hour meter ?

loufoss

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I am in the process of trying to sell my 1995 seafarer with the original 200 saltwater series Yamaha outboard. The first question I am asked is how many hours ? I have owned the boat for 15 years and being the second owner, there is no way I can even guess. Is there any way to find out what the hours are ? Someone told me that a good outboard mechanic may be able to find out by connecting to the computer ? I didn't think it was possible so now I'm asking. thanks for reading BTW engine stills runs great and it has never let me down.
 

wspitler

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If the engine is YDIS compatible, the engine hours will be readable from the ECM.
 

seasick

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I am not sure that motor keeps that data. I know for certain that the 150 doesn't. Regardless, with a 25 year old motor, there should be a lot more concerns than hours. I would assume it has some hours on it. If a potential buyer asks how many hours as the first question, they probably aren't very boat knowledgeable.
If they ask , just be honest and say you have no idea but in the XX years I owned it, I ran about (fill in the blank) hours a season.
 

Topjimmy

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nope I have a 1994 150 salt water and I can only guess how many hours based on I have owned it since new and can give a ballpark figure on how many hours a year I have ran it and they have to trust me on that but IMO I would not trust anybody's guess all you can do is perform a Compression check for them right there and they can decide on whether to roll the dice on it or not on, my boat I average 20-25 EASY fresh water hours a year so I am at around 600-700 hours not to shabby for a 1994 I think she still has a lot of life in her:)
 
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seasick

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The lifespan of most motors depends on how well they were cared for and how hard they were run. The hours don't really mean all that much for an older motor. I am more concerned when there are many hours on newer motors. In those instances, the routine maintenance or lack of can make all the difference.
If I were looking at a 1995 motor I would as mentioned have a compression test done, have a t-stat removed to check for cooling passage corrosion and drain the LU to inspect for contamination or evidence of overheating or metal fragments.
 

loufoss

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Thanks for all the info. That's what I have been telling people about the hours, I have no idea and could only guess.