Yamaha outboard advice

[Jargon]

Hi All,

I’m trying to narrow down reliability issues on Yamaha outboards 2005 and newer, for use on a pre-owned Freedom 255 or 275. There is quite a bit of information and opinions. I prefer opinions from Grady owners.

I’d like to go single outboard on a used Grady and am trying to figure out the most reliable 4 stroke in this age bracket. In this instance, I’m thinking the 300 or the 350.

Second choice, but somewhat distant, would be dual outboards. Here I’m thinking that the most common outfitting of the 150’s seem to be a good choice, but wouldn’t mind seeing up to 250’s.

Separately, I don’t understand hull ratings on power. Now that I’ve zeroed in on the model Grady, I need to narrow down the power choices.

Thanks in advance for your input and advice.

 

[Doc Stressor]

The 4.2 L Yamaha F300 has been pretty bulletproof with few recurring problems. The F350s have had a lot of problems and require that the flywheel get replaced every 80 hr or so. The problem is so common that Yamaha pays this for the life of the engine. Midsection and oil pan corrosion is a big problem on F200-F250 Yamahas built prior to 2007 or so. Many used engines have already had the parts replaced. But you need to have any motor scoped to look for corrosion, which isn't always visible. The F150s had persistent problems with the crankshaft balancers. They have gone through several generations of replacement parts and only the most recent replacements are reliable. But overall, the F150s have been very reliable. You can usually tell when the balancers are starting to go by a change in the sound when the engine is at idle.

Yamahas are pretty expensive vs other engines in the repower market. Suzuki seems to own that market in my area.

The power rating of your hull should be found on the capacity plate. If you exceed it, you could have problems with insurance.

 

[Legend]

Not sure what year Freedom your looking at - The early ones had 350 hp max for 255 and 500 for 275. 2005 F225 -250 were very reliable engines but they did have the exhaust corrosion issues. It seems once the exhaust was replaced with the new material they were good to go. If you go for any engine in that range 2004-2009, I would make sure the exhaust has been replaced.

 

[Fishtales]

300 over the 350 is my opinion. Do some searches the 350 has had some issues.