25 Mecury bigfoot 4 stroke.

[sctj88]

My new boat has a 25 Mecury bigfoot 4 stroke on it. I've have the boat a whole 5 days and justed checked oil etc today before kicking it over for the first time started on the first pull no worries at all. The motor is an 03 model and i just want to ask if there is any common faults with these motors at all or anything i should keep an eye on. I ask as i don't want to be half way up north and have the thing play up on me and stuff my holiday. My dad has knownledge of 2 strokes but has never had or used a 4 stroke before. Do you need to disconnect the fuel line and just let the motor run out of fuel to keep crap from settling on the carby and in jets etc or is it ok to just turn it off. Any other information on these motors would be great.
Below is link to boat thread
http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?t=131683

[QuinnyDory]

Gday mate,
I had a 99 model 4str 25HP merc bigfoot on my first boat a 4.1m Bermuda (Quintrex made at the time). It was a fantastic engine for its size and never had a serious issue with it that left me stranded. 2 Problems I did have were not really an engine fault were a failed relay on power tilt and also stale/bad fuel (2 to 3 weeks old?) which meant I couldnt start and keep it running on one outing. I now have a 40HP 2str merc on a different boat and miss my little 4str. Its also ver yeasy to work on, you can do a major service by yourself with a little mechanical knowledge.

[sctj88]

Thanks mate thats excellant, the motor looks alright like a new one basically when i checked oil etc wasn't even dust in there.