115 or 150 e-tech?

[DoozleD]

I have a 1977 master angler with a 2002 yamaha 115 4-stroke...I hate the yamaha, its heavy and has no mid range, i think the boats slow, i cruse it a 4000 to 4300 and im getting 17kts. i feel like you have to put it in the corner to get faster cruseing. Its not the prop!...i guess my question is what are the quys that have 20's with e-techs running for power and what are u getting for numbers?..

[RUSTYNTABATHA]

I'm also 20 MA and i would go with the 150.. as that is what the future holds for mine ... I'm sure Denny will give you some good insight !! i was thinking about the 175 as it is the same engine as the 150 but after some discusion on here i think the 150 has better numbers over all than the 175 ... but i didnt look at the 115.. i would like a little more top end than i think the 115 would provide ...

[mnwnvc]

41 top end with Merc Opti 2 stroke on a 69 twenty foot CC. But more hp is always good in cars and boats.
Michael

[FishStretcher]

I had the same complaint with the 2000 yamaha F100 on a 20 MA. I changed the prop and I am much happier. I run a 4 blade Solas amita 4 13 x 15p. Due to the differences in lower units, I bet that would work well for you. My 12-3/4 x 17p is terrible by comparison. It is $100 to try that before a repower?

[Bushwacker]

Originally Posted by DoozleD

I have a 1977 master angler with a 2002 yamaha 115 4-stroke...I hate the yamaha, its heavy and has no mid range, i think the boats slow, i cruse it a 4000 to 4300 and im getting 17kts. i feel like you have to put it in the corner to get faster cruseing. Its not the prop!...i guess my question is what are the quys that have 20's with e-techs running for power and what are u getting for numbers?..

Doozle, check out this search I did for "115 or 150?" on the E-TEC Owners Forum. If you're thinking about buying an E-TEC, I'd suggest you join that Forum and maybe make the same post over there, as you'll get good advice from some very knowledgeable techs! I'd post a picture of your boat or some specs on it, as one of the best techs is in Australia and won't know what a SeaCraft is! For what it's worth, here are my own thoughts on the subject.

I ran my Seafari, which is 200 lbs heavier than your MA, for over 30 years with a 1975 "115" Evinrude which was probably about 100 hp at the prop, as they were rated at the prop back then. I cruised at 4500 all day long on numerous Bahama trips, running about 20 kts with a very heavy load and burning about 8 gph. WOT was 28 kts with the heavy load and a little over 30 kts with a light load. Although loud and smokey, that old motor only weighed 300 lbs and was very well matched to the boat, with enough mid-range torque to plane easily at only 12 mph and a little over 3000 rpm, even with a very heavy load. I think I averaged about 2.8 mpg over 6 trips to the Abacos with it in the late 70's.

I considered the 115 V-4 E-TEC when I repowered in the spring of 2006 because I wanted minimum weight with a bracket, but they weren't yet in production when I was ready for a motor, so I went with the V-6. The "115" is really about 125 hp at the prop, plenty of power for the 20, depending how fast you want to run; I'd figure on WOT of close to 35 kts with the optimum prop and engine height. It has a 2-position valve in the exhaust that switches to a shorter exhaust path at around 4000 rpm and gives you the sensation of a turbo kicking in when it changes position!

The "150" V-6 is actually 165 hp at the prop and should push your MA over 50 mph or about 44 kts. My optimum cruise seems to be about 3700-3800 and 24-25 kts and 6-7 gph. At 5 mph, I only burn 0.5 gph, which is probably less than your 4-stroke, so overall average mpg is actually over 4 mpg. In 2010 I made a 700 mile circumnavigation of S. Fla., and averaged 4.4 mpg for the entire trip. I'm running a 4B 15x15 prop optimized for mid-range hole shot, so it's really not optimized for max WOT speed.

