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200 HO ETEC vs. 200 OPT - What Motor is the Better Choice?
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200 HO ETEC vs. 200 OPT - What Motor is the Better Choice?
I am real close on a deal for a new flats boat.
I am trying to decide between a 200 HO ETEC and a 200 OPTI. The Opti will cost me $1k more on the purchase.
I am leaning toward the ETEC at this point, but wanted to get some opinions.
1) Will a 200 HO ETEC perform as well as a 200 OPTI (speed wise)?
2) Which is the more dependable Motor, seems you read good and bad on both.
3) Resale, 3-4 years down the road which motor will be the better resale?
Info is appreciated.
There both 2 strokes, light weight, and reliable motors......I believe if it were me I would choose in the following order: Closest Dealer, Longest Warranty, Best Price.
There both 2 strokes, light weight, and reliable motors......I believe if it were me I would choose in the following order: Closest Dealer, Longest Warranty, Best Price.
Regards,
Big R
What he said.....they are both great engines. The etec will be slightly more refined, meaning smoother idle, quieter, the opti will be slightly more powerful on the up and go....both are very efficient, and proven engines.
Chose the dealer that will be servicing it, then the price, then the warranty.....there is no bad decision between those two engines.
From a new boat dealer perspective, the few boats we have with E-Tecs are the only 2007 model year boats remaining in inventory, they just do not move as quickly as Mercury or Yamaha, in fact, Yamaha powered boats are usually the quickest sellers.
That being said, I would try to find the most reputable dealer with the best service in your area and see what brands they carry. You will find your best prices from a dealer that carries only one brand or the other ans the manufacturers give more discount to exclusive dealers.
Since you are rigging on a flats boat and weight is of utmost concern, the Opti is about 25-30 lbs lighter than the E-Tec, splitting hairs I know, but that may be the difference between getting over that flat or waiting for the tide to come in.
Some other considerations, Mercury has their 5 year warranty program back in action starting this past Monday, not sure what BRP is offering at this time. having run both engines on the same boat, the Opti always seems to out run the Evinrude on the top end and have better fuel economy in the mid-range, the Opti technology is the most efficient on the market using a burst of air to atomize the fuel instead of ultra high fuel pressure. Hole shot seems to be about the same with a slight edge to BRP in certain applications.
Some food for thought, Mercury just introduced the 200 ProXS Optimax which would be a slightly hopped up version of the standard 200 including carbon fiber reeds, larger exhaust porting, and a tuned computer for a bump of about 10-15 hp over the standard 200. It comes only as a 20" shaft engine.
Check out this test that Bass & Walleye Boats Magazine did with a Mercury 200 hp Opti, a Yamaha 200 HPDI, and an etec 200 hp HO on a 19' Bass Cat.
- The Evinrude etec 200 hp HO accelerated the slowest among all engines tested.
- At cruise, the Mercury 200 hp OptiMax had 32% better mpg, ( 5.8 mpg vs 4.4 mpg ) with nearly 50 more miles of range than Evinrude E-TEC HO.
- The Mercury 200 hp OptiMax also outperformed the competition in wide open throttle fuel economy.
Their Conclusions:
"Mercury took top honors in mid-range acceleration, fuel economy and price. The E-TEC is the thirstiest, having finished a distant third in fuel economy."
Check out this test that Bass & Walleye Boats Magazine did with a Mercury 200 hp Opti, a Yamaha 200 HPDI, and an etec 200 hp HO on a 19' Bass Cat.
- The Evinrude etec 200 hp HO accelerated the slowest among all engines tested.
- At cruise, the Mercury 200 hp OptiMax had 32% better mpg, ( 5.8 mpg vs 4.4 mpg ) with nearly 50 more miles of range than Evinrude E-TEC HO.
- The Mercury 200 hp OptiMax also outperformed the competition in wide open throttle fuel economy.
Their Conclusions:
"Mercury took top honors in mid-range acceleration, fuel economy and price. The E-TEC is the thirstiest, having finished a distant third in fuel economy."
Ahoy there dan-o....good to see you again....., as mentioned above, the mercury optimax is a great engine, but here's a huge advantage for the etec as well, 3 years...300 hours...and that's the real stuff, let anyone argue that and you will see....we're in our 3rd year right at about 250 hours headed to 300, no maintenance yet.....both are great engines though....you can't lose either way you go....try to run one of each if you can.
Ahoy there dan-o....good to see you again....., as mentioned above, the mercury optimax is a great engine, but here's a huge advantage for the etec as well, 3 years...300 hours...and that's the real stuff, let anyone argue that and you will see....
