Motor Failures - All Brands

[cormorant]

As below i have edited the heading to all motor brands ( well as many as it would let me type in)

In line with the post I asked 6 months ago I though I'd ask again and see if there are engine failures or not and what is causing them in the last 6 months.

In general there seems to have been less failures of any brand motors in the last summer than I can remember and I am wondering is it that so many are now newer motors under warranty so you don't hear about it or owners just don't bother talking about it on a forum anymore for fear of devalueing the brand , style they selected and now worship;D

Can only hope that with new motors and more idiot lights and alarms less complete failures in every brand should be happening??

This was the old threads so no repeats please
http://ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?170560-Etec-failures-anybody-hearing-of-any/page6&highlight=etec+failures

http://ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?164534-Who-has-PERSONALLY-experienced-serious-engine-failure-in-the-first-3-5-years&highlight=motor+failures



No bulllcrap :'( just if you directly know of a falure and what hapened that left someone stranded or if the motor had to be scrapped.

So
What year model?
When did it fail?
What failed? Mechanical, seizure injector, gearbox, computer , battery user error, dealer set up error , fuel quality ?
Is it a repeat failure?
What hours ?
What size motor?
What was done about it?
Price of repair or done under warranty?
Where in Australia did it fail?
How do you now about it? 1st hand, mate of a mate of a mate of another brands service department told you etc etc ?
How long to have it repaired?


Edited to include all motor brands. but I can't change teh thread title which still just says etec?? I have put a note to the forum mod if hey can do it or restart the thread?
Motor Failures ,Etec, yamaha , honda ,suzuki,mercury etc

[lethal098]

Why not ask about has anyone had ANY outboard failures, dont just direct it at Etec, many brands out there that fail not just them, a broad mix would be better i think.

Cheers Lee

[cormorant]

Thanks Lee

I have changed it and am open to any ideas for different wording.

Would be good to do it every 6 months as a sticky and just see if a model of any brand is really failing and why. Seems as with the way companies are doing lots of "non recall" repairs and updates , upgrades it would be nice to hear how clients are treated when a failure happens.

Might stop someone ending up with a lemon and help people whan they have a failure and get told by the dealer that they are the "only one" or the parts aren't avaliable " as the issue never happens"

Like all failures the loudmouth who tells everyone will get more ears but over time the data of where and when should clear out the 100 people who all heard about the single failure of a ##### brand at a single fishing comp and all knew the bloke. Next month he is sponsored by a different brand.:-X

Wouldn't mind seeing a thread on real life service costs for all motor brands where people put up hours and parts plus labour used as well from their own receipts as i is also a constant question by existing and new owners. Some mechanics and dealers really do treat some owners as a gravy train with hourly costs and parts mark up and yet others provide such great service with lots of unseen checks on trailers and all the other stuff.

Be good to get a list of suggested service times from manufacturers to see if dealers are doing it right by their clients.

[lethal098]

Yeah it would be good to get an overview of service costs on each individudal motor, Hard to track them all though, Maybe Get a thread as to what brand and size of motor, What service interval,
dealer or non dealer cost for service and overall happiness with motor.

Cheers Lee

[Smithy]

The Raby Bay VMR Cougar Cat that hit the whale the other day was towing in a broken down boat that had an Ebomb on the back!

[lethal098]

Hey Smithy, wanna know what the most common boat we have towed in the last 3 months??? i can tell you they werent two strokes.

[Camhawk88]

My 1954 2.5hp Seagull started coughing and playing up a couple of weeks ago. Managed to get home but geez am I pissed off- the thing has only just come out of warantee and the company is claiming fair wear and tear.

Honestly, I will not go back to these guys again when I look for an upgrade!

[FishHunter]

My 1996 Evinrude 150hp developed an intermittent missifire for a few hours at 420 hours and one of the tilt trim relays has packed up. Oh and then the low oil alarm went off but it stopped after I filled the oil tank so I didnt have to rip the wring out after all.

[dodgyone]

Towed in a Verado 200 a couple of weeks ago with a major gearbox failure. 2008 model. I believe the new gearbox cost him around the 6g mark.
I dont see too many major failures of any brand around here. All mostly fuel issues, flat batteries or electrical problems.

