Thursday, July 30, 2009
New boat, older engine
Bill Cochran
Recent mail
BILL: I’m building a small wooden ski boat in my garage. Can’t wait to put it in the water, but not sure what engine to get. The plans call for a 45-hp max, short shaft. I don’t want to buy a new one, it would cost far more than the boat. Do you have any suggestions of a solid outboard for such a boat that is about 16 feet long?
K.M.
K.M.: I am thinking that your best opportunity to buy a good used outboard would be through a re-powering program. Boat owners frequently trade in their outboard for a new one, because they are looking for more power or are in the process of trading a two-cycle for a four-stroke. This market is bigger than ever, because in a tough economy owners tend to upgrade their engine rather than trade in both their boat and motor.
Most likely you will be seeing more used two-cycles than anything else, which would work well for your ski boat.
I suggest you Google "engine manufacturers repower". I know some dealers have been offering repower deals and at least one manufacture -- I can’t remember which -- has devised a repowering network to get buyers and sellers together.
Some boaters are repowering because they are having trouble with their current engine due to problems resulting from ethanol use. Such engines can be tuned up and should serve you well if you keep them ethanol free, treat the gas, install a good fuel filter, fire them up often and drain the engine when not in use.
BILL
