Evinrude G2 - My Initial Thoughts

[Irishwolf]

Yup they are the best on the Island and would be a consideration if it was possible to make it across but some times that isn't possible , if I was to get a free return ferry reimbursement (if the engine was a no go) I'd consider but I know that would be
impossible. So, no choice but to look at Yamaha ...to bad Evinrude can't open their eyes and see the importance and potential for a solid representation in an area with 1 Million + population ......I could always move to the island again lol

I’d give them a call and ask about covering the ferry costs especially if on a warranty visit before moving on to another engine type. You never know...

Also Im sure Evinrude would want to know about a dealer providing poor service....

 

[Ceilidh69]

Man that looks like she'll fly now! I love the power steering in the G2, completely effortless steering. I can do high speed turns with zero cavitation. Between the props and the mount job its just perfect. I am getting exactly 6000 rpm at max throttle. What were your RPM at 51mph?

ABout 5500 rpm 100 % throttle.

 

[Tommygun]

Well I am back from my first trip of the year and first test run in my new RH boat. I figured I'd share my initial thoughts on how the G2's performed and give a bit of context to their fuel efficiency as compared to the other boats in our group. I was previously a Mercury owner 150 Fourstroke. I wasn't super impressed with my Merc. The powerhead failed under warranty after only about 3 weeks. It didn't leave me with a lot of confidence going forward.

Anyway, my decision to go with the G2's were several. First and foremost was the 10 year warranty that they were offering. That alone made it hard to look elsewhere, second was the alleged fuel efficiency, 3 was watching a video comparison from Boattest.com where they had a 200 Yammy and a 150 G2 on the back of a large center console. The Yammy could not get the boat on plane and as a result could only plow 10mph. The G2 even though it was 50 less HP was able to quickly plane the boat and it his a top speed around 35mph. 4 was the fact that there is absolutely NO dealer scheduled maintenance for 5 years or 500hrs. No changing the leg oil every year, not costly 10hrs service. For me that was huge. Lastly I definitely liked the look of them.

As for specs my boat is a 26' RH Seahawk Pro Walkthrough (28' overall) with twin Evinrude G2 - 225HO's. (Max HP for that boat). It was loaded with gear, 4 large men and 450L of fuel. I figure it weighed in around 8500lbs at least.

We fished hard for 4.5 days making the run from Zeballos to Flynn's Cove and put on about 220 nm in those days. I also backtrolled almost all day while jigging. The seas were rough with good size swells and constant wind. I ended up using a total of 300 litres of fuel. I had anticipated on using way more. As for the oil, after 4.5 days of fishing it was still registering full on one and 3/4 on the other (which I used for backtrolling). This was also the break in period when it uses nearly double the oil. Again, I had anticipated way more oil burn. On another note, there is no scheduled break in period, its all done internally.

In our group there was a 27' Larson with a 300 Yammy which was burning 200+ litres/day and a 20' Trophy with a 200 Yammy which was burning about 150 litres/day.

At this point I can say that I'm super happy with the performance. The torque on thos engines is ridiculous and the hole shot is almost instantaneous. It cruises at 28mph@3000rpm burning approximatley 8 gallons/hr. The top speed loaded with fuel etc was 58mph. I also tested with 1 motor up and could easily plane with the single 225 and reached a top speed of 45mph. It also trolled beautifully by using the digital throttle/rpm gauge. It idles in gear at 500 and can adjust in increments of 50 up to 750rpm. My troll speed was between 1.9 and 3.5 from low to high which seems perfect for the type of trolling I do.

Some of the other incidentals that I likes was the ease at which you can flush the motor and how the motor tilts a full 90 degrees having everything out of the water.

Anyway, I know that many of you are super brand loyal to Yamaha but with the cost of fuel being what it is right now I thought I'd share how impressed I am so far with these. Hard to argue that kind of fuel consumption with 87 octane regular fuel. If you are looking at a repower, I'd definitely consider them...

Cheers,

WW

What he said.

 

[Sentinel]

Well as you will find in the long run there is no free lunch. The 5 year no maintenance thing is a big fallacy. At the very least I would change the lower gear lube and probably the plugs before 5 years. Overall ownership cost will be very similar to a 4 stroke by the time 2 stroke oil costs are factored in. Many do rave about the powerband though so they could definitely be a good fit for some boats.

 

[barkerfam]

At the very least I would change the lower gear lube and probably the plugs before 5 years.

Not trying to start a fight, but was is your statement based on? Evinrude has nothing to gain if their engines fail prematurely due to dirty oil or lack of maintenance. We've seen the change to longer oil changes and maintenance interval in very high end car motors as well (Porsche, BMW, etc). Seems to be that the better a mechanical device is designed and built, the less maintenance it needs. Just my $0.02 - oh and my $40 for a gallon of 2 stroke oil!

 

[Tommygun]

Until you have owned or used both there is nothing factual about opinions.

