Buying an I.O. vs. an Outboard

[slotfish]

hey all-

i'm considering buying a lund fisherman 2000. talking to the guy a crystal pierce, i was informed that the boat is almost 2 grand cheaper w/ a mercruiser IO-260 h.p.(V6 injected), vs. the same boat w/ a honda or suzuki 225 h.p., 4 stroke outboard.

it has never occured to me to look at IO's, but for the same price as the outboard verson i could buy the io version and add a 9.9 kicker motor.

this boat will sit exclusively in rainy lake. what are some of your thoughts about IO's? i just don't see too many and almost all the guides and so forth use outboards.

what gives? also, how much lower in the water does the prop sit compared to an outboard?

thanks in advance for all information.......

[Valv]

I would go for it, that's awesome.

The motor (GM V6 Vortex) is a very reliable and with a lot less maintenence than an OB (and more hp too).

It will sit in water same as with Honda, you might loose a little bit of room on deck, but that's it.

Be sure to have it professionally winterized in fall.

If you look at my avatar I have a Lund Sport Cabin 22ft with a V6 non injected (195hp) and I am very happy with it.

[berke99]

I have an inboard 3.0litre. I like it but the only draw back for me is fishing late fall or early spring. If it is going to get below freezing you need to manually drain the water from the engine. I then usually put window washer fluid in it at night. For winter storage I put regular anti-freeze in it. Other than this I really like it.

[Valv]

Quote:

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I like it but the only draw back for me is fishing late fall or early spring. If it is going to get below freezing you need to manually drain the water from the engine. I then usually put window washer fluid in it at night.

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That is an issue I didn't think of, good point Berke99.

I can see how cold weather can cause problems. Outboard gets drained by themselves.

[Surface Tension]

We start fishing Superior in April and this year had some pretty cold nights. My 4 cyl IO only has 1 plug and one petcock, both easy to get at so draining isn't so bad. When I had the bigger V-8 I'd put a treble light in the engine compartment on the could nights during fishing season.

[BIG DS]

If you are fishing the cold times of the year when a freeze is a concern, find out where the drain cocks are on the motor, there should be 3 or 4, and just drain it at night. They are easy enough to get at. The windsheild washer fluid I would reccommend staying away from as it is a relatively corrosive solution. It will eat away at head gaskets and minifold gaskets causing some pricey repairs. As a vetran mechanic, I've repair engines because of windshield washer fluid and it makes a serious mess. One particular motor I had to ask the guy if it had been in saltwater for a while because of all the corrosion. He said he had owned it since new and it had always been on a Southern Minnesota Lake. So drain it on the cold nights, and find yourself a mechanic you can trust and have them winterize it each fall and the IO will give you many years of reliable service.