Thread: Help with info on Evinrude motors, good, bad, or any info you can share for my friend

I don't know about the big ones, but I have a 15 hp Evinrude that my Grandfather bought new in 1965. Still cranks on first pull. Replaced gears in foot once about 30 years ago due to a duck hunting mishap. Other than that, impellor and plugs every few years just because...........I bet the little thing has 2000 hours on it! It has been a Stone Pony!

Have a 7.5 1979 evinrude.........best motor I ever had. Dont use it much now, but still cranks on the first pull. We used to use it a lot, other than maintenance, it has never been in the shop.

They are pretty popular on Kentucky lake on a lot of the big bass boats.

I bought a 03 Lowe with a 03 Evinrude 75hp last summer. Don't have many hours on it but was running a little rough when I bought it. Changed plugs and can of Seafoam and is running like a champ. Very happy so far.

Got a 2015 30 hp etec and love it! It has a lot of features and my favorite is the cruise control and the ability to adjust rpms and use it for trolling crankbaits I can dial it Down to 1.0-3.5


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I'm scared to death of the original DFI evinrudes, the original dfi s are what sunk OMC. The ETEC came next when bombardier bought omc out of bankruptcy. Big improvement but the earliest versions had weak lower units later model etecs were pretty reliable. Now I'm talking mid range and up to 250 hps. The new g2 is supposed to be a beast. Lots of new features like digital throttle controls, computer controlled break in etc. said to have low end torque to beat em all out of the hole. Still not quite as fast as merc. In 250 hp it's almost 5k more that the standard merc 250 pro xs. This is all based on reading and here say. I've never turned a key on any of them other than a 25 hp Johnson I owned for
3 years which was a good motor.

Wannabe...

Stay away, far far away!!!! Nuff said!!!!! Take a look at how many certified Evinrude mechanics there are out there, there a few and far between. The last two years in a row Kelly and I have fished out of my old rig because his newer model Ranger Fisherman had a piece of junk 250 Etec on it. He hit a stump in Shelbyville and tore it off the transom, actually the mount broke, bolts were still in the transom and his problems were solved. Only buy a used boat with a Etec on it if you have room in your budget to repower with a good motor.
All personal opinion but we have been let down two springs in a row by a 30k piece of crap.

What sizes and Year models are the engines he's looking at?

I've quit selling the ETEC's TWICE!!! Nobody near Memphis sells them anymore. They break. Total boomerangs.

The older models were good engines. DO NOT buy a Fitche, or an Intruder. Fitche was a loser for OMC and the Intruder has Optical ignition system. The Intruder was only made for 3 or so years before they went back to a looper ignition system. Johnson called their version the Fast Strike. They did run good though. The optical ignition can be frustrating to work on. The Intruder and Fast Strike were built from 92-96 I think. The 2 stroke carb models were good engines but gas hogs. The older small engines were bomb proof. 6-9.9-15-25-35-40-50hp's etc. Most of those have been worn slap out by now.

One more note. The early Johnson 4 stroke engines were made by Suzuki and are great engines. I think they also built a few Evinrudes for them also.