Evinrude E-tech reviews

[Big Bobber]

What do you e-tech owners think of your 2 stroke engines? I am thinking about upgrading my motor to a 75 horse and would appreciate your comments. Any major problems or concerns? I presently own a Merc.

Thanks

[BobT]

I've been considering upgrading my 1998 90hp Johnson. I narrowed my choices down to a 90hp E_tech or Yamaha 4-stroke. My understanding is that when they were first released they has a few issues but those issues have been resolved. Suppposedly one was related to the fuel pump. The manufacturer of the pump didn't build them to Evinrude specifications and so they had to recall them.

Here's what my research seems to indicate so far.

• The new E-tech is nearly as quiet as any 4-stroke. 4-strokes may have a slight edge here but not much.
• The new E-tech exceeds the current emission standards. These standards are bound to get tougher as time goes on which may pose a real challenge for the 2-stokes in the future.
• The new E-tech will run neck-and-neck with any comparable 4-stroke in terms in fuel economy. In fact, I was told, “At idle (trolling), the E-tech boasts nearly 40% better fuel economy than most 4-strokes. At mid-range and WOT they are comparable."
• It’s pretty much a given that the lighter weight and 2-stroke performance results in much better hole shot than comparable 4-strokes.
• 2-stokes have fewer moving engine parts to wear out.
• One surprise to me was that the 90hp E-tech seemed to carry roughly a $1,000.00 higher price tag than the 90hp Yamaha. This has made my choice difficult but I searched a number of dealers and found that, based on over-the-phone offer, I could upgrade to the E-tech for only $400.00 more than a Yamaha at a dealer in Paynesville.

I’ve all but convinced myself to pull the cord on the E-tech. My wife is even behind me on this and she doesn’t even use the boat. I’ve had the boat for six years and she’s been in it maybe a half-dozen times. Hmm….I wonder what she wants?

The hardest part about my decision is that my ’98 has been such a good engine for me. I’ve only used it for the past six years but it has performed flawlessly. My decision to upgrade rests on whether a new motor with 5-year warranty, lower emissions, quieter running, and 40-50% better fuel economy is worth the price difference.

[suncruiser234]

If I were you, I would take a good look at the Suzuki outboards, IMO they are the best out there. I believe the Suzuki has a 6 year warranty also.

[BobT]

As luck would have it I happened to mention to a colleague today that I was considering upgrading to a 90hp E-tech and it turns out that is the motor he has on his boat. His is a 2005 model and he said, “I wouldn’t use any other motor. If I bought a new boat it would be outfitted with an E-tech.” He said it has performed beautifully for him. I know he uses his boat a lot, too. He really likes the fuel economy when he uses it for trolling as much as he does and he also mentioned how convenient the auto-fogging feature was for winter storage.

[PerchJerker]

I just can't get sold on the E-Tec. A buddy got a new E-Tech this year and loved it ...... for about a week ........ until he got stranded and had to be towed in. It took almost a month to get it fixed, it was something in the lower unit. There are plenty of stories like this out there (lots of stories from guys who love their E-Tecs too). Good luck with your decision.

[yaggie]

Bob,too bad you can't use a 150. Id talk you into a opti that is one year old and runs great. That way I could get an etec for my Triton.

[shamalex72]

I've got a 2006 115 E-tec. I had a starting issue with it the first year, a software update fixed that. Since then its been trouble free. Great running motor, quiet, not much smoke, you can see a little puff of smoke on the chilly mornings. The oil is expensive(xd 100), but I only use maybe a gallon per year. Pretty good on gas too. I would definitely consider another one on my next boat.

[Down2Earth]

I have a 115 E-Tec and love it. I have had zero issues and wouldn't own any other at this point in time.

[gregg52]

I just can't get sold on the E-Tec. A buddy got a new E-Tech this year and loved it ...... for about a week ........ until he got stranded and had to be towed in. It took almost a month to get it fixed, it was something in the lower unit. There are plenty of stories like this out there (lots of stories from guys who love their E-Tecs too). Good luck with your decision.

i would bet it was a 225-250 and when was that as stated i think they had some issues when they where new as does any thing and most other motor 200hp and up

150 here and very happy with it

its a amazing after sitting all winter it fires right NOW the first try!!!!!!!! it has 3 summers behind it now!

i would suspect it was more the dealer issue of it taking so long to get fixed!!!

