10:1 Yamaha to Merc. Maybe more!

**rgsauger** · 07-15-2022, 05:13 PM

So my wife and I are down here in the Keys this week and having time of our lives. Rented a 22 foot center console and went and played and explored today. Yamaha 200 4stroke. Mostly idled but ran some. Literally took it out at nine in the morning and turned it in at four in the afternoon and burned 5 gallons. Not 25 gallons. Not 55 gallons. But 5 gallons! I don’t think I can crank my damn mercury up on 5 gallons! What really stood out to me is that all of the rental companies that I saw use on the Yamaha. All the boats have them that I saw in the water also. Literally only saw a handful of Mercs.

Why is that?

Oh, and learned REAL quickly that electric shifters and throttles behave REAL damn differently than my old manual controls in my Shadow!!! No, I didn’t hit anything. Seriously.

**Jim Speros** · 07-15-2022, 05:59 PM

A few thoughts come to mind. Yamahas make nice engines, 4 strokes sip fuel. All brands. There must be a great local dealer selling and servicing the Yamaha fleets. Years ago the engine companies started buying up boat companies so they can package their engines on boats and sell turn key. I suspect there are areas around the state and country loaded up with different brands.

**rgsauger** · 07-16-2022, 06:25 PM

There are more Suzuki motors on boats than Mercs it seems. Even saw Tohatsu. Go figure.

**mach351** · 07-16-2022, 08:00 PM

Yamahas on the rentals down here but on the boats that are owned it’s either suzuki or merc

**Chaz** · 07-16-2022, 09:11 PM

So I was out runnin around our waters with a couple of merc TAM guys. I started playing .. lets count the Yamaha's .. I think your 10:1 number is a little light ..

To reach that level , I'm sure you have to be with the company for quite a while. Their general consensuses seemed to be, with OMC going in the tank .. they had no competition. Which is part of the narrative when they attend and or teach service seminars. Both really sharp fella's ... no need in me rubbing it in ...

The cheerleaders will say, I was at an event where there were 100 boats .. only one had a Yamaha on the back. Ask them to go to "pick a dock USA" on any given weekend and do a count ... most of them can't admit they saw the big pink elephant. I doubt OMC had the ability to see it either.

Suzuki's .. about ten years ago I started seeing really old looking boats with brand new Suzi's hangin off the back of tem. I thought .. WTF, until I was in West Marine one day and saw the Suzuki display along the wall. $9995.00 for a new 225 or 250 horse outboard. mercs at the time were "only" twice the price ...

Go to the islands, it's closer to 98% Yamaha. People that cross the Gulfstream know, if they have an issue .. they will more than likely be found off the coast of N. Carolina .. or maybe half way to France ... Max reliability is their main concern.
For the ones who still want to "set the water on fire" they are like a fella I spoke to the other day....
We started out talking about doing a single ram clamp bracket on his HPDI .. then he told me he really wanted to do a clamp, MAD can, billet adapter and his Yamaha powerhead and cowl.
I knew it would do no good to mention, since you'd be most of the way there .. lets skip the adapter and build a 3.0L powerhead. I rekkon he and his friends have set the water on fire already ...

Golden parts ... We've covered .. O=rings and cranks. How much is a 300x skirt (that was held in place by six rubber bushing nuts .. come off plane to quick .. gone)

Well .. lets see, $10.00 in plastic .. humm .. I'll go with $210.00 because everybody has to eat ... Survey sez .... LMAO

https://www.walmart.com/ip/New-Mercu...lack/778557002

**rgsauger** · 07-16-2022, 09:35 PM

Originally Posted by mach351

Yamahas on the rentals down here but on the boats that are owned it’s either suzuki or merc

so why the difference? Seems like the commercial guys need the most reliable motors out there and probably the longest lasting.

**rgsauger** · 07-16-2022, 09:40 PM

Interesting reply, Chaz. Funny that you point out the 10:1, I actually changed it after the fact to 20 to 1 but it would not let me change the name of the post. Yes, at least 20:1 Yami’s down here.

Suzuki… Half price is definitely one way to buy market share

**mach351** · 07-16-2022, 10:28 PM

Originally Posted by rgsauger

so why the difference? Seems like the commercial guys need the most reliable motors out there and probably the longest lasting.

i think they all last about the same. Here in the lower keys we have guys and places that specialize in suzuki and Merc….not so much yamaha. Also, bigger hp is almost always Merc and suzuki. Smaller hp is where you see a lot of yamaha. So that could explain some of the discrepancy.

**Chaz** · 07-17-2022, 11:59 AM

So I was standing on the curb at Fantastic Plastic on A-1-A with the owner. I looked across the street and maybe 100 yards away, I see a Yamaha dealer sign, just like the one above F.P. When our eyes met, he just said ... don't get me started.

There are 5 pages of dealers in our little county. I don't really go out of my way to look, but the ones I occasionally do work for .. always seemed packed. I didn't check, but I can only imagine how many dealers there are in Dade and Broward county.

Palm City Fl. 34990

https://yamahaoutboards.com/en-us/find-a-dealer

**Jim Speros** · 07-17-2022, 12:12 PM

I remember when the Yamaha outboards came out. They were handing out dealerships. I saw one and immediately noticed they copied OMC lower unit and mid section design. I was already a Merc fan. I already hated OMC products and I didn't care to look into anything that resembled one.

Call me whatever you like. I'll never own anything but a Mercury product and I tow my boats with a Ford pick up.

**Chaz** · 07-18-2022, 08:59 AM

Yep, on one hand they were smart to put a dealer on every other corner. On the other , it doesn't say much for dealer loyalty. (how merc treats their's nothing to write home about either)

No doubt they took bits, pieces and features from what they considered to be the best in the industry. Even as late as a few years ago at the Miami boat show. merc guys walk in with their coffee ... to find the Yammie guys holding the cover up and taking pictures of the fly by wire unit. I rekkon if your gonna leave it on a table ...

James ... I say I don't like Ferd's but I got two of em. One I pull my boat with, the other .... like you, I pulled a trailer that had a Chevrolet tucked in side .. kinda like your boat has ..

**powerabout** · 07-18-2022, 09:46 AM

and to think it was Merc that helped Yamaha into outboards....

**Jim Speros** · 07-18-2022, 09:50 AM

I remember when the Laser EFI 220 first showed up. When I opened the cowl first thing I saw on front cover was Made in Japan.

**Chaz** · 07-19-2022, 01:43 PM

Japan .. Pppfftttt

They have gotten much worse .... since then ..

Think cheapest .. sell highest . It's the bowling ball way ...

**mr fun** · 07-19-2022, 02:24 PM

years ago I was told about the yamaha revolution in the keys , those guys use their boats , not just sit around and admire each other and their boats . word i got was a merc is a 1000 hr motor and a yamaha is a 3000 hr motor . I'm sure somebody will correct me