FloridaRob
30 Grady Marlin
250 ETECS
No problem butter man, you know I'm always happy to help readers make up their OWN mind about what engine is best for them based on real FACTS and not just biased opinions from etec owners like you.
As for your supposedly superior 3 yr / 300 hour maintenance interval on the etec, I'll stick with what this NAMS certified surveyor with 25 + years of experience said about that.
Posted by Dunk on FS's forum:
"Don't get me wrong.....Evinrude's Etec is nowhere near what they promised from what I remember. I don't see where Etec is any better than the DFI's from 2002.. Surely it's not fuel burn and this 3yr/300hr warranty thing is a joke. How many guys out there running Etecs are running their gearcase lube for 3yrs??? Not to mention never lifting the engine cover to spray things down and grease the linkages.... Only fools.."
Check out this test that Bass & Walleye Boats Magazine did with a Mercury 200 hp Opti, a Yamaha 200 HPDI, and an etec 200 hp HO on a 19' Bass Cat.
- The Evinrude etec 200 hp HO accelerated the slowest among all engines tested.
- At cruise, the Mercury 200 hp OptiMax had 32% better mpg, ( 5.8 mpg vs 4.4 mpg ) with nearly 50 more miles of range than Evinrude E-TEC HO.
- The Mercury 200 hp OptiMax also outperformed the competition in wide open throttle fuel economy.
Their Conclusions:
"Mercury took top honors in mid-range acceleration, fuel economy and price. The E-TEC is the thirstiest, having finished a distant third in fuel economy."
No problem butter man, you know I'm always happy to help readers make up their OWN mind about what engine is best for them based on real FACTS and not just biased opinions from etec owners like you.
As for your supposedly superior 3 yr / 300 hour maintenance interval on the etec, I'll stick with what this NAMS certified surveyor with 25 + years of experience said about that.
Posted by Dunk on FS's forum:
"Don't get me wrong.....Evinrude's Etec is nowhere near what they promised from what I remember. I don't see where Etec is any better than the DFI's from 2002.. Surely it's not fuel burn and this 3yr/300hr warranty thing is a joke. How many guys out there running Etecs are running their gearcase lube for 3yrs??? Not to mention never lifting the engine cover to spray things down and grease the linkages.... Only fools.."
I totally agree with Dunk on that one Why would you be so gullable to believe that the oil break down in one motor is different in another. It is simple It just doesn't exist. Only difference is that Etec will warranty the outboard and take the chance. Mercury is the leader in Outboards IMO and need to test both on the same boat.
That said the best thing you can do is pick the dealer closest to you that provides the best service. That should be your deciding factor. Both are great motors but service should be your number one criteria.
__________________ 2007 Lowe FM 185
2007 Mercury Verado 150
Motorguide Wireless
Lowrance LMS 111 HD
Mercury Temptest Plus prop
No problem butter man, you know I'm always happy to help readers make up their OWN mind about what engine is best for them based on real FACTS and not just biased opinions from etec owners like you.
As for your supposedly superior 3 yr / 300 hour maintenance interval on the etec, I'll stick with what this NAMS certified surveyor with 25 + years of experience said about that.
Posted by Dunk on FS's forum:
"Don't get me wrong.....Evinrude's Etec is nowhere near what they promised from what I remember. I don't see where Etec is any better than the DFI's from 2002.. Surely it's not fuel burn and this 3yr/300hr warranty thing is a joke. How many guys out there running Etecs are running their gearcase lube for 3yrs??? Not to mention never lifting the engine cover to spray things down and grease the linkages.... Only fools.."
I just love it when you quote me Dan.. Get's me excited, but the Bass&Walleye test you are refering to are a few years old.. and so it my quote. These Etecs do go 3yrs on gearcase oil changes in fresh or salt, but in salt I would still spray the powerhead and grease linkages under the cover..
I'd put a 200HO up against a Merc 200XS any day on the same boat setup to the max I'll bet there wouldn't be 1mph difference at top end and you'd need to twist the Merc to allot higher rpms with less pitch in the prop.. I know the Evinrude would swallow the Merc getting out of the hole.
Dan, unless you've run boats with these new Etec HO's don't even answer this..
Speaking of etecs warranty, many people were very disappointed by the way Evinrude handled the legitamate warranty claim this etec owner had. According to the poster Evinrude installed the wrong fuel lines on his engine and contaminated the gas which then furthur damaged the fuel pump and injectors.
Evinrude blamed bad fuel and ethanol and refused to fully honor his warranty - without even bothering to test the fuel. And by the way, when he tested the fuel it didn't even have any ethanol either.
Speaking of etecs warranty, many people were very disappointed by the way Evinrude handled the legitamate warranty claim this etec owner had. According to the poster Evinrude installed the wrong fuel lines on his engine and contaminated the gas which then furthur damaged the fuel pump and injectors.
