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Old 24-12-2009, 08:41   #1
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Nissan 2hp and 3.5hp

Hi all,

I'm looking for a tiny outboard and started researching Hondas and Nissan/Tohatsus. While doing this, I found a used Nissan 2HP that may fit the bill. There are two questions I haven't been able to find answers for:

1. Is the Nissan 2HP discontinued? The Nissan Marine webpage lists outboards starting at 2.5HP (Nissan Marine Outboards - Authorized Distributor Offering Boat Motor Products, Technical Information, & Dealer Locations for the U.S. & Canada."), but it is possible to find a link within Nissan Marine specific to the 2HP (Nissan Marine Outboards - Authorized Distributor Offering Boat Motor Products, Technical Information, & Dealer Locations for the U.S. & Canada.").

2. Can anybody educate me on the differences between the 2HP and the 3.5HP? Other than the obvious HP difference, the information in the manual suggests (to my admittedly ignorant mechanical knowledge) that they are the same. Could the difference be in the carburetor only? Attached is an excerpt from the manual.

Thanks and happy holidays to all!
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Old 24-12-2009, 08:47   #2
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Manufacturers will change the jets in the carburetor and possibly a couple other things in the exact same engine block to change the horsepower, and then charge more money for jets with larger holes. And yes, the manufacturers have already thought of people who want to buy the cheaper engine and then put in larger jets and do other mods and have made it prohibitive to do this. I had the same idea at one time as well.

If you do not mind paying the additional money, the same weight engine with the greater horsepower is probably the more practical engine.
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Old 24-12-2009, 09:40   #3
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Tohatsu makes ALL Nissan outboards and many smaller (< 10HP) Mercury* outboards.
You’ll pay a slightly higher premium for the Mercury or Nissan branding, but here is no difference in features, warranty, etc. Parts and manuals etc., for the 3 brands, are universally* interchangeable.

* At one time, a "detuned" Tohatsu 5HP was also marketed as a Mercury 4HP, so make certain you know what you’ve actually got, prior to exchanging parts.
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Old 24-12-2009, 09:55   #4
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Tohatsu makes ALL Nissan outboards and many smaller (< 10HP) Mercury* outboards.
You’ll pay a slightly higher premium for the Mercury or Nissan branding, but here is no difference in features, warranty, etc. Parts and manuals etc., for the 3 brands, are universally* interchangeable.

* At one time, a "detuned" Tohatsu 5HP was also marketed as a Mercury 4HP, so make certain you know what you’ve actually got, prior to exchanging parts.
Gord's right.

Almost all parts are interchangeable.

Almost.
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Old 24-12-2009, 10:13   #5
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Gord's right...
Don't be redundant.
ie: Gord is + Right (synonymous)



Are you aware of any particular pitfall differences?
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Old 24-12-2009, 10:22   #6
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Gord is the man. He even has his own unique avatar now. He earned it!
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Old 24-12-2009, 11:24   #7
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The Tohatsu 3.5 is a 4 stroke. I bought it because it was light. It has issues but I have overcome them. This is the 3 rd year in the Bahamas. The shift leaver froze (Corrosion) and there is no lube point You must take the power head off to remove it as the non replacable handle will rip off as the pressure increases. The Carb jets have brass plugs and are not servicable unless you drill out the plugs. The fuel shutoff pops out of the holder untill you put a screw in to hold it from poping up The engine cover rear latch broke off. It is part of the cover so I had to fabricate a bracket or buy a new cover. The fuel tank is small and under the cover but has no filter and it is difficult to find one small enough to fit. A briggs & Stratton lawn mower filter will work. The pull cord has parted 4 times in 2.5 years. Cheap but runs well if the fuel is clean
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Old 24-12-2009, 11:41   #8
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David M, thanks for your answer. The thought of modifying a 2HP outboard to give it more power hadn't really crossed my mind. I was more concerned with the fact that the two weigh exactly the same. And one of the reasons I'm looking for a small outboard is weight. I want my wife to be able to move it without much effort (which is just a euphemism for "I'm a wimp and she'll probably never move it anyway").

However, when you're buying used in a relatively small market (southern Ontario), pickings are not great. So I have to settle with what's available.
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Old 24-12-2009, 11:45   #9
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Antares, quite a laundry list for that outboard!

When you say "drill out the plugs", does that mean drill them out just to be able to replace them?

Is it possible that Honda outboards have stainless steel jets? I believe I read something like that while doing my research, but didn't pay much attention to it as I didn't really understand what that meant.
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Old 24-12-2009, 12:47   #10
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Gord is the man. He even has his own unique avatar now. He earned it!
Who poked his eye out?

And why?
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Old 24-12-2009, 12:56   #11
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Who poked his [sic: Gord's] eye out? And why?
One of the Moderators did that, because I deserved it.
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Old 24-12-2009, 13:13   #12
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The tohatsu notsohotsu 4 is a better stern anchor then the 2 or the 2.5. For a lunch hook the 2 or 2.5 may be okay.
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Old 24-12-2009, 14:59   #13
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We have a 3.5 hp Tohatsu (aka Nissan, Mercury). The dealer told us that the 2, 3.5 and 5 are the same engine with different carbs. When we bought it, the spec sheets for all 3 showed the same weight.

BTW, it has been a great little motor.
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Old 24-12-2009, 21:10   #14
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I have wondered, since it can't cost much to put bigger jets in, if part of the reason the manufacturers charge more for the hotted engines is that they assume that doing so will result in an somewhat increased number of warranty claims.

At one time I had a Nissan 2.5. I stumbled upon a Mercury 3.3 ( odd that that was different from the other's 3.5) at a great price, and since it also had a neutral shift and I had young sons starting to operate the dinghy, I bought it.

I was surprised to find that the Merc 3.3 (alone amoung the other clones as far as I could determine) had the prop geared down more (slower turning). More horsepower, same prop dia. and pitch as the 2.5, but turned slower! That didn't make sense to me. It burned gas twice as fast as the 2.5.
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Old 25-12-2009, 05:58   #15
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The 2, 2.5 and 3.5 are the same engine other than the carburetor. All manufacturers build engines in one size and then offer it in a detuned version as a smaller hp engine as it is not cost effective to design all models independently. If you had a 2 and wanted to turn it into a 3.5 you would simply replace the carburetor.

There is no provision to access the air mixture jet as there is no reason to get to it. Cleaning the carburetor properly(by dipping it for three hours in carburetor cleaner) is all that is required to fully clean any carburetor that has not been properly maintained. All carbureted engines, regardless of brand or size, just need to be drained of fuel after use as this will prevent fuel evaporation from the carburetor. That evaporation leaves a residue which clogs up the jets inside of it. Fuel over 60 days old should be discarded as it will become unstable and contaminated.

The (4S)4, 5 and 6 hp are on a completely different frame than the (4S)2, 2.5 and 3.5. The (2S) 4, 5 and 6 hp are also on a completely different frame than the (2S)2.2, 2.5, 3.3 and 3.5 hp. Within the same frame size there was/is no difference in gearing between the Tohatsu and its Nissan and Mercury alternative labels.
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