2003 mercury 4 stroke 90hp - anyone got one? opinions?

[slimtim]

I'm thinking of getting one of these engines near me and have some questions as details are vague at best.

What weight is it?
Is it a dog, or is it ok?
Will it be efi or carb?
Is £3300 a good price? Sounds a bit pricey to me.

Any other info would be good.

Thanks, Tim

[Jizm]

Originally Posted by slimtim

I'm thinking of getting one of these engines near me and have some questions as details are vague at best.

What weight is it?
Is it a dog, or is it ok?
Will it be efi or carb?
Is £3300 a good price? Sounds a bit pricey to me.

Any other info would be good.

Thanks, Tim

I think 2003 are efi and come in at around 190kg, I know nothing else...

[Nos4r2]

I have a feeling these are affected by the grommet problem, which is a powerhead off job to fix.

Best ask Outboardtech-he'll know for sure.

[Jizm]

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

I have a feeling these are affected by the grommet problem,

what's that nos?

[Nos4r2]

Pm sent

[slimtim]

Originally Posted by Jizm

I think 2003 are efi and come in at around 190kg, I know nothing else...

Ok so they weigh as much as a small moon, thats not a good start.

Nos, please share more info about this grommet problem...

[Jizm]

PM forwarded.

[matt h]

stiff gear change rod under the power head,,its a nylon bush that seems to expand causing gear changes to be near impossible,no amount of oil will release it. there is or was a upgrade component to take its place, it could be a carb model (not 100% on that tho)for that year and weight in at approx 177kgs
I had a new mariner 90 four stroke in 2005 and that was a carb model.

[slimtim]

Apparently something to do with corrosion causing a restriction in the cooling water and so leading to overheat. Not sure why that was confined to PM but thanks for the heads up Nos and Jizm.

Matt, the problem you describe doesn't sound too clever either and the weight is crazy compared to a tohatsu 90.

Maybe I'll steer clear.

[Nos4r2]

Originally Posted by slimtim

Apparently something to do with corrosion causing a restriction in the cooling water and so leading to overheat. Not sure why that was confined to PM but thanks for the heads up Nos and Jizm.

Sorry, I forgot it wasn't Jizm who started the thread. I'm not sure if it affects that year or not, so didn't want to cast aspersions if it's not applicable.

[abc]

I had one of these (actually a 2000 Mariner but essentially the same engine) on a 5.6 Rib. An absolute disaster, the things weigh 177 kg which makes the power to weight awful. It was also disastrously unreliable, I only ever got about 25 hours out of it.

Our club also purchased a 2004 Mercury, the same engine but in Merc colours, for a 5.6 m Avon rib for diving. The engine was so heavy the rib was constantly flooding over the rear transom, in addition it was vey hard to get the boat to plane as the power weight ratio was terrible, and we tried numerous props! In the end we went back to using an old rib with a 90 HP Yamaha two stroke which performs marvellously.

For myself I eventually bit the bullet and put a 90HP Tohatsu TLDI on the boat. Result total transformation, floats 2 inches higher at the stern and has totally transformed the performance as well as being reliable and really economical. Hope this is of some use to you.

Originally Posted by slimtim

I'm thinking of getting one of these engines near me and have some questions as details are vague at best.

What weight is it?
Is it a dog, or is it ok?
Will it be efi or carb?
Is £3300 a good price? Sounds a bit pricey to me.

Any other info would be good.

Thanks, Tim

[slimtim]

Yes very useful thanks. I've decided to not pursue it for the reasons given in this thread, mainly the weight. I too am considering splashing out on a new 90 TLDI but at £6300 fitted from my local dealer, is it really worth it for a boat I don't get to use all that much?

[markg]

could you not find a decent yam 90? or is 2 stroke no use , what do you think of your shakey tim? i have very nearly finished mine

[slimtim]

carb 2 stroke is still an option, yams are way overpriced though. Ideally I would like something quieter and more fuel friendly hence the TLDI. Shakey is good, built like a tank and quick. Should fly with a 90 on it! Have you been building yours up yourself?

[markg]

yes pretty much like you did yours, except i have used shakespeare console and seat pods, shakespeare or stevetheboat had a hull listed on ebay last year, i had it for a very good price and started from there, there is a few little bits left to do but i am hopeing to have it on the water this weekend

[slimtim]

Nice, good luck with the lauch! Put some weight in the bow locker (chain and anchor should be enough) or prepare for some exciting chine walking when at full tilt trimmed out

[Jizm]

Have you thought about sourcing one from the states?

[outboardtech]

I haven't come across the problem with this engine on the cooling system . I have had to pull the powerheads off to replace the yoke assy that arent very good but other than that they are and in my opinion good engines . I did have a problem once with a 100 carb model NOT pumping water properly and overheated all the time and the owner decided to remove the thermostat ( BAD THING TO DO ) and ran the engine for the whole season not knowing he was actually damaging the engine even though it was running great. And what happened was because the outboard ran tooooooooooooooooooooooo cold this engine staring to sweat and condensation started and this condensation is obviously water and this got into the engine oil and damaged the camshafts etc. RUST started to attack all these parts . A stat is there for a reason . And all it was in the end was a bad impeller housing even though he had replaced the impeller twice . A little story i thought i could share .