 

[Sentinel]

Based on years of working on all things mechanical for 40 years and data from friends running etecs. Not saying they are a bad motor, I am just not buying into the no maintenance for 5 years and the cheaper overall cost of ownership claims. Even with synthetic oils you will have wear especially the first 50 hrs or so. I would change the lower gearcase oil after 50 hrs and then every 100-150 hrs or at least once a year. Water pump also is a wear item and probably should have attention before 5 years. It’s your motor and you can do what you like but I think they are selling a bit of snake oil with these motors. Given proper maintenance there is no reason these motors will not have great service life and like I said they definitely have an upside with their power curve.

 

[Tommygun]

They actually run on snake oil.

 

[Tommygun]

I change my gear oil every year... oil is cheap.... motors not so much. I agree with cation.

 

[Sentinel]

Here is the biggest downside of not changing the lower lube for 300-500 hrs. A friend bought a new etec several years ago and at about 200 some hrs the lower gearcase started making noise. He took it in and dealer found it toasted due to salt water intrusion. A small piece of fishing line had cut the prop shaft seal and allowed water in. My friend was left paying for a new lower gearcase. This is reason alone to check/change this oil more frequently than the recommended service interval.

 

[Irishwolf]

Here is the biggest downside of not changing the lower lube for 300-500 hrs. A friend bought a new etec several years ago and at about 200 some hrs the lower gearcase started making noise. He took it in and dealer found it toasted due to salt water intrusion. A small piece of fishing line had cut the prop shaft seal and allowed water in. My friend was left paying for a new lower gearcase. This is reason alone to check/change this oil more frequently than the recommended service interval.

I'm surprised this was not covered under warranty, assuming your friend was within his warranty period. If Evinrude says no maintenance for 3 years or 100 hours or 5 years and 500 hours and this sort of thing happens within this timeframe, then the responsibility is squarely on Evinrude to cover it.

 

[ryanb]

I'm surprised this was not covered under warranty, assuming your friend was within his warranty period. If Evinrude says no maintenance for 3 years or 100 hours or 5 years and 500 hours and this sort of thing happens within this timeframe, then the responsibility is squarely on Evinrude to cover it.

Seals failing due to external factors (fishing line) are beyond the control of Evinrude. Warranty isn't going to cover that. Same as if you hit a deadhead and take out your lower unit. One is a bit more dramatic, but it's the same thing.

 

[Irishwolf]

Seals failing due to external factors (fishing line) are beyond the control of Evinrude. Warranty isn't going to cover that. Same as if you hit a deadhead and take out your lower unit. One is a bit more dramatic, but it's the same thing.

I hear what you are saying, but if Evinrude tells me I don't have to worry about checking my lower unit, then they need to hold some responsibility over a small leak occurring under normal wear and tear, no matter how it's caused. I would definitely be fighting that one.

 

[Damien]

Changing Fluids and Checking Fluids are not the same thing.

 

[Sr SQ]

Changing Fluids and Checking Fluids are not the same thing.

Bingo!!!!
Can’t see going thru the work of checking and not just dump and replace

 

[Irishwolf]

Found this at an evinrude community site:

"It's up to you whether or not you change the lube every year, but it is not needed until the 3 year or 300 hour mark, which ever comes first. At the very least, you should remove the propeller and make sure no fishing line has gotten caught and wrapped around the prop-shaft. This would damage the seal and cause an oil leak. If you were to find fishing line around the prop-shaft, then it would be advisable to check/change the gear lube to ensure water has not entered the gearcase."

From this link 2nd post:
http://community.evinrude.com/t5/Ow...ase-Lube-Change-on-2012-E-TEC-90hp/td-p/10194

So there you go. At min, yearly checks required.

Cheers

 

[Waterwolf2230]

Found this at an evinrude community site:

"It's up to you whether or not you change the lube every year, but it is not needed until the 3 year or 300 hour mark, which ever comes first. At the very least, you should remove the propeller and make sure no fishing line has gotten caught and wrapped around the prop-shaft. This would damage the seal and cause an oil leak. If you were to find fishing line around the prop-shaft, then it would be advisable to check/change the gear lube to ensure water has not entered the gearcase."

From this link 2nd post:
http://community.evinrude.com/t5/Ow...ase-Lube-Change-on-2012-E-TEC-90hp/td-p/10194

So there you go. At min, yearly checks required.

Cheers

I 100% had planned on pulling the props and inspecting them and greasing the prop shaft yearly, to me that barely qualify's as maintenance. I tend to not push things, for example my vehicle says every 12,000 km for oil changes, so I do it at 10,000. Likely I'll consider changing fluids at the 4 year mark give or take. I did have a thorough talk with the Evinrude dealer that installed them and they said the the G2 is different than the Etec for maintenance and you shouldn't directly compare the two, so while I can appreciate the comments on the older Etecs, its kind of comparing apples to oranges.