The V-6 is 28 lbs heavier than the V-4 and will burn a bit more fuel with 33% more displacement, but it will idle a bit smoother than the V-4 and it doesn't have the 2-position exhaust valve, which has been known to stick if you allow the engine to carbon up. (Caused by over-propping, running too cold, and running cheap oil. BRP has added grease fittings to the exhaust valve shaft on the new motors, which has probably minimized this problem.) Optimum cruise speeds may actually be similar for the V-4 and V-6 because the V-4 may be a little more efficient over 4000 rpm when that exhaust valve opens. I think Terry England said the 115's on his 25 Bertram seem to really like running higher speeds than the I-3 90 hp E-TEC on his 19 Bowrider. Although most folks would probably think that big Bertram would be underpowered with a pair of 115's, I think he's been pleasantly surprised with their performance!

[DoozleD]

there is a guy on here with a purple 20 that I put a 115 e-tech on a few years ago, im going to have to talk to him...and bushwaker...I know all about the exhaust valve on the 115's, that's why I may be leaning toward a v-6

[Terry England]

Originally Posted by DoozleD

there is a guy on here with a purple 20 that I put a 115 e-tech on a few years ago, im going to have to talk to him...and bushwaker...I know all about the exhaust valve on the 115's, that's why I may be leaning toward a v-6

I know a little about the 90's and the 115's. Evinrude added a grease fitting to the exhaust valve mechanism on the 115's to stop them from sticking in any one position. The 115's also had a problem with people leaving them in the tilted position and rain water getting in the Computer module wiring. They put a deflector shield for rain under the cowling and the grease fitting is serviced at the three year interval.
From my experiance, the 115's are more "pipey" than the E-tec 90's that seem to have a flatter torque curve. At 4,150 RPM's the 115's it feels like you hit the "solid fuel boosters" and the 90's seem to pull like John Deere across the entire power band. They seem to have much different port timing and of course the 115's have the adjustable expansion chamber.
The three cylinder E-tec 90 with the same displacement as a Harly Davidson, planes my stripped down 19 Bow Rider off with four divers and their assorted crap at 3200 and making 17 knots. At 5,300 it makes 30 knots with the same load. I get about 3.5 NPH with the 90. My 90 is an 2007.
I have a pair of the 115's on a 25' X 10' Bertram. It tips the scales at about 7,000#'s loaded. The 60 degree V-4, 115's get 7 miles per gallon to about 1500 RPM's, then that drops to just less than 2 miles per gallon up to about 4150 where it starts to get a little better than 2.4 miles per gallon through 4800 where it drops back to a little under 2 miles per gallon. At 4150 RPM's it makes 24 MPH and at 5400 it makes 36 MPH. Nobody can believe how fast that "Toad" is with a pair of 115's on it. They are set with the Cav plates low and I still "bust the 15" square, 3 bladed wheels loose" sometimes and have to slow down so they "catch" again.
The 115's don't like to run at less than 4,150, the 90's doesn't seem to care where you set the throttle.

We run at least 60 miles a day and most times 80 or 90 miles per day here on Florida's West Coast. Ask Conner, Don V or Kmoose. We got a big 'ol wide continental shelf where you have to run a hunderd miles out to get to 120' of water. On the Atlantic Coast you can see what color bathing suits the girls on the beach are wearing when you'er in 120' of water! Look at Google Earth and you'll see why we wear motors out over here in a few years and why with National Marine Fisheries - one size don't fit all.

[Bushwacker]

There was a Seafari recently for sale on the forum with a 115 E-TEC. Should be a good source of performance info!

The V-4's were 50 lbs lighter than the 2.6L V-6 when I was looking at them, but I think they've started using the V-6 lower unit on the V-4. Although it's probably bulletproof with the big lower unit, the V-4 is much less attractive with only a 28 lb weight savings. The price differential back in 2006 was a little over $3K. You might get a better deal on a 135HO, which is a slightly detuned 150 but with a lower drag LU.

[DoozleD]

think im going to go with the 135ho...no exhaust valve, pluss i never really was a big fan of the way the v-4's ran

[fly4navy]

2nd year of running my 84 20ft. CC on a new 115 hp E-TEC.
Maxing out at 27kts. and 5300 rpm. I have not tried to tweak anything such as a prop to get any better numbers. I am running at 5 MPG at about 4900 rpm (25 its) and am up on plane at about 12 kts.
I love the combination for dependability, low noise, fuel efficiency and all the speed I can realistically use.