Re: in your opinion which is the best outdrive? OMC or mercruiser?
Moved this over to the I/O section. This has been seriously beat to death here. Do a search and you'll find that for a whole boatload of reasons that Mercruiser wins hands down. Not a fair deal since OMC has been out of business for a long time, but you asked . . .
Re: in your opinion which is the best outdrive? OMC or mercruiser?
Even if OMC still existed, it's like asking which is better, Chevy or Ford. Who has the best football team or baseball team, or who is the best NASCAR driver.
It all boils down to personal preference
As an outdrive, in the end they all do the same thing and work and last equally well.
Re: in your opinion which is the best outdrive? OMC or mercruiser?
Volvo.
I can't complain about my Stringer though. It's way outdated by modern standards, buy hey, if it moves my boat, it's good enough. Plus the turning radius is better than a Mercruiser. Still, if I was looking at 2 older boats, I would definitely go for the Mercruiser one, more parts availability and a more modern design.
Obviously, you asked the wrong question. You didn't want a poll so much as wanting information as to which you should buy and why.
Had you asked "Should I get a boat with a Mercruiser or an OMC stringer drive or a Cobra drive" you would have gotten a lot different answers than a poll of "which is best outdrive, OMC or Mercruiser" and no VOTES for Volvo.