All Star

I see a lot of people trailering their outboards in the full up and locked position. It looks to me that this puts lots of stress on the transom. I personally like to keep the engines as far down as possible. What do you think?

aboattime

I lay a 2×4 flat on top of the rams. Keeps the motor from bouncing. Yamaha 250

LeakinLena

Try these or DIY pvc pipe equivalent They are inexpensive, avoid road hazards while trailering by allowing you to travel with motors tilted up, take pressure off hydraulic tilt unit and redistribute loads from the top of the transom to the entire engine bracket.

Onewolf

Ideally you should trailer with outboards trimmed all the way down, however many boats cannot do that (like my 21 bay boat).
I use an MYWedge and trim down until it hits the MYWedge.

finbox

richeerich

MorriesSon

Pretty sure this is universally accepted terminology. I don't leave home without it.

Rollo Tomassi

Your Yamaha's are obviously female. Mine are obviously male since they've never seen a dildo and wouldn't know what that is.

Paul Barnard

Let me answer the question by asking a few questions.

Does trailering put more stress on the engine and transom than operating?

What position is your engine in when you are operating it?

Gasser44

I think when speaking of bumps and physics actually having the engine tilt all the way up puts less stress on the transom as a majority of the weight is then over or in front of the transom. Having all the weight pull behind the transom is more stress I believe. However, I trailer mine where the trim Rams just make contact as I believe if you have the ground clearance that's what Suzuki recommends.

caper

Trailer mine with the provided trailer support.

sailphish

What do you all consider a reasonable clearance form the road to the skeg? I have about 8" which seems a little low. Don't want to hit a pothole or speed bump and drag.

SWF Pontoon Angler

Too low, tilt up a little and bring it down between a two by four.

Tuvix

I trailer the motors in the up position using a support wedge following the instructions on my Yamaha manual. I have my own thoughts about the stress differences on the transom between boating and trailering, but I don't know enough to challenge the manufacturer so it just made sense to follow their recommendation. The manual says you can trailer it in either position assuming you have clearance, but to use a support wedge if trimmed up.

Don't really hear any horror stories either way, probably means it makes little difference.

mbb

I dont know about all new mfgs, but for older OMC, in the trim (running) position.....the hydraulics support motor in both directions...up and down

In the tilted position....they dont , ie you can lift it higher than its tilted .

if you trailer in up position, you need to secure motor against bouncing. Up and down. This can introduce large repeated shocks to hydraulic trim. The tilt is not made for these loads! Notice tilt is faster than trim, trim is much more robust.

It is ok to trailer in up position if you secure motor down , and take force off hydraulics. Bouncing back and forth aint great for transom either, as opposed to just up-down.

If its not on the trim rams it must be secured against bouncing. Sticking block of wood in there dont cut it.

Owners manuals clearly spelled this out.

Brass Monkey

I used to use the transom saver - but heard on this forum that may not be the best.

Now I lift it all the way up & use the lock provided by Mercury. If I manage to break my transom - It is the transoms fault & I would rather it break on the road than on the water.

In any case - I doubt I'll ever have a problem.

Paulswagelock

From my Verado manual

Trailering Boat/Outboard
When transporting the boat on a trailer, the outboard should be positioned and
supported in one of the following ways:
1. If the boat trailer provides sufficient ground clearance, the outboard may
be tilted down to the vertical operating position with no additional support
required.

2. If additional ground clearance is required, the outboard should be tilted up
and supported using the outboard's tilt support bracket (trailering position)
in addition to using an accessory transom support device. Refer to
Features and Controls ‑ Power Trim and Tilt.

3. For maximum ground clearance, the outboard can be tilted to the full tilt
position and supported using the outboard tilt support bracket or an
accessory transom support device.

IMPORTANT: Do not rely on the power trim/tilt system to maintain proper
ground clearance for trailering. The power trim/tilt system is not intended to
support the outboard for trailering.

fishead5

What is the boat manufacturer requirement . That's were it's going to have problems. I have been towning for 30 plus years in the trim position, per my mechanic.

William OBrien

wow I always lock them in the up position. I never knew Yamaha says to keep them in running position.
What are the locks for then? Just trim maintenance? What is a yamaha dildo? I have 200 HPDIs

jkapl001

I have always trailed in the full up position with the lock in place. The way my boat sits on the trailer the skeg would touch the ground if all the way down. Maybe I need to rethink this...