Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

[sdreffs]

I just bought a Mercury '71 800 (80 hp), owner said was running great until he parked boat after cancer surgery 2 years ago. The bought needs complete re-wiring and the normal maintenance items. I talked to a local boat mechanic and he told me I made a very bad decision, that those motors are plagued with problems (money pits as he put it). I paid $500 for the motor, old boat, and trailer. I plan on selling the boat and trailer (not for much, not in real good shape) and the motor I plan to put on my 84 bass boat that has a smaller motor with a bad lower unit. Are these motors problematic? Should I not waste my money fixing and instead find a newer motor?
Thanks

 

[rtpassini]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

moody blues and chris 19something. cant remember the numbers are pros with these motors. laddies chimes in now and again too. they have all been great in helping me with mine.

i also have a 71 merc 800. i bought the boat and motor from someone who hadnt ran it in at least a year. I knew it had a bad starter. so i did that and also had to redo ALL the wiring. I just took off the lower unit tonight to replace some gaskets and the impeller. hopefully ill see how good it runs this weekend.

if you have good compression, i dont think its a waste. the wire harness is about 100 bucks. good luck to ya!

 

[Braylon]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

Not to worry, I have been running a '72 merc 800 for the last three years that I purchased after sitting for two years. A new stator, rectifier, plugs and dissy, the motor runs better than my buddies' boats. I love the motor, it's strong and reliable. Never left me stuck in the midle of the lake. Some people are just grumpy, like motors, they need a little re-tune if you know what I mean!

 

[sdreffs]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

Thanks for the reassurance, I thought it would be a good motor but I am new to boat motors so I was not sure. Where can I get a wiring harness? I have to re-wire everything and it would help to have the wire harness. I have seen a few online but they were over $300.

 

[electricjohn]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

I ran a Merc 80 hp motor from 1970 till 1987 on my Winner. Motor was strong, never let me down, and had more (low end) power than the 1988 90 hp that replaced it. Ran that 80 for 1600 hrs, mostly in salt water. My brother used the motor for an additional 2 years on his Hydrostream, then we sold the motor still running good.

 

[rtpassini]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

Thanks for the reassurance, I thought it would be a good motor but I am new to boat motors so I was not sure. Where can I get a wiring harness? I have to re-wire everything and it would help to have the wire harness. I have seen a few online but they were over $300.

Surplusunlimited.com

 

[geedubcpa]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

for only 500 bucks you are ok - hey you could probably ebay the motor alone for that much or maybe close to it.

 

[electricjohn]

Re: Just bought a '71 Mercury 800...was told made bad decision

You could sell the lower unit for that much.