Bought the 258, which engines for upgrade?

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c1steve

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I just bought a 258, the 2004 Yamaha F250 runs well but needs the exhaust system upgrade. The original engine has 500 hours on it, summer time use only.

I may upgrade to either twin Suzuki 150s (5.8L total), single Suzuki 300B (4.4L, dual prop), or a single Honda BF350.
The Honda is a 5.0L engine, and probably burns less fuel than the other options. I can buy two 150s for about the same price as a 300B. If I used a 300B, I would most likely install a kicker motor.

A BF350 with kicker would be about 900 lbs.
300B with 9.9 kicker weighs 850 lbs.
Twin 150s are 1060 lbs. total. That is an extra 200 lbs. hanging on the stern. When tuna fishing we bring a lot of ice, so saving weight is important.

Any suggestions?
 
I would definitely take a look at Merc - they've been doing some really nice things. And the dealer network and parts availability is way above Honda.

Don't focus on displacement only - that old adage of "there's no replacement for displacement" doesn't hold up as well as it used to. It was true when all engines were basically the same using dinosaur technology... but engines have evolved

Personally I wouldn't worry about a couple hundred extra pounds - if you're going offshore I think twins are the way to go. Other benefits than just safety, too. Maintenance cost increase per year is minimal.
 
I have been reading about Mercs, and mechanically they are the best. Efficient, powerful, etc. However they have had many electrical issues in the recent past. I will check to see if those problems have resolved..

I looked at the Merc 150s, and they are extremely well designed. However the 150 are not digital, so for Mercs I would probably go for a single, for simplicity.
 
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When you say "needs the exhaust system upgrade" I'm assuming you mean that the motor has the dry exhaust corrosion issue? If so, why not just repair what you've got, especially if the parts are available to do so? I believe the kit itself is around $600 and then labor I've heard can be anywhere from $1k-$1,500 or so, putting you at roughing $2k total. To me, that beats spending $20k-$30k+ for new outboards. If wanting to go brand new, I'd also consider the Suzuki DF250AP... comes with a 5 year warranty, they have the digital throttle controls, they can be found brand new for less than $20k and I've heard nothing but great things about them. You mentioned that the current outboard runs well, what makes you say the exhaust needs to be upgraded? Has the lower unit been dropped and scoped? Is the boat fast enough as is? As mentioned, if so then you could always stick with a 250, which would save some weight as well as money on having to buy twin outboards. You could then, as you mentioned, always buy a kicker motor for the boat as well, if you did decide to keep it with a single outboard. The dry weight for your current outboard shows as around 600 lbs per Google, if that's indeed accurate. The Suzuki DF250AP is 640 lbs, so roughly only 40 lbs more, and then a Suzuki DF9.9/DF15 are around 108 lbs, putting you at around 750 lbs total. The Suzuki DF300B shows as weighing in at 727 lbs and then a Suzuki DF9.9/DF15 are around 108 lbs, so if you went with the 250, you'd save around 100 lbs in doing so. If going for an outboard kicker motor, I'd go with Suzuki as even their 9.9 has EFI compared to others like Yamaha and Honda being carbureted. A second Suzuki option would be twin Suzuki DF140B's, which weigh 420 lbs a piece, or 840 lbs total. Which will save you 200 lbs as opposed to going with the Suzuki DF150's, and only lose 20 hp.
 
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From an efficiency angle, both fuel and maintenance, go with the single 300 with dual prop. I think a 25' can be managed with a single.
You save weight on motor vs twins but also can possibly carry less fuel weight.

I run twin 200 zukes on my 265. 1000 hours in 5 seasons. 100 to 200mile roundtrips for tuna. fantastic.
My hull would not do well with a single. If I moved down a 25', I would go with the single.

IDK about the need for a kicker. I know its common in PNW for salmon. These fuel injected 4 strokes are not a problem trolling at idle speed like old two strokes.
Some people worry about hours on the motor. Why? you saving it for the next guy?

Some worry about only having one motor. You either believe or you don't. I know all the commercial boats here only have one motor.

Get digital controls. don't be that guy....
 
Merc's are solid - whatever electrical issues you're finding on the net are likely old/outdated and... keep in mind that because Merc sells a crapload of these that skews online reviews. People don't generally write good reviews - they typically only complain. If every manufacturer has, say, 10% issues being complained about... but a certain manufacturer sells twice as many items, then the math equals twice as many bad reviews - but it's still the same percentage.

Honda, while good, probably sells the least amount of engines so the math would then equal a whole lot less "reviews"... which would wrongly lead one to believe they're better.

......... I'm not sure if any of that made sense once I put it into actual words.......
 
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