether it is a car, boat, or helicopter.

[mika]

I haven't purchased an engine yet, but need to. So I welcome all the advice I can get.
Seems to be a consensus on this thread that supports the ETEC-60.
(1) FYI - One Mac dealer advised me to "do not purchase the Evinrude 2 stroke - bad service system". Hmmm, what's he talking about? Presumably, he arrived at this opinion through feedback from his customers? Comments?
(2) One sailor here reports he maxed at 18 mph from the ETEC. I thought the Mac sales info claimed that the MacGregorM achieved about 22 mph with a 60 hp? What do most of you get?
(3) Is the weight of the engine a significant variable?
(4) 60 hp is the absolute max - right?

Thanks all!