I and another long term cruiser both have 2 HP Suzukis that have been used for thousands of hours since 1995. they still runs like a top and start first pull every time.
We both have always used 100:1 - hardly any smoke and never overheats.
It always drains fuel from the carb if I tip the engine up to get the prop out of the
water. It has been that way since we bought it new in July 1995. Just shutoff the petcock every time before you tip the engine up.
And - as said above run the carb dry before storing it for more than a couple days.
It is very important that at least once a year you remove the prop, put the lower unit in a 5 gallon bucket of water with 1/2 gallon of vinegar and run it for 10 minutes to get the dried
salt out of the
cooling passages. I only do mine every other year but I keep a close eye on the
cooling water outflow (really outspurt)
Just came back from the outboard shop where I purchased a new petcock for the Suzuki. They maintain hundreds of engines at several rental locations on Mission Bay in
San Diego. They said that the 2 HP Suzuki was the most reliable engine they have every supported. One rental agency had 200 of them and not a one ever broke.