204C Repower

You could look at Merc, as well - compared to the weight you listed, I think they're about 50lbs lighter. The 150HP would probably be even less. But as far as HP goes, a lot of this comes down to how you use your boat. Meaning, base your decision on YOUR use, not someone else's. That said, it's never a bad idea to have a little more HP on tap

Take some dead weight (rubbermaid container filled with water, sandbags, weight plates, the right weight person, etc) and put it on on top of your existing motor... how does that change things at rest?

Per the original Grady White brochure, your hull is rated to 230 hp, of which in today's horsepower levels that means you'll likely be able to go with a maximum of 225 hp. The second thing that I would consider is how well does the boat ride currently? Are you wanting to keep the boat for several more years or are you looking at potentially getting something else in the near future? If you're looking to sell the boat then I'd spend as little money as possible and go with a Suzuki. If you wanted to keep the boat then I'd go with Mercury as it'll be the lightest weighing motor. Though, I also wouldn't go light on horsepower strictly because of the weight portion of the equation. If it were me and I had your boat, as well as had the intention of keeping it for 10+ years, I'd likely go with a Mercury 175-225 hp FourStroke model. The weight on the Mercury FourStroke series motors between 175-225 hp are all the same at 475 lbs, and even the 150 hp version is a mere 20 lbs lighter at 455 lbs. Which imo, isn't likely going to be a dealbreaker or anything. And yes, it appears that the FourStroke series of motors is the lightest for Mercury, with the other 150's, 175's and greater being the same weight or even heavier.

My dad had that boat with a 200 Evinrude. The archives say that engine weighed 453 lbs. A full tank of gas with 4 people on board and water was coming over the back of the transom in reverse moving away from the dock. IMO the Merc 150 is the way to go. Light, cheap (relatively), reliable, easiest to maintain, efficient, quiet, and powerful. It makes over 150 HP at a much lower RPM than all competitors.
Check the transom thoroughly before making your decision. Despite being a trailered boat the transom rotted out due to water intrusion at the splash well drains and the D-rings.

Considering the Mercury 150 is only 20 lbs lighter than the Mercury 175-225, I'd spend the extra money, gain a mere 20 lbs and have whatever horsepower level you'd like to have instead, as opposed to potentially being underpowered.

That old hull can actually benefit from more weight on the transom.

When I ran my old 204C, I had a padded 200 quart cooler that I mounted just in front of the spashwell. When I had passengers sitting back there on the cooler, the boat would ride a lot better in a chop than when they were seated forward behind the cuddy.

Doc Stressor said:

That old hull can actually benefit from more weight on the transom.

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I have no doubt it road better. Most Grady's do better with more weight. You didn't have issues with water coming over the transom?
Maybe it's one of those rare occurrences where fresh water didn't provide enough buoyancy?

Mike, what they're getting at regarding the transom is it beefed up enough for OB use? Adding an OB (especially on a bracket) puts more stress on the transom than an I/O due to leverage (see my signature).