[KenB]

I think yamaha uses toyota blocks for a lot of stuff (new 350 yami is supposed to be the lexus V8 block), so I can believe that a yanmar or made it into an outboard. That truck in the great clip of the indestructible hilux (tacoma) on top gear was an oil burner. Japan aggressively outlawed small block diesels in the late 1990s, so if they do exist, they would have to be non-JDM.

I was talking to the MEG guys and they said that diesel torque is a huge problem for lower units. Even at the lower HPs you still need a beefy lower unit which increases costs a lot.

Maybe in china 'outboard' means the motor is mounted above the waterline, and the drive shaft goes straight back... basically an inboard but the prop shaft goes straight back from above the transom. I have seen pics of this type of setup, and the forward only gear box makes sense.