[Het]

I have a few friends that have had Etecs that were nothing but nightmares. One was an '07 115hp. This guy went through three powerheads in the first year, then sold the boat in the fall. Buddy #2, a very good friend of mine, had an '08 115hp. He had trouble right out the gate. The motor would cough, sputter, miss, and stall. The dealer claimed it was bad injectors, and changed them. That did nothing, so they changed the powerhead, with the same results. After the first season, they had changed the powerhead twice, and the injectors three times. The boat spent the majority of the first season at the dealership. At the start of season number two, the motor still ran like [PoorWordUsage]. Evinrude sent their own regional mechanic to the dealership. He claimed there was absolutely nothing wrong with the motor. Evinrude told my friend that they were done trying to fix this motor, and to live with it. My buddy had the motor removed from his boat, had another motor of a different brand mounted, and filed suit against BRP. I am listed as a witness in the case. Buddy #3 bought a brand new, big dollar rig, and had a Etec 250 HO mounted on it. On his third trip out, the motor grenaded, leaving him stranded way out on Lake Erie. The motor had seven hours on it.

[gregg52]

again your talking 07 when they werent around along time

anything that is as high tech as they are is bound to have issues

mines an 07

i can tell stories bout guys that had same problems with merc's

and they have been around since time began

its kinda like surburbans in the 80's tranny's were known to go out

all most a given i was lucky back then never lost one after the problem kinda went away...i have 2000 now and lost the tranny

but i will probably own surburbans till i'm underground!!

so i guess its kinda prefereence and what you believe in and like

[PerchJerker]

i would bet it was a 225-250 and when was that as stated i think they had some issues when they where new

No. It is a 2011 model tiller motor, can't remember the HP but definately under 100 HP, and it happened this year. He bought it at one of the shows this winter/spring, took delivery in in April, spent most of May waiting to get it back.

[JohnMickish]

i can tell stories bout guys that had same problems with merc's

and they have been around since time began

Ummm, Evinrude has been around longer than Mercury has so I don't understand your statement, but yes, every manufacturer has problems from time to time. With that, there seems to be an unusually large amount of Etec injector/lower unit problems. I do know that on the larger HP versions they are on their third lower unit design in the last 4 years so that says something right there.

[BobT]

They are currently offering a 5-year warranty with their new outboards. That suggests to me they must feel pretty confident in their design. I'm sure some of that is built into their price but they are competing with 4-strokes and are already a bit higher priced as it is.

[Het]

They are currently offering a 5-year warranty with their new outboards.

They could offer a ten year warranty, but what good is it if they don't honor it? My buddy had a three year warranty. It wasn't even two years old, it had major problems, and they refused to do anything about it. Hence the law suit.

[tonkapat]

Every brand has there own warranty policy. Some give you a brand new motor when it blows and some rebuild it(etec). Check out what warranty you are getting before you buy. And remember Direct injection is why Evinrude/johnson went under in the first place.

[delcecchi]

Evinrude used to be OMC, which went bankrupt for various reasons perhaps due to FICHT or perhaps due to poor quality control of outsourced components.

Bombardier bought the assets, including the brands, and then spun them off into Bombardier recreational Products (BRP).

So to say they have been around for a long time isn't the whole story.

[gregg52]

i guess all i can say is i'm talking from personal experience no hear say

mines good and fits my needs and great on my boat

starts right now

has lots of power my boat is pretty heavy and i doubt

any 4 stroke 150 would push it as well specially out of the hole

seems i can run with skeeters and rangers with 200 4 strokes on them

i've never really raced one

its fairly quite...not as quite as some of the 4 strokes

i can troll either way foward or backwards at ease

oil is spendy but dont use alot

fuel is ok

i had an e-tec before this one and had no problems so thats 2

that I OWNED and both worked very good for me

thats all I can say !!

to coment on the evrinrude/johnson going belly up

i had a johnson for bout 5-6 yrs not a lick of problems

i had an 89 60 evrinrude for 19 that finally toa dump but that motor owed me nothing many many hrs on that boat and motor 100's of walleyes

[yaggie]

I presently run a Opti but would not hesitate to purchase an etec. I have had no problems with my merc and it performs very well. The biggest advantage with the etec is it runs quite. You can get a four stroke which run very quite but you would have to jump the horse power some to get the same performance.

