Why I changed from Suzuki to Honda Outboard
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- čas přidán 28. 06. 2024
- i recently changed outboards on our tender. This video shows why I made the switch.
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Hands down, Honda makes the best outboard, ATV, generator, motorcycle, and the list goes on…
Some great points you brought up. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Apparently Honda doesn't make a 6HP these days. I'm a Honda person, but they only offered 5HP or 8HP. My boat is rated for 7HP, so I recently bought the Suzuki DF6A. I wanted all recommended HP I could get, as I knew I would probably need it to plane out when I wasn't alone. It was also the lightest option by several pounds, and that was possibly my most important consideration. And it was the least expensive of the small Japanese outboards, which was very important out of sheer necessity. The unbeatable 5-year warranty also helped. Plus, I have owned three Suzuki motorcycles over the years that were all wonderful to own and operate. Two of them are in the garage right now, and are 10 and 17 years old respectively, They are still ultra-dependable and are ridden often, so I do trust the brand completely.
One somewhat negative thing I have noticed since the purchase, is that Suzuki outboard information, parts and accessories are not as easy to come by when compared to some other brands. Mercury/Tohatsu {same motor) and Yamaha seem to be the king of the small outboard motors, at least in the USA. You can't toss a dead cat here without hitting one of those, and all the big department stores with a boat aisle will have plenty of their stuff on the shelf. All the related online forums are slap full of useful information too. Anything you might need to know will instantly be at your fingertips. I pretty much had to research my butt off, and then order the DF6 fuel connector online. And it wasn't cheap. It was almost as if they were trying to get back some of the money I had saved by buying a Suzuki in the first place. Other than that though, everything has been great.
Anyway, thanks for the video.
Yep. The Suzuki 15hp I had a while back was a great little trouble free motor and the 6 was good too. They're easy to pull apart and fix on the run. Loving the electric ob I'm running now, but miss the speed.
Maybe there's a way to mount both.
Cheers Dude.
Great video
Thanks Dude
Not sure if you’ve started a 4strike mower lately Norm. I upgraded my old Honda to a New model about three years ago. It starts first time every time and the pull pressure required is ridiculously easy. Good luck with the new donk.
Definitely haven't started a mower for a long time Patrick. But are loving how easy this Honda is to pull start and Wendi can do it too.
It's a great feature on a very well produced product.
Cheers mate.
I did much the same. My dingy's five horse Yam was a pain to start. Ripping the pull start out of my hand and caused me a few skinned nuckles. It was only a few months old but I changed it for a five horse Honda. I much prefer it, its a cracking little motor. I have to say though , Ive got a 60 horse high thrust Yam on my work boat and other than a power trim faliure its done a thousand hours in three years and been faultless. Keen to try a Suzuki 80 next, but the local dealer is not the best.
The Suzukis are good. had a great run out of a 15hp I had on a rubber duck. But the decomp on the Honda is a winner dude.
Our family has a little 4 horsepower Honda outboard motor. Fantastic little unit no reliability issues at all. We generally run it at full throttle without concern. It has really good economy.
Yeah Dudes. Great motors.
thought this was r peek for a second. good review
Thanks dude
I repowered with a Honda BF225 after looking real hard at all the others. It was a good choice, lots of power and top end and extremely quite! 6HP or 225HP, I think Honda is the best choice. Not the least expensive, but IMHO, the best!
Yep mate, a great product
Nice review norm , I’m over inflatable boats and next time will be finding a replacement option
Me too Richard. They don't last in the sun. Love the Spindrift and the Honda seems to work well on the back.
Cheers mate.
30 years on my Hypalon boat both in and out of the sun. Just now starting to loose air after 3 days.
Cheers.
I just purchased a new 6hp Honda and I love your " cow cover ". Where can I purchase a white cover like yours? I live in Texas in the USA but could only find a 6hp and purchased the motor from the UK. Still waiting on delivery of the motor. its scheduled to arrived around the 27th of February. I too want to protect the motor and your cover looks great. Thanks
Hi Lindy. I purchased it as aftermarket part from Honda dealer.
The new elec oboard I have, I made a cover by cutting up an old wetsuit. Doesn't look as good but great protection.
Darn'it, I was hoping to locate one like yours. I've looked everywhere but no luck. I guess I'll keep looking tho. I wanted a 6 hp also, but could only find a 5 hp here in the USA, but eventually found one in the UK and got it. Thank you so much for your information and quick response. Maybe I too will get lucky as you and find one. Because of you, ( showing us your " cowling cover" and given me the fever), you have started me on another treasure hunt! haha If I do locate one I will be sure and give you a shout out. You are so kind! Thanks Again!@@MotorSailingforOldDudes
The Aussies must be missing the 2 stroke smell . My mariner magnum motor smells great ....And I miss my rd400dx when I was young and mental....
Yep Don't miss the lack of economy though
Thanks Norm ... because I've Yamaha 9.9s.... and all my tanks have yam. Conections. I might look at the Yam. 6hp. ? All though my Honda 2.3 is so good I bought a second !!! Still can't find the Spindrift 2.4 review but I'll keep looking. Thanks again.
as i know yamaha 6hp have plastic camshaft sprockets i dont know why they made it out of plastic..
