Johnson 150 GT or 175 HP

[Snoopy1]

I am considering buying a used motor the dealer has a 1989 Johnson 150 HP GT and a 1993 Johnson 175 HP motor. They both appear to be in excellent shape. I have a couple of questions. 1/they both have been sitting for about 2 years inside - is this a bad thing? 2/ The dealer is pushing the 175 as a better motor (its also $2,000 CDN more)is it?. 3/ Lasty, he says the 150 will have a better bottom end then the 175? Any thoughts?

 

[JB]

Re: Johnson 150 GT or 175 HP

Hi, Snoopy.<br /><br />Get the 150, and insist on a warranty. 30 days should get you past any problems it already had and any caused by the storage.<br /><br />Good luck.

 

[Snoopy1]

Re: Johnson 150 GT or 175 HP

Thanks, the dealer is giving a warranty regardless of the model I choose. Curious though on your reasoning. Is it a money thing, or is the 150 a better motor? The dealer mentioned that the 175 has the new 60 degree block, and would be more reliable.

 

[Moving Target]

Re: Johnson 150 GT or 175 HP

A friend of mine had a 150 GT ('9?)on a ski boat. Bought it brand new with the boat. He could never get it to idle right. Always seemed to die as you came up to a dock and threw it in rev, or quit when you went to pull a skier up. Took it back to the dealer many times, they never did get it to run right.<br /><br />My only experiance with a 150GT. Altough my V4 115 will idle all day and never stalls, so who knows? Not sure if the "GT" is diff from the rest of the V4's or not.<br /><br />He may have just had a lemon.

 

[Snoopy1]

Re: Johnson 150 GT or 175 HP

Thanks MT,<br />Its funny that you mentioned that about the 150 not idling. I had the same problem on the motor I just sold - a 1989 Johnson 140. It would be hard to start and it did not like to idle. Ran great once you hit the trottle. I figured out (only took 2 years) that if I kept the trim up, maybe 1/3 up from the bottom it would make all the difference in the world. Started everytime and would idle all day long. Put the trim down and the motor would get all snappy and want to stop. Maybe the carbs were flooding or vice/versa. Thanks for your comments. cheers!

 

[clanton]

Re: Johnson 150 GT or 175 HP

The GT150 should do fine, probley dyno more then the 175, if its in good shape. You need to do a compression test, and gear oil check for water/metal.