Yamaha 2.5 VS Suzuki 2.5 VS Tohatsu 3.5.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Guy

Making a propane run is something you get used to every couple of months. Adding an outboard would make you go much more often. There must be a way to fuel one of these things from a big tank? Those little green tanks are going to be hard to find sometimes.

There is a way to run it off of a big tank.


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[gilgsn]

Well, I looked at LEHR, and of course the issue would be availability in remote parts of the world. Now if it was a hybrid...

I am now leaning towards either the Yamaha 2.5 or Tohatsu 3.5, in light of you guy's comments... Thanks again for all the great info! Keep it coming!

BTW I got the Achilles last night, inflated it, great little boat. Nice new rubbery smell

Gil.

[Mike OReilly]

Propane outboard looks interesting to me, but for those of us who travel in cold areas (Lake Superior, for example), it may not be the best choice. I ran into a guy with a new Lehr outboard and he was having a heck of a time getting is started and having it run smoothly in our cold water (~6 C). He was not pleased.

Probably works just fine in most cruising grounds, but something to consider in colder parts.

[HopCar]

"There must be a way to fuel one of these things from a big tank? Those little green tanks are going to be hard to find sometimes. "

All Lehr engines come with hoses to attach larger tanks. The small green tanks can also be refilled from the bigger tanks. I run my Lehr 2.5 from one of the 11 pound fiberglass tanks and keep the small bottle for a reserve.

Propane stores much better than gasoline. If you store gasoline more than a couple of months it starts to go bad. Propane is also a lot cleaner to handle.

"I ran into a guy with a new Lehr outboard and he was having a heck of a time getting is started and having it run smoothly in our cold water (~6 C)."

The problem in cold weather is that the liquid propane won't vaporize fast enough to run the engine at full power. This usually only happens when running on the small can and it is almost empty. If it happens with a large tank, just turn the tank upside down and feed liquid propane to the engine.
Don't forget to turn the tank right side up when you're done. The overpressure vent won't work correctly when the tank is upside down.

[Scout 30]

I'm wondering what kind of range do you get with propane & how does it compare cost wise?

[HopCar]

As near as I can figure, it takes about a pound of propane to produce 2-1/2 hp. for an hour. That works out to 2 pounds for 5 hp. / hour and 4 pounds for 10 hp. / hour.

A gallon of propane weighs a little more than four pounds.

In the real world I get about an hour and a half from a one pound bottle on my 2.5 but I'm not running full speed all the time. Your mileage may vary.

The price of propane is all over the place. It's very expensive if you buy it in one pound cans. It is cheapest if you get tanks refilled where forklift tanks are refilled.
It is often much cheaper than gasoline.

[gilgsn]

But a LEHR is $700 more than other motors.. Then you actually need to find propane.. I like the idea, but unless used in a known area where propane is available, it is a bit of a risk. Let's say you run out somewhere isolated, you'll have a much better chance finding gasoline.. If I had money and space, maybe I'd have both, but I have neither..

Gil.


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[MooGroc]

I've had a Suzuki 2.5 for three summers now and it has performed flawlessly. I know if it doesn't start on the second pull I'm doing something wrong - like leaving the fuel valve off or not opening the gas cap vent.

[Scout 30]

Right now at Defender the Evinrude 3.5 is $1,151, Honda 2.3 is $927, Mercury 2.5 is $910, Tohatsu 2.5 is $870, Yamaha 2.5 is $989 & the Lehr 2.5 is $1,050.

[Bill_E]

I'll probably be in the market for a new outboard this summer. I was thinking very seriously about the Tohatsu 3.5 four stroke. I'm leaning strongly towards a four stroke. Right now I'm running an ancient Johnson 8 hp two stroke. It will barely get me on plane in my dink. But it's so old it's probably only producing 3 hp anyway. Weight is important to me. I almost never plane so why carry around a lot of weight just to push a little harder?

After reading some of this, I'm wondering about the Mercury 3.5. If it's made by Tohatsu anyway...price could make the difference. I'd consider a propane one but the combination of the engine (delivered to Puerto Rico) and a good (non-steel) tank price makes this a little more than I'm wanting to spend...especially in light of all of my other expenses on the boat this summer.

It seems that folks are buying Tohatsu's in St. Martin...is there a reason for this? St. Martin is on my list of stops this summer so I could wait until I got there if it was a lot cheaper, or something.

Bill

[Compactorguy]

I bought my Tohatsu 2.5 from Discount Outboards |Tohatsu, Suzuki, Mercury & Nissan Outboards (free shipping and no sales tax in US) it works great for me going ashore but 3.4 or 4 might have been a better choice due to the fact I dive off my dingy. But I had three adults with full dive gear and it got us to and from the dive site.

[Terra Nova]

The best of them is the Tohatsu/Nissan 3.5 hp 2-stroke @ 27 lbs. It will plane my Avon 2.95 Roll-up.

[thudbranch]

Before getting a Lehr Outboard be sure to check out the reviews - they do seem to have reliability issues. I was ready to buy their smallest model until I read multiple reviews panning their service and reliability.