[business class]

Hey Smithy, wanna know what the most common boat we have towed in the last 3 months??? i can tell you they werent two strokes.

I bet if you did it over the last 3 years i bet 2 strokes win hands down.......

Being towed in doesnt always mean the engine is at fault tho, what if it is a fuel line problem or something like that..... has happened to me where my fuel line was blocked due to crap let in the tank..... drove me crazy for weeks till i got it all out.

[Swanie1975]

a month ago my 1996 suzuki 2 stroke 140hp dropped compression on no.1 cyclinder due to a ring disintegrating and gouging up and down the bore :'(- funny thing is i was offshore and no funny noises, clunks or groans it just wouldnt rev over 4000 and it still got me home;D now im waiting for a new 4 stroke suzi to come out of japan having decided it wasnt worth spending money on ( and the wifey said yes to the money for a newie !!)

dont know if it counts cos it still got me home;)

cheers ryan

[Jabba_]

I bet if you did it over the last 3 years i bet 2 strokes win hands down.......

Being towed in doesnt always mean the engine is at fault tho, what if it is a fuel line problem or something like that..... has happened to me where my fuel line was blocked due to crap let in the tank..... drove me crazy for weeks till i got it all out.
But it counts if it's an E-tec being towed in, yeah..


As for the thread Question.. No, I have not personaly heard off any (modern) engine failures in the last 6 months.

[lethal098]

Business class, thats right most failures are generally not the motor itself, Fuel or electrical are most of the culprits but you would prob find they would be fairly even in the amount of breakdowns around our part of the world between 2 and 4 strokes, we dont always find out why they broke down, only speculation.

I know of one we did a month or 2 ago, a Brand New 4 stroke less than 20 hours old and had computer issues which stopped it, The owner told us this the week later. So it happens to all brands not just one.

Cheers Lee

[dan12345]

The Raby Bay VMR Cougar Cat that hit the whale the other day was towing in a broken down boat that had an Ebomb on the back!




what was the problem with the broken down boat? not trying to be a smart ass smithy but first post ses if u know of a failure an what it was an if it was scraped,, not if u herd of a boat being towed in. your obviously not an etec fan an your entiteled to your opionon on them but no need for the e-tec bashing, yes i own an e-tec 3 of them for that matter, but i also have a yamaha an 2 other yammies in the family,i recently towed in a yamaha 60hp from morton island but i dont know what happened owner told me it just stopped an would start again but i didnt post as it would be just speculation, if everyone could just stick to facts it would be a bit more helpful for all, hopefully u dont take this the wrong way
cheers dan

[seahound]

2010 150 etec - twin rig

overheat alarm march 2011- thermostat not seated correctly from new also impeller disintegrated on same engine. port side.

starboard engine also had same thermo seating issue when installed new in sept 2010.

apart from this, engines stall on an annoyingly regular basis despite 100hr service intervals inc new s'plugs & running 95 or 98 PULP.

both run like chaff cutters...200hrs & been ordinary since new. smelly, noisy...gives me a headache!!

no catestrophic failure yet.

brp boffins have been over them a number of times. this is just how they are...

[cormorant]

Not good enough
That sucks that the ETECs are not running right. I'd be getting a different BRP boffin to look at em.
They should never stall as they have a electronic idle speed and nothing mechanical. If it is not perfectly smooth something is up.



And for the seagull lovers - Here is your opportunity to prove your brand;D I've never seen one plane before

http://afloat.com.au/afloat-magazine/2011/july-2011/The_Longest_Seagull_Race_in_the_World

[seahound]

i hear you cormorant...its not good enough but i've lost use of the boat for 5-6 weeks in the last 8 months while it was being looked at.

these things seem very finicky. had all other major brands with no probs like this. the etecs seem like a real hit & miss purchase.

its a shame. dont like to bag an historical & high profile brand like evinrude/brp...

[dan12345]

seahound id be pretty dissapointed as well mate, i have 3 e-tecs an none of them have idle issues i agree with cormorant you need someone eles to check em out mate, where are u located?

[hilta1]

I Have a 2010 150 etec and a 2011 130 etec, both run smooth great motors, great power all the way through the rev range, took a cruise craft 685 explorer with twin 115 yamaha for a test run a month or so ago,great boat but it was like driving a diesel cruiser without a turbo!

