New Motor

[Bushwacker]

Amen to what Snookerd and Big said! When I repowered from a 300 lb V-4 on the transom to the 429 lb E-Tec sitting 30" aft on a bracket, it took a lot of tweaking, to get it to where it would plane as easily and ride as well as the old setup! I'm sure glad I didn't go any heavier. I considered the 115 but they were not in production at the time I bought it in 2006. It's been a great motor with zero problems in about 370 hrs, but it's definitely a lot more power than you need if you run in anything over about 2-3'. The 20' hull will go airborne in seas over 3' at about 20 kts, so if you run offshore very much, you won't use all that power very often!

[Fr. Frank]

25" 130 Etec is 405 lbs - 28 lbs less than the 150 Etec. Tests show that the 130 actually produces an average of 140-142 horsepower at the propshaft. The 150 Etec averages 163-165 hp at the prop.

In contrast, the DF140 Suzuki is 410 lbs, the 135 Mercury Optimax is 510 lbs, and the 135 Honda is 480 lbs.

It should be noted that the 3 cylinder 1.5L 125 hp Mercury Optimax weighs 375 lbs, and averaged 138-140 hp in tests. However, it has 12% less torque than the 130 Etec, and the extremely efficient air compression/injection system gives it noticeable throttle lag. (It's essentially a supercharged fuel-injected 2 stroke) It does have better fuel economy than any other outboard in the 120-140 hp range.

I nominate the 130 hp Etec.