Evinrude blamed bad fuel and ethanol and refused to fully honor his warranty - without even bothering to test the fuel. And by the way, when he tested the fuel it didn't even have any ethanol either.
Roll them out Dan... You need to get a life. You actually save this crap on your computer for arguments like this?? Or do you memorise the links?? How about all the problems Yam had with the 250/300HPDI's or Merc Opti's till 04? Got any dirt on Tohatsu's??
Fact is everyone is building a decent engine right now. Decide on 2 vs 4 stroke then pick a dealer..
The only thing I didn't answer is resale... Dead even between a Merc, Evinrude, Yam or Zuke ..3-5 years from now.. 2 stroke vs 4 stroke means nothing..
I just love it when you quote me Dan.. Get's me excited, but the Bass&Walleye test you are refering to are a few years old.. and so it my quote. These Etecs do go 3yrs on gearcase oil changes in fresh or salt, but in salt I would still spray the powerhead and grease linkages under the cover..
I'd put a 200HO up against a Merc 200XS any day on the same boat setup to the max I'll bet there wouldn't be 1mph difference at top end and you'd need to twist the Merc to allot higher rpms with less pitch in the prop.. I know the Evinrude would swallow the Merc getting out of the hole.
Dan, unless you've run boats with these new Etec HO's don't even answer this..
Yes the Bass & Walleye test is alittle old, I bet they used the older Opti model in that test as opposed to the new and upgraded Opti that Mercury released a couple of years ago. I would certainly expect the next Gen Opti to outperform the etec by even greater margins in all areas, especially fuel economy.
The last time I quoted your comments about the etec warranty being, as you put it "a joke", you fully stood behind what you said. Perhaps your memory needs to be refreshed about what you really said as recently as just this past March '09.
Posted by Dunk on THT on 3-26-09:
"I still stand behind what I stated.. In 03 and 04 when Bomb was getting the Etec's ready they were saying 20%+ better fuel mileage than the DFI's they had out at the time... That didn't happen... After that again I stand behind what I said about 3 yrs no maintenece, but that was an opinion and I wouldn't run any engine without changing gearcase lube for three years... On the flip side I see guy's doing it everyday and I'm not affraid to admit I might have been wrong about that. "I" just wouldn't do it and recommend to anyone I survey a boat for not to do it.
So its good enough for others to do it ( and basically gamble ) but you still wouldn't do it yourself or reccomend anyone else to do it - Got It.
Your call about the two engines being within 1 mph of each other at WOT was actually correct, you'd of seen that if you actually checked the link I posted.
But as far as the etec "swallowing the Mercury getting out of the hole" as you put it, sorry the independent test results don't support that. Actually just the opposite as the Opti was faster than the etec in both the 0-30 mph and mid range 40-60 mph acceleration tests as well.
And ole timer, don't ever tell me not to answer a thread. Its biased etec owners like you that force me to present the facts about etecs so readers can make up their own mind about what engine is best for them. Its OK though, I don't mind !
Last edited by FloridaDan; 06-05-2009 at 06:28 PM.
Roll them out Dan... You need to get a life. You actually save this crap on your computer for arguments like this?? Or do you memorise the links?? How about all the problems Yam had with the 250/300HPDI's or Merc Opti's till 04? Got any dirt on Tohatsu's??
Fact is everyone is building a decent engine right now. Decide on 2 vs 4 stroke then pick a dealer..
The only thing I didn't answer is resale... Dead even between a Merc, Evinrude, Yam or Zuke ..3-5 years from now.. 2 stroke vs 4 stroke means nothing..
Save it on my computer ?? The way Evinrude treated that etec owner so badly, and in my opinion didn't fully honor their warranty, makes that story very hard to forget. But of course Evinrude can do no wrong in your mind and you just want everyone to forget it.
As far as the problems Yamaha had with their HPDI's or Tohatsu, funny I don't recall the original poster ever asking about those engines - thats why they're not mentioned. Once again try reading the thread.
You are so incredibly wrong about resale being the same between an etec and Mercury, Yamaha, and Suzuki on an offshore fishing boat. Try using the search function on this forum, thats what it's there for, and you'll come up with more facts to prove you're wrong once again.
- Posted by "haulingboat" said on THT:
"I'll share the view from my window. I sell boats and make a very nice living doing so. I talk with people about what they want day in and day out. The VAST majority of the people buying boats today want a four stroke motor. I know there are many arguments in the two stroke vs four stroke debate, but regardless, most people that walk in the door already have their mind set on buying a four stroke motor. I would guess that 98 to 99 percent of the buyers i talk to purchase a four stroke and don't even ask about available two strokes."