I personally only know of one person who had a problem with their etec and it was minor. I know of opti owners who have had problems too.

[JohnMickish]

Evinrude did go belly up and was taken over by BRP, and Mercury was purchased by Brunswick at some point to so "whos been around the longest" is kind of a moot point.

I don't think anyone makes a bad motor nowdays, it's just that you hear of trouble more and for whatever reason people like to talk about the Etec failures.

I think the deciding factor is more of do you trust your dealerships input and what his recomendations are.

[boatfixer]

I would tend to agree with the above post.

Confidence in the dealer is very important in the decision. Yes I beleive they all make good motors. They also are mechanical machines and may fail at some point. Poor Dealer support and poor service after the sale is enough to destroy the attitude of any boat owner regardless of brand. On the contrary, being treated well and having your concerns and issues delt with professionally will make your purchase a comfortable one.

Problems can occur with any brand, congrats if they havnt.

One thing I've learned over 23 years messing with these things is that there is no clear cut winner when it comes to brand, (that is my humble opinion) There are certain years, models and brands that seem to have been better than others. There are also some that just plain should never been produced, (again, my humble opinion).

If I had confidence in the dealer, I would own an E-tech, if the price was right.

[BobT]

Quote:

They could offer a ten year warranty, but what good is it if they don't honor it? My buddy had a three year warranty. It wasn't even two years old, it had major problems, and they refused to do anything about it. Hence the law suit.

I figure companies can't afford too many defective products. It's just bad for business. Our company philosophy is that for every negative situation we hear about there are ten more that we don't hear about. I worked in our service department for many years and when customers called it wasn't because everything was going great. It was because they needed help with something. NOTE: Our product reliability is considered one of the best in our business and often the benchmark our competition seeks to follow. Good reviews are hard to find but bad news travels fast. I began considering E-tech because I have heard a lot of good news recently. Yes, I am aware that there are some problems that have been talked about and I am also aware that they had some issues when they first released the new design. That's not unusual and they are being addressed. That would be true for every manufacturer out there. I can share stories about Yamaha 4-strokes leaving guys stranded on the Lac Seul reservoir in Ontario Canada five miles from camp leaving them with nothing but an electric bow mount to get back but I can also tell you that I have been impressed with the Yamaha 4-stroke outboards. They are machines and will all have their problems and to base one's decision on one or two incidents would mean never trusting any of them.

It's like my truck. I started a thread in the Automotive forum about a problem with a Ford truck and about half the responses were about how bad Ford trucks are rather than just replying to my question. Well, my personal experience has been nothing but good with Ford products and after trying Dodge, Chevy, and Chrysler products I am now convinced to stay with Ford. But that's my experience and opinion and others' will be different. Such is the way of the world.

The real question is not have you ever heard of anyone having problems with E-techs. The real question is a general one asking how they are over-all. If the company is willing to stand behind them with a five year warranty, that tells me they feel they will come out on the winning end. It wouldn't be good business if the warranty cost them money rather than making them money.

[Het]

Ihave friends that own every brand out there. I've seen every brand experience a mechanical failure. The difference being, the other brands took care of the problem, asap, whether it was an easy fix, or one that needed repeated diagnotics, ect.

BRP left my buddy hanging. They authorized to change the powerhead twice, and change the injectors three times. Would they have done so if they thought there was nothing wrong with the engine? When he still had problems after all this work was done, BRP told him they were done trying to fix the motor. Once the law suit was filed, they made him an insulting offer to withdraw the case. He did not do so.

[Snake River King]

All the motors are great these days. Customer service is huge if you do have a problem you wanted to know your going to be taken care of. If you really wanted to know who has the highest quality maybe someone should look into how many quality checks and tested they go threw before they send out a motor? Example say yamaha test there outboards in 30 testes and merc does 25?

Just my two cents. I work in lab the sell products all over the world and we test everything.

[BobT]

Looks like I'm going to find out...well....hope not. I pulled the plug and ordered a new E-tech 90hp. They should have it installed by next Wednesday or Thursday.