My boat came with a Yamaha F80 (2002 vintage). Like with many engines, there was also an F100 that was the "same" engine, with the de-tuning (or whatever) to make one 80hp and one 100hp. I believe in 2003 they re-rated them and made them the 75 and 90 (don't think they really changed anything though), and then in 2005 Yamaha went to fuel injection, keeping the 75 and 90 designations. There was a C-Dory dealer in Crystal River, Florida, back in the day who seemed to put Yamahas on most (all?) of the boats, mostly F80's.
I really wanted twins, and fuel injection, when I was boat shopping. But then (what is now) my boat was just in such great, "like new" shape, and with only 50 hours, that I bought it and just figured I'd probably re-power. I considered a re-powering fund as part of the purchase price. Just after I bought it, I took it in to a Yamaha dealer for an inspection and some carburetor work (the boat had sat with fuel in the carbs after the owner died), pretty much intending to trade in the engine on a new one.
They almost laughed at me (in a nice way) and said "this engine is perfectly good and would last you for many, many years; there's not a thing wrong with it (except the carbs having been left with fuel in them). I was "trying" to buy a new engine from them, but they almost insisted that I at least try my engine before they sold me a new one (again, they would have sold me one - it's not that they were jerks - but they were just giving me their best advice first).
I still wasn't convinced, but figured "okay, I'll try it just to say I did, but then I'll be back!" Now, I've been in other modes and so I don't have a lot of hours on the engine to give you a personal report, but I did have one experience this fall that confirmed that indeed, at least trying it is the right thing: I went to the September Lake Powell get-together and met up with the trip leader, Chris, on his 22 named Rana Verde. She's a lovely boat, and I knew from reading this forum that he'd taken her on plenty of ambitious trips : Up to Alaska, all over Powell, etc. etc. Many, many hours and years. He doesn't even run a kicker, just the main. His engine? A carbureted Yamaha 75 (2003 I believe). I got to take a spin on Rana Verde and really didn't see anything to complain about (my boat should be so slick!). Chris said in all those years and miles he's had one problem (an electrical part... rectifier?) and he was able to limp to port before making repairs, at which time he found there was an improved, more robust version of the part and mounted that. No issues since. That's a lot of miles and without even a secondary engine.
So, anyway, would I factor an older, carbureted engine into the price of the boat? Yes, definitely. Would I choose a fuel-injected engine if I could just "pick one" and the two were laid out in front of me and everything else was equal? Yes again. But if the price and the rest of the boat are commensurate with where you feel they should be, and you like it.... I would obviously choose it (because I did!). My feeling was that the boat being so clean and "like new" overall would be a lot harder to replicate than changing engines (if I did).
A note on the trim tabs: Funny, but I'm installing a set of Bennett M-120's on my boat even as we speak (well, when I'm not on the computer
). I knew I would want them, but I actually considered it to be a bit of a bonus that they were not already installed. I had read enough (and have now confirmed it) to know that 99.9% of installations of hardware into the core would not be made in a way that I consider to be proper. That is, either the core would not be closed out or sealed, or holes would not be necessary anymore (not trim tabs but other hardware). I knew that for myself, in order to be comfortable with it, I'd have to "uninstall" trim tabs and re-do the installation if a boat came with them, and I'd much rather just install a brand new pair (what I'm doing now). My boat was kept indoors and out of the water, so I knew I'd be "starting fresh" (plus I checked it over for moisture anyway).
So, the upshot is that I don't know enough about "your" boat to say anything specific about it, but I figured I'd give you my thoughts based on a similar purchase option.
Sunbeam :hot
