Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

[Btwick]

Hi,

New to the forum and new to boating. Looking for a used 18' or so family ski/fish boat. Issue is I need to store it outside for the winter in freezing and snowing conditions - under a cover, under a leaky deck.

Question is: outboard or I/O. From what I can tell, outboards are more awkward for skiing/tubing and louder for the passengers, while I/Os are better for both, and cheaper to fix/maintain. Obviously sold in the I/O.

However, I can take an outboard motor (thinking 75hp - 100hp), and with help, store it inside a heated basement area for the winter. For the I/O, I would need to do some significant winterizing and I would still risk corrosion and damage due to freezing and moisture.

Any advice on this is greatly appreciated.

Thx,
Brian

 

[QC]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

Welcome aboard iboats!! You've got this pretty close, but I would suggest that I/Os are more expensive to maintain, but a LOT more family friendly, especially for Mom . . .

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

i don't know who told you that a outboard was more maintenance, total and completely inaccurate. to winterized and outboard, you change the lower unit oil, fogged the motor, and make sure the motor is in the down position.

i/o you either drain the block, manifolds, and hope all the water is out, or you have to charge the system with antifreeze, change lower unit oil, you have manifolds, bellows, shift cables, gimbal bearings, to worry about, plus having to have the outdrive pulled and serviced at least every two years.

the outboard is not any more ackward than an i/o for skiing or tubing, you have a prop in the water with both.

 

[Btwick]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

Hi,

Thanks for the quick replies

Couple of clarifications..

First, the maintenance comment was based on the fact that I/Os are essentially car motors and hence more availability of talent to maintain and repair.. Perhaps more I could do myself. Maybe totally false.

Second, the outboard motor would be stored inside a heated and dry area so no winterizing required.. Or minor winterizing (fluids only) relative to the I/O being stored in wet and freezing conditions.

Brian

 

[45Auto]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

I found my O/B to be much more awkward for skiing,wakeboarding,kneeboarding and tubing than my I/O. O/B required a pylon or tripod to get the rope up over the motor for skiing,wakeboarding, and kneeboarding. Towing a tube required a y-connector to the aft tie-down rings (located a few inches above the water) since NO pylons or tripods I can find are rated for towing a tube. The low connection on the tube rope allows the rope to drag in the water when towing the tube, making it less controllable to swing back and forth across the wake.

I/O requires hooking the rope to the stern towing cleat for anything I want to do. Since it's lots higher on the boat there's no issues with the ropes dragging.

Winterizing my I/O with closed cooling system and air-actuated single point drain system consists of stroking the air pump handle a couple of times, pulling the drain lever, pulling the kill-switch lanyard, then turning the engine over a couple of times to purge any water trapped in the seawater pump (per Mercruiser manual #30, page IB-33). Takes about 2 minutes. I also fog the motor and change all the engine and outdrive oil, which I would also do on an O/B. I also pull the outdrive to check alignment and all the assorted bits like bearings, u-joints, bellows, etc. Pulling the outdrive requires removing 6 nuts - takes about 15 minutes. I change the bellows every 5 years. As long as you maintain it properly it will require no more maintenance than the u-joints on the driveshaft of your car (or the CV joints if it's a front wheel drive). Let water get into it (like tearing a boot on your front-wheel drive CV joints) and it will self-destruct pretty quickly.

I change the impellor in my sea-water pump every other year. My Bravo has a separate pump on the side of the motor (looks kind of like an alternator) that I find much easier to change than dropping the lower half of the O/B to get to the internal pump.

 

[njlarry]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

Brian, your pt about being able to do more yourself on an IO is well taken. More so with today's hi-tech OBs. Most hi-tech OBs may need less maintance than older OBs but when they do it's often an "autherized dealer" only affair. The engines on IOs are chevy/ford blocks and are more familiar to most owners than OBs. However the outdrive is where IO expenses add up. This is only somewhat offset by better fuel economey than OBs. I like working on OBs because you can just stand right next to them and they are easy to winterize. After the fliud changes just store upright to protect from freezing, no need to carry indoors. That said I love my IO and do all the maintance and repair except for the outdrive. The boat you choose will likely only come one way, IO or OB. Your family will likely prefer the IO. Either way, IO or OB you can't go wrong because either will come attached to a boat and a boat is a very good thing.

 

[fishdog4449]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

i/o are harder to maintain, go with outboards if its your first

 

[Pierutrus]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

i/o are harder to maintain, go with outboards if its your first

I second that.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

50 years of boating i can tell you I/O's are harder, expensive, and a pita, to get to, when maintenance is needed, this evolves into labor $$$$. if you do the 3 simple sets to winterizing an outboard, it does not have to be pull and stored inside. if you have a warm day in the winter, all you do is go out and start it up. no dewinterizing involved, when you get home, you can check to make sure there was no water intrusion in the lower unit, 3 minutes, another 3 minutes to refogged the motor, and cover it up.

as far as convenience of towing, it's what you are us to.

