Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

[freshwaterotter]

I just recently picked up a couple of Chrysler OB's for cheap.
I had a 50hp before from the early 70's and it ran great for the 4 years I had it.
How ever people seem to think that Chryslers are just probem engines and unreliable.
Did I just luck out and get a good one, or is their something I should know about older Chysler ob's?

Hope for some feedback

 

[rolmops]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

I'm with you on this one.
Having worked on Johnson/Evinrude and Mercury I always found it way easier to take care of my Chrysler.Everything is within reach of oversize hands like mine,and at the end of a repair there is no skin off my fingers like so often happens when working on a Merc.
As for parts,there are a zillion of them.
The only thing I have against Chrysler outboards is that they look bulky,but that is the price of room to work.

 

[RRitt]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

After 1992 they changed the reed valves to a composite and the stator to a universal design. Force engines cold sneeze and it causes the reed valves to crack. Cracked reed valves run lean which is the same as burning hot and not having enough oil .... which causes the powerheads to prematurely self-destruct even if maintenance is followed. The stator design was just some king of engineering or manufacturing mistake and the universal stators had universal failure after 7 years or so. The stator problems affected both Force and mercury equally.

Faced with self destructing engines the manufacturer had two choices.
A) accept responsibility
B) blame it on bad engineering by a company that was no longer in business

Naturally, Mercury chose option "B" and spread the word through their mechanics, parts outlets, and distributors. IMO, pre-mercury Chrysler/Force were the most "owner friendly" outboard ever made .... then they got bought out by Darth Mercury and became less dependable than competing brands.

 

[rodbolt]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

never saw a composite reed on a factory Force, worked for a force dealer till 95.
did see a lot of the 120 sport jets break a reed due to over revs.
ran a 75 chysler close to twenty years with no issues just maint, we did ditch the problematic motorola ign and converted it back to battery point type.
biggest issue I ever saw was simply a maint issue.
was one of the cheapest engines on the market. as such usually it did require more maint.
however the owners that buy the cheapest are usually the ones that wait till it breaks for maint.
the magna power ign of the 70s hurt them the magna power II wasnt much better.
US marine stuck with prestolite and still had pack issues. when merc got it in the 90s they converted it to the merc style with a black stator, 7 years on the black stator is a bit over optimistic.
the last red stator conversion kit I installed was close to 600 dollars and fit almost every 2,3 and 4 cyl force/merc built from about 88 till 95 or so.

 

[byacey]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

My Old West bend Chrysler is very reliable. If "unreliable" means using dirty / old gasoline, not having to change the water pump one in awhile, and never changing lower unit oil, setting points every few years, then yes they are unreliable, but then so are the Evinrudes, Johnsons, Mercs and every other Outboard based on this definition. Unfortunately because our society has become one of throw away thinking, But with a little routine maintenance and parts availability these motors can last multiple generations.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

Chrysler and later Force engines are no worse or better than any other brand. Think not? look at the number of posts for repair problems on the other brands. High, aren't they?

Chryslers are kinda like the girl in high school who was undeservedly given a "rep". There was no way she was going to refute it or live it down. While it is a fact that a given Chrysler would not have the same performance as an equally rated Merc or OMC, They were an excellent value.

They sold a lot of engines while they were in business and if they were really that poor, inexpensive or not, people would not have bought them.
Indeed, the only reason why Chrysler Marine was sold at all was because the U.S. Government forced Chrysler to divest everything except its core auto business when it was bailed out of possible bankruptcy. Had the parent company not gotten into financial difficulty, you would probably still see Chrysler outboards being manufactured today.

In fact, Chrysler had started to re develop their engine line with a 55, 60,65 Horsepower 2 cylinder that was the epitome of old cross flow design. --Packed block, long rods. big bore, etc---That particular series of engines was powerful and fast.

 

[steelespike]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

I won't argue the Chrysler quality but when comparing repair posts keep in mind Chrysler was built from 65 to 85.Evinrude since 1909,Johnson since the 1920s Merc since about 1940,Gale products from 1940 to 63.
Routine parts back to the early 1950s for E/J and some Gale motors are available right here at iboats,NAPA auto parts,and many BRP/omc dealers.
Some routine Chrysler parts are available a few new here lots of used. Compare here at iboats.Some Chryslers have 3 distinctly different ignition systems at least one of which is not available.A single coil numbers for E/J cover many hp
and years from the 50s up, same for pumps and carb kits.And as far as used parts its almost a joke how many are out there.

 

[southernpride]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

Freshwater, thanks for asking this question. I just bought my first boat Tuesday. It is an 89 model 16' Randall Craft W/ a an 87 force 125. I mentioned my purchase to my step father and he kinda gave that look when I mentioned it had a force engine. He has been a marine mechanic for years so I do trust his opinions. But then he said he has heard the same thing from all lines of engine manufacturers. It's kind of the ford vs chevrolet battle. He said bottom line if you take care of it it'll last. If you don't make sure the trolling motor has a real good charge. But with this post I got the other views from other owners. Thanks Again.

 

[Dave K.]

Re: Why the bad rep on Chryslers OB's?

i kinda like frank's analogy. anyway, i'm a first time owner last year but have been on the water w/ my brother for 30+. i bought a 84' 16' bayliner cuddy w/ a force 85hp. i'm the 2nd owner (remember i bought this LAST year) the guy had this package for 22 yrs & he took Basic care of it. i asked him why & how he had this set up so long & he said "never had any problems" well i had a blast on this boat last year & cannot wait to get back out in a couple of months. i don't really know anything about OB repair, but was & am able to do the basics on this motor. Pretty Sure I Saved a Little $$$$$$ Some Where, not to mention getting pretty good gas mil out of her.

I'm VERY appreciative w/ the skill & knowledge of you fellas because i asked (or tried to) simple questions (mostly on another forum) and got straight forward & EXACT instructions. THANK YOU!!!All

BTW - not trying to Stick Up for the HS girl or anything...lol