150 Mercury Black max questions

[nitsuj]

Hello all. My friend is looking for his first boat, and I'm sort of acting as his advisor since he's never had a boat and I've had several. The one he's currently looking at has him really excited. The boat itself is solid, no problems there. But it's equipped with a mid 80's Mercury Black Max 150 hp. I've never owned a Merc outboard, so I wanted to ask you guys for your opinion. Aside from the normal compression and leak down test and general check over, are these engines known for any issues? Is it considered a generally reliable engine, or a problematic one? Any common or know problems with them? He has zero boating experience, and my last outboard was a Johnson (long time ago!) , and since then it's been I/O's for me. Any info would be great. Thanks!

 

[evinrude20]

From the research I've done, if it has an oil injected, remove it and mix the gas. I think the pump gear is plastic and wears out over time. Someone can confirm that...Other than being thirsty, they are pretty simple engines. I'm sure people can add a lot more about them...

 

[Chris1956]

The 60* V6 Merc is a fine, proven design. As stated the oil injection does not have a good reputation, but the motor design is very good.

 

[Chris1956]

The 60* V6 Merc is a fine, proven design. As stated the oil injection does not have a good reputation, but the motor design is very good.