Oct 2020: One of my 2009 Tohatsu MD115A outboards on my Tomcat 24 developed an overheating problem. After performing the usual water pump replacement and thermostat check I discovered problem was more severe than my casual mechanic skills wanted to tackle. I took the boat to the only Tohatsu mechanic in area.
This is when I began to realize the demands Covid put on boating industry. After boat sat at mechanics for a month, shop started on my engine by performing a compression leak down test and informed me that compression was poor and it was not worth trying to fix this 11 year old saltwater engine. I will note that engine has only 1K hours and runs strong. Repair was going to be difficult due to some disassembly would be required. I believe that due to shop being so busy they did not want to tackle a difficult repair when they had a huge backlog of routine (easy) jobs. I can't say that I would do any different if it was my shop.
I brought boat home and continued to to work to resolve the overheating issue. Lots of de-carboning spray that I believe caused the leak down test to indicate poor compression and also could cause overheating. (I run these 2-stroke engines too slow.) Flushed engine with vinegar. Checked temp sensors. Sealed pump housing to riser tube to ensure no leaking. All this was to no avail and I decided the the next step to diagnose issue would be to remove exhaust manifold. 25 bolts that I knew would break and require drilling and tapping. I decided this was not worth it as all that work would likely only reveal the issue and more work and parts would be required to actually fix. Time for new outboards.
Calling around in November to various repower dealers revealed just how busy everyone was. Nobody was really trying to sell new motors. I felt like I was watching an old Red Green show episode. "Sure we can sell you new motors, if we have to, I guess." They could order but it was long wait times for motors and/or high installation price. No dealer would offer anything for my remaining good engine. They would just remove and dispose of.
I decided I wanted new Mercury 90s but investigated others also. The following are just my research and opinion. I hope I don't offend anyone here.
Mercury 90s or 115s. 5 month wait time. Could order in November but delivery would be mid April. One dealer wanted 50 percent down and the other 10 percent down. Really? 50 percent down payment and wait 5 months?
Honda 90s. Available and good motor but by far highest price (too high in my opinion) and small displacement.
Tohatsu 90 or 115s. Available in February. Too new design. Too heavy.
Suzuki 90s. These were my 2nd choice. Good price. Lightest. Good dealer/ customer interaction. Was told wait time was unknown. Probably a month or 2. I decided I really preferred the Mercury higher cu in displacement.
Yamaha. Not best at anything. Not lightest, cheapest, or most displacement.
I ordered the new Mercury 90s the first week of December.
I believe the issue getting the Mercurys is that Mercury has contracts with lots of boat builders. 2020 overwhelmed boat dealers with orders and boat dealer contracts come ahead of repowers.
I just find this interesting that the wait time for a 90 hp motor from a U.S. company is 5 months. It's not like I am trying to buy quad 400s that the boating publications would have you believe that without, you don't have a real boat. Although who knows, maybe 400 hp are more available as I would assume profit margin goes up with engine size. I usually try to buy from U.S. companies when I can, and I believe the Mercury 90s are currently the best engineered 90s, but I bet this unavailability has persuaded potential Mercury customers to the competition. I checked last week and was told mid April is still the estimated delivery.
In the meantime, I hooked a Harbor Freight purchased 12 volt water pump into the flush port and put the pickup hose into water. I found that this extra water flow keeps the engine running like a champ. A temporary and dubious fix but 12 hours run time so far on this arrangement.
If you had the patience to read this far I hope you found this tale entertaining.
-Jeff-
This is when I began to realize the demands Covid put on boating industry. After boat sat at mechanics for a month, shop started on my engine by performing a compression leak down test and informed me that compression was poor and it was not worth trying to fix this 11 year old saltwater engine. I will note that engine has only 1K hours and runs strong. Repair was going to be difficult due to some disassembly would be required. I believe that due to shop being so busy they did not want to tackle a difficult repair when they had a huge backlog of routine (easy) jobs. I can't say that I would do any different if it was my shop.
I brought boat home and continued to to work to resolve the overheating issue. Lots of de-carboning spray that I believe caused the leak down test to indicate poor compression and also could cause overheating. (I run these 2-stroke engines too slow.) Flushed engine with vinegar. Checked temp sensors. Sealed pump housing to riser tube to ensure no leaking. All this was to no avail and I decided the the next step to diagnose issue would be to remove exhaust manifold. 25 bolts that I knew would break and require drilling and tapping. I decided this was not worth it as all that work would likely only reveal the issue and more work and parts would be required to actually fix. Time for new outboards.
Calling around in November to various repower dealers revealed just how busy everyone was. Nobody was really trying to sell new motors. I felt like I was watching an old Red Green show episode. "Sure we can sell you new motors, if we have to, I guess." They could order but it was long wait times for motors and/or high installation price. No dealer would offer anything for my remaining good engine. They would just remove and dispose of.
I decided I wanted new Mercury 90s but investigated others also. The following are just my research and opinion. I hope I don't offend anyone here.
Mercury 90s or 115s. 5 month wait time. Could order in November but delivery would be mid April. One dealer wanted 50 percent down and the other 10 percent down. Really? 50 percent down payment and wait 5 months?
Honda 90s. Available and good motor but by far highest price (too high in my opinion) and small displacement.
Tohatsu 90 or 115s. Available in February. Too new design. Too heavy.
Suzuki 90s. These were my 2nd choice. Good price. Lightest. Good dealer/ customer interaction. Was told wait time was unknown. Probably a month or 2. I decided I really preferred the Mercury higher cu in displacement.
Yamaha. Not best at anything. Not lightest, cheapest, or most displacement.
I ordered the new Mercury 90s the first week of December.
I believe the issue getting the Mercurys is that Mercury has contracts with lots of boat builders. 2020 overwhelmed boat dealers with orders and boat dealer contracts come ahead of repowers.
I just find this interesting that the wait time for a 90 hp motor from a U.S. company is 5 months. It's not like I am trying to buy quad 400s that the boating publications would have you believe that without, you don't have a real boat. Although who knows, maybe 400 hp are more available as I would assume profit margin goes up with engine size. I usually try to buy from U.S. companies when I can, and I believe the Mercury 90s are currently the best engineered 90s, but I bet this unavailability has persuaded potential Mercury customers to the competition. I checked last week and was told mid April is still the estimated delivery.
In the meantime, I hooked a Harbor Freight purchased 12 volt water pump into the flush port and put the pickup hose into water. I found that this extra water flow keeps the engine running like a champ. A temporary and dubious fix but 12 hours run time so far on this arrangement.
If you had the patience to read this far I hope you found this tale entertaining.
-Jeff-