 

[steelespike]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

No question there is more maintenance and winterizing on an I/O.They are stern heavy and invariably need tinkering to get the best hole shot.Most wander at no wake speed.Check the prop section I think you will find a high percentage of I/O Qs regard slow hole shot.With a 2 stroke outboard you have a purpose designed motor that loves to run wot.A converted car motor
with a 4,600 red line is not happy at 4,600.I have to wonder how happy
a typical 350 would be if you drove it back and forth to work just an hour a day uphill at 4,600 rpm?
Run a 2 stroke at its max rpm every day and at the end of the season change the gear lube fog it change the plugs and put it away. An I/o you will have at least one oil change a pain in the butt in a boat.gear lube,check all the bellows,gimble etc. don't forget the bilge blower.
be absolutely sure the block and manifolds are drained.
Of course both units have some lube points etc that should be serviced at least annually.

 

[45Auto]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

From Btwick Post #1:

However, I can take an outboard motor (thinking 75hp - 100hp),

In that power range an outboard (don't know of any I/O's that low) wins hands down, no contest! I/O doesn't begin to make sense until you get into the higher HP.

Depending on how many passengers you plan on taking and the kind of skiing, tubing, etc you plan to do you may want to look into a little more power.

I think 2 stroke vs 4 stroke reliability is pretty well established. Didn't Saab and Traubant try making 2 stroke car engines for a while?

 

[amynbill]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

Outboards are too frikkin noisy (my wife was definitely set against them, and so was I due to having headaches goingout on other's boats and lack of conversation while cruising) and if you get into watersports are always in the way, so it seems. I also love having a swim platform and sun pad with an i/o.

The additional cost in upkeep is something you will have to consider as was stated. TO me, the extra money is totally worth it when I thought about all other factors. Plus you can get some good HP with the i/o in comparison.

 

[tommays]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

In the real world while a modern outboard is a wonder about the most your going to do on your own is change gear oil

NOT that you do much more your self on and EFI sterndrive


BOTH types have become to complex for more than very minor owner upkeep

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

I have owned 3 outboard and 3 I/O boats. They both have good points and bad like everyone has said.But i sure DO NOT miss crawling in the bilge to work on the I/O motors.When i had to pull the drive and engine to get one starter bolt loose that was it for me.Yea,my old outboard is louder but what a pleasure to work on.Changed the starter on it in less than 5 minutes.

No more bellows,gimble bearings and u-joints to worry about..WooHoo!!
and if the women don't like it the can stay on the bank or ride the jet flea!

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

amen Gary!!!!

 

[ebry710]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

High point for outboards:
- More deck space
- Able to sit on a stool to work on, not your belly
- Easy replacement
- Easy to upgrade
- All one unit and nothing through the hull.

 

[Btwick]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

This is a great forum - lots of really helpful info from you all! Much appreciated.

Another factor in this is the power as Amynbill points out. If I have 4-5 people in a 18ft boat, would a 100hp outboard be enough for us to ski and tube? Maybe not. Also, the boat will be at altitude (6000 ft) and most boats, except the newer fuel injected boats, will lose up to 25% of thier power.

Also, Lake Tahoe here in CA has banned four stroke motors from the lake due to pollution issues. So I would end up with a newer 4 stroke outboard which are quite expensive, and may tip the cost equation to the used I/O...

Sounds like maintenance and winterizing, the nod goes to outboard.. But comfort and convenience for family outings goes to the I/O.

thx,
Brian

 

[Btwick]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

Sorry, shouldn't be doing this at work

Lake Tahoe has banned *two-stroke* motors from the lake.. Not four stroke as I state in my previous post..


Thx,
Brian

 

[BF]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

one thing not mentioned yet is where you will be boating. If you will have fairly long runs in shallow water before you get out deep enough to lower the drive fully (e.g. lakes with lots of shallow bays), then I'd say go outboard. I/O's are not designed to be run with the outdrive tilted way up. It's very hard on the U-joints. When my Dad had one, he had to change the U-joints 'bout every 2 years. He commonly launched in a shallow bay and need to go slow with the outdrive tiled up for the first couple hundred yards. On OB's, obviously this isn't an issue because the whole thing tilts up... as long as it's getting cooling water, it's fine.

Lastly, if skiing and tubing with 5 or so people in the boat is the goal, I'd suggest you probably want more than a 4 cyl I/O if you go that way. My dad had a 120 hp mercruiser (4 cyl GM motor)... it performed about the equivalent of what an 80 hp or so outboard would do on that hull (barely adequate).

Obviously we get freezing winters up here, and both types of boat are common.... whatever you have will need proper winterizing, but either can work.

 

[oops!]

Re: Outboard vs I/O - Advice needed!

If I have 4-5 people in a 18ft boat, would a 100hp outboard be enough for us to ski and tube? Also, the boat will be at altitude (6000 ft)

Brian

no.....


add coolers...the dog...fishing tackle...rods...beer and pop.....unused water toys, life jackets, fire supression equipment.

on an 18 footer? 150 hp ob

i/o.....4.3l v6 minimum