"It don't sound good."

[James V]

If you can get one of the same year you would have plenty of spair parts. However you will need to find one locally as you cannot ship one due to the gasoline in the engin.

Check with a Mercury dealier for possible deals.

Good luck.

Any thoughts on why it broke?

[bamabob]

My engine is/was a 2cyc. 2003 Merc--not bigfoot. I am sorry that I confused when I called it a 400 lb weight. I was over speaking. Anyway, I think that because I use the boat one or two times a week as a break from work, I will keep it. Momma says she appreciates that it relaxes me. I will probably buy locally and either get new or if I can fall into it, nearly new. I will pull the boat from the slip early next week and take eit to the local merc place to get a second opinion on the guy who evaled it at the dock. Then, go from there. Thanks for all your suggestions and support.

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

Wow Bob, only 3 years old...I'd take a shot at fixing it myself being that it is that new. It probably is less hassle getting a new one though but it will cost more. It would be interesting to know what caused the failure too because I also use my boat quite a bit (usually at least 3 times a month for most of the year). Since yours presumably has an oil pump to mix oil with the gas, I suppose its possible that that could have failed, although there should be a warning alarm I would think. If it just wore out because you put a heck of a lot of hours on it in 3 years, then that really beefs up the argument for 4 stroke motors on these boats.

And btw Chip, I believe the weight of my 50BF is more like 265# or thereabouts...I think you have this motor confused with Billy's

[Billy]

One more alternative : Is your insurance up to date? Does it have replacement cost coverage? No fraud now. Loosen the bolts that hold the engine in place and disconnect the cables/wires. Need to make this real easy. Then park the boat in an area where some of those undesirables might see any opportunity. Two problems solved---new motor replacement (by ins.) and junk motor disposed (by theives).

Please realize I'm only kidding and would not encourage such action.

My next door neighbor did something very similar. With his new lawnmower he cut 3 1/2 passes in his front yard next to the street. He then parked his new mower behind his shed and pushed his broken mower to where he had stopped mowing. He went in his home and shut the door. Less than 2 hours later---junk mower had disappeared. True story.

Best of Luck on getting your engine fixed!

[bamabob]

Dimitri, the mechanic who looked at it said that oil pump failure was not that uncommon; that is why he recommends guys mix in their fuel tank. The guy at the Merc place said, "Naw." I will haul later this week and get a postmortum at the dealer.

[Magdaddy]

Bamabob......your mechanic diagnosed a seized piston in 3min.s? I hope you were exagerating! Since the motor is ill anyway, take the cylinder head off and look/see. I would get a shop manual and troubleshoot the motor myself before taking anyone's word that I need to pop $2-3K to fix anything. Have you ever noticed that mechanics and lawyers get along well? In my experience with 2 stroke motorcycle engines, often the cylinder wall of a seized motor can be honed enough to avoid boring if you are not looking for blueprint perfection, and you definately are not wth a marine outboard. Good luck with your motor.

[bscott]

I have much experience with high output 2 stroke dirt bike and snowmobile engines (140 hp +). One of the most common seizure problems is main jet blockage/dirty gas. Pull all the plugs and check for aluminum/silver ash on the electrode. This will be the seized cylinder. Pull the float bowl of the carb for that cylinder and check to see if the MJ is blocked. A contaminated main jet will lean out the cylinder and cause a siezure. Many times the engine can be restarted after it cools down. Then pull the engine over by hand. If it frees up, check the compression of all the cylinders. If they are within 5% of each other, replace the plugs and check the other carb float bowls for contaimintion. Do not start the engine until you replace the gas and install an inline gas filter. With luck the engine will start and run OK. Check the compression on the warm engine. If the siezed cylinder's compression is low, then you have a broken ring but not necessarly a scored cylinder as it could be nicasiled which is very hard to damage (4,000 rpm is not much for a 2 stroke).

This does not sound like oil starvation. If there is aluminum on the electrode you cooked the piston. A top end repair is not a big deal if you only replace the bad piston and hone the cylinder.

[Chip Hindes]

Second thoughts on the Tohatsu!? Come on Chip! It is the motor that will not quit.

Never a complaint about the way it runs. It seems pretty much bulletproof, and I do the minimum of annual maintenance. My lower end was replaced after I was rear ended last year. $4500 plus installed, and I still couldn't justify the bigger mootor I really wanted.

But's it's way loud, stinks and get lousy gas mileage.

Dimitri, the mechanic who looked at it said that oil pump failure was not that uncommon; that is why he recommends guys mix in their fuel tank.

That guy is a freaking moron. First step, get a new mechanic.

[Catigale]

Check your warranty really quickly...my Merc came with 3 years...

2006-2003 = maybe??

[bamabob]

$1715 later I am back on the water with a new/used lower unit. That was my problem. I had the boat towed to the launch, walked it on the trailer, hauled it out to the parking lot and awaited Eddie, the wonder mechanic. Eddie took 45 minutes to swap out my lower unit for the used one he had greased, pressure tested and installed a new water pump in. Then, he took about 15 minutes to put me through outboard school. Then, back in the water and without ballast I flew back to my slip. The boat, which I bought about a year ago, was supposedly serviced just before the purchase. WRONG! It was my own fault for not checking the grease in the Lower Unit. Expensive lesson, but less than a new engine.

[aya16]

glad to hear everything fine now. sorry it cost so much.

[DLT]

Mechanic diagnosed a bad lower unit as a siezed piston? Ok, now you know who NOT to ask for help in the future...

[bamabob]

Absolutely. I'm not calling Bubba. Eddie, the guy who fixed it was a tryly stand up guy. I can't believe that his shop sent guys out to fix your boat right at the river. It was nice. No dismasting or anything.

[Chip Hindes]

That guy is a freaking moron. First step, get a new mechanic.

Wow. And after writing this I was thinking maybe I was too hard on the guy. Is his name actually Bubba?

Glad we collectively talked you out of dumping the boat. Still a pretty hefty hit, but way less than a new motor. We all make mistakes; some of us are fortunate and make less costly mistakes than others.

[Bobby T.-26X #4767]

Never a complaint about the way it runs. It seems pretty much bulletproof, and I do the minimum of annual maintenance. But's it's way loud, stinks and get lousy gas mileage.

that tohatsu 50D is one heck of a creation.
in fact, i got rid of a perfectly good Suzuki 50-4 stroke and upgraded to a 90. making sure that it said Tohatsu on the outside of the cowling.
regardless of the extra power that i now have...the tohatsu is a worry-free product. there have been some horror stories written about the Suzuki (overheating, reduced power). and the ETEC products (as much as i would love to have one) are still awaiting final verdict.

regarding gas mileage...
i recently convoyed 65 miles with a comparably equipped X.
he had the 50D. i, the 90 tldi.
he used about 8 gallons more than me.
that is, he used all 24 & was running on fumes. i used 16. and the last 10 miles i motored at 22mph.

obviously, that doesn't justify spending the $8K for a new motor.
but, ignoring the poor MPG, the Tohatsu 50D (and Tohatsu, in general) is one heck of a product!

Bob T.
"DaBob"
'02X w/ '04 90-TLDI & '06 2.5-Suzuki