No VIN numbers on boats (VIN =Vehicle Identification Number)... Most boats have HINs, but generally engines have model and serial numbers... Unlike a car (where the engine and the body are made by the same company), the engine and the hull on boats are different entities. Almost always supplied by different companies. It's very unusual to find (for example) a GM engine in a Ford body, or a Ford engine in a Toyota body... But is not at all unusual to line up 4 of the same hulls from the same builder, of the same year, and find one with a Merc outboard, one with a Evinrude outboard, one with a Jap outboard and one with a Mercruiser I/O..... Once the boat builder is finished with the hull he doesn't really care what engine you put on it, as long as it's within the hull rating, it's your choice....
That's why we ask for the engine information, not hull information when people ask questions. It's a bit pointless (I'm sure you'll agree) to ask for help fixing an engine by telling us the boat is a 2001 22' Four Winns.... To the engine guy, that's as useful as saying it's on the moon...
We (engine guys) have absolutely no interest in what hull the engine is in, we just need to know Manufacturer, model, year, serial number.....
