ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

[JonathanEngr]

I'm looking to purchase a new pontoon, and I'm having a REALLY difficult time digesting everything coming my way. It seems the Optimax and especially the ETEC are trying to shoot down 4-strokes, not necessarily compete with each other.

Many of the reviews I seen pitting them against one another are review from 2004-2007 (the new years for the ETEC). Without question, in every single review the ETEC was considered exceptionally more quiet than the Optimax. Now... I currently have a pontoon with a 90 HP 2-stroke Mercury, and I love the strength of this engine. For a carbed motor, the throttle response is immediate, and it will sit you down if you aren't already sitting down. However, it is LOUD--with a capital "L". So much so that I spent $200 lining the inside-back of my pontoon with a sound dampening foam. It works amazingly well, until you put the bimini top up. Then the sound just reflects off of it

Anyway, I want to get this one right. Service isn't currently an issue--I have thrre ETEC and three Merc dealers within 20 miles of my location, so if it breaks I have a place to take it. So........

1) Are the 2011 Optimax engines getting close to being as quiet as an ETEC? I can handle some noise, but the 90 HP carbed engine is just a bit too loud (I read in a 2007 shootout that Merc was working to drastically improve the Optimax noise levels--did this happen?)
2) In almost every review I read, it seems that Merc outperformed the ETEC in power--takeoff, acceleration, top speed. Is this still the case?
3) It seems that both engines have a high reliability, with perhaps an edge to the ETEC
4) Problem--the boat I'm looking to buy (a Bentley) doesn't seem to have any dealers that also carry ETEC--they all seem to be Merc dealers. I know Bentley is a price-point boat, but I love the layout and have had good luck with mine. It seems buying the boat and then the motor might be a more expensive way to go.

Anyway, reliability seems to be good with both, so it comes to performance and noise. Quiet would be GREAT, but I'd be lying if I said performance didn't matter. I could go for another 5 decibels of noise if it gained me a few more mph on top-end. I could really use some expert input and advice--I want to get this right! Thanks.

 

[gss036]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

I say E-Tec all the way over the Optipop. Have you considered a 4 stroke? Honda/Suzuki?

 

[JonathanEngr]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

I guess looking at two-stokes was based on a performance issue. I know there are a lot of variables out there for engines, props, boat weight, etc., but I've had terrific luck with my Merc 2-stroke 90. I have yet to be outrun by a 4-stroke 115 on a similar boat, and just this past weekend I was talking with a guy about his Honda 135 (on an Aqua Patio). He said he loved it, could pull a skier, but wished he had more speed. He said if I wanted to see the performance we could gun them and I could gauge for myself. We did it, were in a dead heat and then I just slowly pulled away. He couldn't believe it--there were two guys on his boat (him and one other person), and on mine it was me and my son (5 years old). I'm sure his boat was heavier, too, but it was brand-new with a new Honda 135. Beautiful boat and engine. My GPS top speed is 24 mph (25 with the wind blowing correctly!), and I'd be so frustrated if I'd just dropped the $$ for a 135 hp Honda engine and could only pull 22 or 23. On the Merc and ETEC web pages, they've paired 150's with several pontoons 22 to 24 feet long (dry weights 2000-2500 pounds... my new boat weight will be 2000 pounds) at hit just above or right at 40 mph with every single one of them. I want to at least hit the mid-30's if not the lower 40's.

Now--before I get blasted--am I thinking correctly? That a 150 hp DI 2-stroke is always going to outperform a 150 hp 4-stroke? I'm trying to not only find a quiet engine, but also the best performance in the 150-hp class (that's the max the boat is rated for). I could be 100% incorrect, but that's why I was looking primarily at 2-strokes (higher performance/weight/horsepower ratio).

 

[NelsonQ]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

On the Merc and ETEC web pages, they've paired 150's with several pontoons 22 to 24 feet long (dry weights 2000-2500 pounds... my new boat weight will be 2000 pounds) at hit just above or right at 40 mph with every single one of them. I want to at least hit the mid-30's if not the lower 40's.

Now--before I get blasted--am I thinking correctly? That a 150 hp DI 2-stroke is always going to outperform a 150 hp 4-stroke? I'm trying to not only find a quiet engine, but also the best performance in the 150-hp class (that's the max the boat is rated for). I could be 100% incorrect, but that's why I was looking primarily at 2-strokes (higher performance/weight/horsepower ratio).

I have a 200 Merc Opti.... on a 19' deckboat with a dry weight of around 2600lbs and hit low 50s but could be propped differently for more top end to push me into the mid 50s. I suspect the same boat with a 150HP would only lose about 5-7MPH on the top end.

hull, weight, prop (diameter, #blades, pitch) will all factor into what you can expect.

The DI 2 strokes are as quiet as you'll get, in a 2 stroke, but are still louder than their 4 stroke counterparts. Mine a little louder than I'd like but when I hit the throttle, she jumps on plane in under 2 secs so I'm more than happy to trade noise for the low end torque you'll get.

I picked Opti over ETEC because the dealer carried Mercury but I'd be content with either of those 2 engines and most comparisons are splitting hairs.

 

[seahorse5]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

Hands down, the E-TEC is so much quieter than the Optimax. E-TEC is even quieter than some 4-strokes at cruising speed.

On a pontoon boat where the motor is hidden back on the transom, you will probably not even know that the E-TEC is running and will have to watch the tach.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

Yamaha has a very good "Performance Test" web page wherein you can pick a pontoon and an engine and view performance reports that IN THE PAST had included noise numbers. Many of the current tests no longer list those numbers. While I'm the devils advocate in "noise" discussions, I contend that the reason they don't publish them is because the DI (E-tec specifically) are very similar to 4-strokes at wide open throttle. Four strokes do have a slightly better noise figure at lower rpm but once again, one needs to ignore the RPM range comparison and concentrate on the SPEED at which the noise is measured. Why? Because a DI two stroke is almost always reving a fair bit slower than a four stroke at any speed. Therefore at 15 MPH (on a pontoon) the 4-stroke might be running 3000 rpm while the two stroke is running at 2500 or less. So look at charts and compare apples to apples. The same issue applies when looking at fuel consumption at various RPM. Make those comparisons at SPEED for the same reason.

 

[rbstewart]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

As said earlier, virtually all the "new" motors produced today are very good. I currently have, and have had Etec and Suzuki (4 Stroke). Suzuki has nailed the four stroke IMHO and with normal, common sense maintenance I have had ZERO problems with mine after 11 years. They are VERY quiet.....significantly quieter than the Etec at trolling speeds. The Etec seems to "vibrate" more than the Suzukis, but is a FANTASTIC motor!

Don't forget props when you are comparing motors. A properly propped 4 stroke can give comparable performance to 2 strokes.

 

[Rancherlee]

Re: ETEC vs Optimax and engine noise?

What size engine are you looking at, That makes a difference also. 150 is a 150 as far a speed goes. Take any 150 and prop it correctly and they should all be within 1-2mph of each other on any given boat. Some 150's are stronger than others. Take the famous Etec 150 vs. Yamaha 150 4 stroke video that EVINRUDE put out. They took one of the weakest 150's to compare their engine to. I find at under 1/2 throttle or less I don't even hear my Johnson/Suzuki 4 stroke running on my Pontoon, and the motor isn't even covered like some pontoons. Same goes for a friends Etec, his is pretty much silent up to 1/2 throttle. His Etec is louder than my Johnson close to WOT but that is the 60hp Etec vs my 70hp Johnson.