- Read what this THT vendor had to say. Posted by "anglersedgemarine", :
“I personally take into consideration is resale value as well as how easy the boat will be to sell later. I generally keep a boat for a couple years and then get a new toy to play with. I can tell you that your resale will be better with a 4 stroke. From my experience probably close to 90% of the buyers out there are looking for 4 stroke power. It's tough to fathom for us guys that are here on THT all the time, but in all reality this board probably makes up 1/100th of 1% of the boating world. Just giving you what I see talking to thousands of buyers and sellers every year.”
- Pro-Line offers buyers a choice of 4S engines and the 2S etec on their boats. Their technical rep, Mike Carrigan, recently mentioned which engine buyers chose most often:
Speaking of etecs warranty, many people were very disappointed by the way Evinrude handled the legitamate warranty claim this etec owner had. According to the poster Evinrude installed the wrong fuel lines on his engine and contaminated the gas which then furthur damaged the fuel pump and injectors.
Evinrude blamed bad fuel and ethanol and refused to fully honor his warranty - without even bothering to test the fuel. And by the way, when he tested the fuel it didn't even have any ethanol either.
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act
would protect this person . If the whole truth is available we could use this as an example. We have an internet thread .
__________________ 2011 18.9 Egret C/K Flats
The bitterness of poor quality is remembered long after the sweetness of low price has faded from memory
Save it on my computer ?? The way Evinrude treated that etec owner so badly, and in my opinion didn't fully honor their warranty, makes that story very hard to forget. But of course Evinrude can do no wrong in your mind and you just want everyone to forget it.
As far as the problems Yamaha had with their HPDI's or Tohatsu, funny I don't recall the original poster ever asking about those engines - thats why they're not mentioned. Once again try reading the thread.
You are so incredibly wrong about resale being the same between an etec and Mercury, Yamaha, and Suzuki on an offshore fishing boat. Try using the search function on this forum, thats what it's there for, and you'll come up with more facts to prove you're wrong once again.
- Posted by "haulingboat" said on THT:
"I'll share the view from my window. I sell boats and make a very nice living doing so. I talk with people about what they want day in and day out. The VAST majority of the people buying boats today want a four stroke motor. I know there are many arguments in the two stroke vs four stroke debate, but regardless, most people that walk in the door already have their mind set on buying a four stroke motor. I would guess that 98 to 99 percent of the buyers i talk to purchase a four stroke and don't even ask about available two strokes."
- Read what this THT vendor had to say. Posted by "anglersedgemarine", :
“I personally take into consideration is resale value as well as how easy the boat will be to sell later. I generally keep a boat for a couple years and then get a new toy to play with. I can tell you that your resale will be better with a 4 stroke. From my experience probably close to 90% of the buyers out there are looking for 4 stroke power. It's tough to fathom for us guys that are here on THT all the time, but in all reality this board probably makes up 1/100th of 1% of the boating world. Just giving you what I see talking to thousands of buyers and sellers every year.”
- Pro-Line offers buyers a choice of 4S engines and the 2S etec on their boats. Their technical rep, Mike Carrigan, recently mentioned which engine buyers chose most often:
Sure doesn't sound like, as you put it, the etec and 4S sales are "dead even" to me.
That's interesting.... you sell boats? That's more info than anyone else has ever gotten out of you.. Now what boat do you own and what engine(s)??
Sound to me and I sure allot more on here that most of your experience comes from reading web pages.. True or False??? My experience comes from actually sea trialing these engines and boats..
No Dan, I don't own an Etec. Currently I'm running a Yam.. It's a 95 150 Pro V and it seems like a decent engine. Outside of the fact the gearcase is corroded to crap. But I've got new SEI gearcase here for it as soon as I get break from surveying to install it..
Yes Dan, people have been marketed into this 4 stroke thing and most new boaters want them, but guys with real experience know there's no real big difference in their life expectancy or what they are worth years down the road.. All outboards suffer from the same problems..
Four strokes are nice engines, granted... But if you know you want real neck snapping performance you won't get it from a 4 stroke outboard..
Dan, if you are really a boat salesman I'm glad you are selling boats, new or used..
IMO, on a flats boat, I would get the 2.6L 200 E-tec and save 90 lbs.
That and save 2-3K, but a 200hp Eagle doesn't have the power a 200hp big block HO does.. The 200HO is right at 220 at the prop. The 200hp 2.6 is right at 200hp at the prop. But loosing the weight on a flats boat would be close to an even toss up.. No to mention the small block 200 will be lots easier on fuel..
200 HO ETEC vs. 200 OPT - What Motor is the Better Choice? 