[Smithy]

Don't know what the issue was with the Etec on the boat that was being towed in was but he didn't sound real happy on the radio when he radioed it in. Certainly didn't give himself up for running out of fuel or having a fuel or battery issue. Seemed to be blaming the motor. Can't help anymore than that. Marlin Mike might know being involved with VMR Raby Bay.

[Bull]

Rob,
Im pretty sure it was computer failure

[tunaticer]

My first "breakdown" ever in my 1995 25hp Evinrude was todays effort. Not so much a breakdown, but a gremlin in the gear selector. Somehow the cams in the selector linkages got slightly out of whack and would not let the timing advance or the throttle to open more than about 1200 rpm. Limped home and inspected it for an hour or so and decided the problem was the linkage assembly, disassembled it then reassembled it again the way it was and no more problems. Can honestly say this motor with in excess of 3000 hours racked up has never missed a beat in its life and still running on the same surface gap plugs i had fitted as new. I was well advised to run it on 75:1 instead of 50:1 and it definitely has not damaged it one speck. Only other alteration I made was to remove the fuel connector at the motor and run a fitted line between the tanks and the fuel pump. Those motor connectors for fuel lines are always a weak point and regularly leak.
Would I buy another one again........only if i was contemplating a remote area long duration stay, other than that I would opt for a 4 stroke to drop the noise factor.

[TimiBoy]

I Have a 2010 150 etec and a 2011 130 etec, both run smooth great motors, great power all the way through the rev range, took a cruise craft 685 explorer with twin 115 yamaha for a test run a month or so ago,great boat but it was like driving a diesel cruiser without a turbo!

That one's been for sale forever! Haven't they figured out it's a dud? If they dropped the price to allow installation of a new motor, they'd move it. My 685 with a 250 Verado was exceptional. 500 hours, no failures. No boat at the moment.:(

Cheers,

Tim

[den001]

evinrude v4 crossflow 90hp 88 model

piston ring cracked, scored bore and took some piston with it. was not worth rebuilding

was a good motor prior other than minor warm start issues,

has been traded in for a 98 yamaha 150hp 2 stroke

[business class]

[QUOTE=Jabba_;1295124]But it counts if it's an E-tec being towed in, yeah..

YEP :P...... you getting very touchy about this subject lately mate... If you want i can help you fix this probolem you have. I know a guy that can take off your Etec and fit a nice Honda for you ;) does a fantastic job too ;D

[Jabba_]

[QUOTE=Jabba;1295124]But it counts if it's an E-tec being towed in, yeah..

YEP :P...... you getting very touchy about this subject lately mate... If you want i can help you fix this problem you have. I know a guy that can take off your Etec and fit a nice Honda for you ;) does a fantastic job too ;D
Most off my posts are tongue and check, I love the E-tec threads, even if they do get a bashing. They are always interesting to read and lots off laughs...

Maybe a Honda on the next boat, not sure what to get next time round. There all so bloody good now, it will come down to price warranty, and rigging... Digital throttle is a must have also..

[hilta1]

That one's been for sale forever! Haven't they figured out it's a dud? If they dropped the price to allow installation of a new motor, they'd move it. My 685 with a 250 Verado was exceptional. 500 hours, no failures. No boat at the moment.:(

Cheers,

Tim
Not sure what one your on about but this was a Brand new rig in Tasmania! Would you like to explain which one you think is a dud??? Would like to know if it is the one down here or not

[Madshagger]

G'day Seahound,

Have you spoken to Downes marine about this running issue? You can get them on 07 3252 7719. Word around the traps is that Alan is the guru on ETEC's. A couple of mates rate him at God status

[TimiBoy]

Not sure what one your on about but this was a Brand new rig in Tasmania! Would you like to explain which one you think is a dud??? Would like to know if it is the one down here or not

There's one that's been on Boat Point for months with that setup. Slow as a wet week. I've seen it sitting in the water at a Marina (no ID for obvious reasons) and it's not been antifouled - pretty green skirt...

Cheers,

Tim

[mal555]

Slow as a wet week. I've seen it sitting in the water at a Marina (no ID for obvious reasons) and it's not been antifouled - pretty green skirt...

Cheers,

Tim

The growth alone will severely limit the power, doesn't sound like the seller/broker is doing the deal any great service.