Mercury Johnson Evinrude Tohatsu 3.3 or 2.3 hp Outboard, Any Problems With Them?

[ejlindahl]

It looks like the Mercury Johnson Evinrude Tohatsu 3.3 hp outboard with the neutral gear is what I want for my dingy.

I heard someone say they break shear pins often. A shop guy said thats only if not set up right, meaning the idle is too high and when you shift the pin can break. I suppose that kids or the unexperienced may also shift without idling down completely. This seems like a weak point. Anybody have this problem?

I looked at one on CL where the lower pivot bearing/pivot support on the leg had come off and someone had used it for years that way. The leg casting was grooved and worn from where it pressed and rotated against the angle adjusting bolt of the clamp bracket. Incidently this made the upper pivot bearing quite loose and the whole thing was quite wobbly. I only offered him $150 as there were other problems and parts to buy as well. I think this was a one off occurrence by an inattentive, uncaring user/abuser, however I thought I'd ask if anyone else has had this happen?

Also on the same motor the hole that the tilt-up lock pin goes in was very worn so that the pin would barely stay in, it just kind a wobbled around in there. It appears. that this pin was for both reverse hold down and to lock the motor in the tilted up position. (this is the rotate 180 to reverse type). The engine ran like a top, though, as opposed the obvious bearing problem.

Another question for those who own one is if the internal tank is leak tight. i will be storing it in the float of my Corsair 31 trimaran and I can not have a leaker. (My 40 year old 2hp Evinrude has been living in there and has never leaked. Its been great so I'm keeping it, I just want to get on a plane.)

I recently borrowed a friends 3.3 and it planned out my dingy easily, tho he did not have the neutral model. Would the neutral gear box rob power from the engine and make it have less thrust?

Lastly, are there any other caveats to be aware of on these motors before I start looking?

Thanks

Eric

[DefinitelyMe]

I haven't had any of the problems listed and would highly recommend this engine. Mine has even been under water once (at full throttle.....) and been set on fire once (through my own fault, not that of the designers!). It runs beautifully and i've never had any trouble with it at all. Mine is the Tohatsu 2-stroke model.

[Cheechako]

I'm not too fond of the idea of storing the gas loaded engine inside the boat. Have you thought that maybe a small motor version with a separate tank that could be stored outside might be safer?

[ejlindahl]

Cheechako, I have mixed feelings on that but its so convenient that I do it, but only if I'm satisfied that the tank is truly leak tight like my 2 hp Evinrude. There are no sources of ignition and the floats are not habitable. They're just for storage of light things like bumpers, lines, and in my case, light outboards.

Thanks for the replies all. Anyone else please chime in.

[malbert73]

I have the mariner version 3.3 two stroke. Planes an air bottom inflatable with me, and moves the Trinka 10 we use primarily at 5.5-6 knots WOT, and 5 knots at 1/2 throttle loaded.
Easy to carry. Given the vent built into tank, i wouldnt store on its side in a locker, even though i havent found mine ever to leak.
2 issues with mine- shift lever is sticky, and must run dry before tilting or fuel will spill out of engine/carb.
I always stop the engine using the fuel cutoff and letting it run dry. Never had to do anything in 5+ years of ownership but change the plug and lower end oil.

So overall, very happy with the motor. Sure, louder and smellier than 4 strokes, but so much lighter.


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[Trim50]

My Mercury 2008 3.5hp was a real POS. Plastic garbage that I gave away to make room for a Yamaha 15hp.

In contrast, I have a Mercury 9.9 that I bought in 1995 and it still runs like a champ.

[jlrubin83]

We have a Tohatsu 3.5 longshaft. We used it to push our CAL22 for 3 seasons and still have it. Pretty bullet proof. We never left any fuel in the carb, we just turned off the fuel selector and let it run until it shutdown. Everything I read about the Mercury caused me to buy Tohatsu.The Nissan is apparently the exact same engine, just more money.. We have a Catalina 30 these days and I plan to buy a dinghy for the Tohatsu . Nothing bad to say about it.

[ejlindahl]

Thanks all. Keep em coming, the more opinions the better.

There's one here for sale for $500 and he won't budge much. That seems a bit over priced. From what I've seen 250-350 is where the market is. I'll be patient and wait for that.

Trim50 I think Merc went to 4 stroke in 2006 so yours would have been a 4 stroke and they seem to be very finicky. Maybe they went cheap at the same time.

[KWISPEL]

2 years and no problems. Just the handel ta place him in neutral or forward is not more moving but i need to fix this. Farther cheap, simpel, ligt and it don't attract theft want in the most countries make they fun from the small engine. it is not so matcho and so lose you olso not your dingy.

[seasick]

We have had excellent luck with the Yamaha 2.5 HP outboard. No neutral means less parts to break. Rail mounted when not in use. We had two of these and if we had a long ways to go we'd mount two to the dink for twin screw power and redundancy. I hate gas tanks floating in the dinghy and so loved the integral tank.

[tinkrman69]

I have the Nissan 3.5 four stroke. it's built by tahotsu. the tank was replaced under warrantee twice and still leaks at the throat. the shifter freezes up due to salt build up...the shaft runs through the water jacket. if you shear the pin the prop comes off... the groove for the cotter key is too small. four years old now and if I don't lube the cylinder to store it for more than two weeks it seizes up and i have to put a wrench on the crank to break it loose. If you close the tank vent whilst on the dinghy and it rains it will suck water in. so I leave it open and water doesn't get in. It's a very finicky motor. if you run it every day it will do.

I repair a lot of small outboards. but when someone brings me one of these...3.5 merc nissan, tahotsu, I tell them no. they are all the same engine, except the merc has different ignition. they are cheap and you get what you pay for.

[Terra Nova]

The Tohatsu/Nissan 3.5 2-stroke,with no gearshift, is the one you want--only 27 lbs.

The ama's are a poor place to store much weight. And there probably is no practical way to ventilate them while at sea. So we would assume gas fumes in a completely enclosed space!

[kapnkarl]

Have a 2003 2 stroke Merc 3.3 hp with forward gear and neutral... not designed or built with reverse... just spin it 180 degrees. Bought it in 2011 with 0 hours on it... was never used. When i pulled the plug, the top of the piston was still shiny! I store it on it's side (tiller arm side down) after shutting off the fuel valve on the side, running it dry and then closing the internal tank vent on the top. No leaks so far.

[Captain Obvious]

I have the mercury 3.3HP 2 Stroke. I bought it new about 6 years ago. No hassles at all with it in that time. I chose the 3.3 over the 2.3 as they are the same weight, so more power with out added weight. Mine is usually stored on it's back. If you carry it with the handle and just set it down it sits there OK without leaking. You will need to secure it though. Good luck.

[onestepcsy37]

Like definitelyme, I also submerged my nissan 2.5 2 stroke while it was running. An hour later it was running again, and still is. Try that with a 4 stroke. Its from the 1990's. It doesnt have a neutral; get one with a neutral. Other than carburetor cleaning and a new spark plug once in a while, it has had no problems.

I also have the similar tohatsu 3.5. Enough power for a cruiser, IMHO. Its a 2003 model. Also no problems.

As to storage, I highly recommend you run it out of fuel before storing it for more than a few days. This ethanol fuel they sell us will gum up your carb real quick.

The reason asking prices on CL are so high is that they havent been sold in the USA for many years and are getting hard to find. A lot of us old timers prefer 2 stroke, for good reasons.