@@WhiteThunder1296 good to know I was about to buy one
@@Burritosarebetterthantacos im not sure about newer models you should check as yamaha is very reliable and they also have good service line for sure
1 week ago when i sustained a deep bruise to my left forearm after pull-starting my new Suzuki DF6AS 6HP with my right hand, the rubber pull 'T'-handle came straight out of my right hand on a failed start and buried itself into my left forearm inside on kick back and recoil, which really realy hurt, and i remember thinking "what this engine needs is a decompression system" i still have the bruise today and a small cut and a small lump on the bruised muscle. Apart from that, my main reasons for buying the Suzuki was for bullet proof reliability as i have owned a Suzuki car for 14 years since new and the engine is bullet proof, also the DF6AS only weighs 24.5kg and it matched the exact weight and HP i needed, but boy...the DF6AS really could do with a decompression start system.
Yep Did it many times. Bloody hurts.
That's why I swapped to the Honda.
Better still I've gone electric now. Fantastic.
We have a fairly new Honda 4 stroke 20 HP. Not a bad motor, but they are very hard to get parts for in Australia. It is a real pain when something goes wrong. Also, the 20hp has a badly designed and tiny impeller for the size of the motor. I know from talking to mechanics that this is a real weak point in the motor. Ours actually failed at very low hours, but it was too difficult to get warranty service when we were in Sydney, so we just paid to have it fixed (actually replaced the whole pump).
I was actually thinking about replacing ours with a Yamaha or Suzuki as I have concerns about reliability and ability to get parts when there is a problem.
Fair call Keith. I may have the same problem with warranty as it will be hard to get a dealer to wherever I am. Will service it myself. The dealer I purchased from said that I would get a reduced warranty if I did that, but can't see anything mentioning that in the service manual. Something to think about for the future.
Well Norm, I don't think you could have chosen a better manufacturer than HONDA! Everything they build that requires a small motor seems almost bullet proof. I noticed the extension on the tiller/throttle, is that something you purchase seperately or does the motor come with it? It sure does allow to sit more in the center of the skiff and makes for a safer ride. So glad you are back at home and on your boat!
Yes I am enjoying the new motor and it is making life easier Edward.
The tiller extension is an add on, and gets the handle across the quite wide transom section of the dinghy.
Out cruising again and heading north.
Cheers mate.
@@MotorSailingforOldDudes Honda has always been an engine company, and they're just selling you the engine and throwing in everything else for free.
The reason at times with the Suzuki you found it hard to pull was if you had it laying down even the proper way oil leaked into the power head and ive had it so bad i had to remove the spark plug to get it to turn over. I went from a Mercury to a Suzuki mainly because of the dealer and the service.. My mercury was a r 5 HP and my Suzuki is a 2.5 Hp. I found the 5 HP a little heavy to be taking it off and putting it back on the zodiac every time i put her back on the boat. Did you ever find out why your dingy sank on you. I very seldom tow my zodiac behind my big boat, as like you i did have it fill with water once being towed and being a zodiac it didn't sink. Hope you have a great boating season, by the looks of it here in Canada we are not going to have a boating season. I enjoy you videos and the difference in boating there then we have here in the great lakes. I didn't realize that crossing the bars can be that dangerous at times.
Thanks for the comments Gary.
Never laid the engine down, it was always on the back of the tender in the upright position. It just came up on compression sometimes and pulled the starter chord out of the fingers.
Don't know why it sank, but needless to say it goes on the davit now. Glad I didn't have the motor on, which may have helped to submerge it without the weight astern.
Glad you're enjoying the vids, it is a great hobby putting them together.
I guess your summer has nearly arrived and you can get get out on the lakes. If Covid19 lets you.
Cheers from Aus mate.
Hello Norm!
So, after 2 years, how's the motor doing? Any trouble so far?
I'm in need of a motor and I'm wondering between honda, Suzuki or tohatsu.
Kind regards!
No dude. It has been very reliable. Has become a little bit tight in the steering pivot.
Strange...Honda dropped the BF6. I had every intention on buying one. Thanks for review.
trust me better for you.. i had one and i gave it back to the shop where i bought it.. also i know two more friends with exactly same problems i had and they experienced even few more problems.. as a honda fan i can say i am little bit disapointed
I have the same problem with my Tohatsu, but the cause is the safety catch that doesn't allow you to start it in gear. It's supposed to lock the starter rope when the motor is in gear, but it's not very good about staying dis-engaged when in neutral. Sometimes it will catch just after you start pulling the rope, stopping the rope instantly. Is this perhaps what was happening on the Suzuki?
No Matt,
The Suzi just had lots of compression. The Honda has a lobe on the cam that decompresses the cylinder when starting.
@Motor Sailing for Old Dudes so is that why tohatsu is also difficult to start? I got 6hp
@@ia6980 the Tohatsu should start easy if you pull the rope like you mean it. Maybe this will help: czcams.com/video/nSBnPaX5Hw8/video.html
Nice Video, which is better in term of engine performance and the ease of starting , and maintenance.... Mercury 3.5HP or Honda 2.3HP ? I will use it for my Inflatable boat and will need to lie it down when transporting it in the back of my car ... what you recommend ?
If they are 2 stroke motors, usually easy to start. 4 strokes can have a problem with compression. Try for a 2 stroke in that situation.
Cheers mate.
The honda 2.3 is fantastic .A little noisy though .Pull start very easy and cheap as chips to run.
@@crafter170
Da gebe ich dir Recht! Luftkühler, günstig, stark, sehr robust und langlebig, Spritverbrauch sehr gut perfekt für kleine Boote. 👌
@@Baltic_Bushcraft Danke ! ....Ps also bought a tohatsu 8hp 2 stroke ....For fishing and fun in Scotland .Boys and their toys
@@crafter170
😁 oh ja
Ich habe jetzt noch enen Honda 15 Ps an einem Honwave 3,50m 🥳
Hey Norm, how often do you flush her? being on the tender unsure how hard that makes it?
Only flush it if I'm not going to use for a while. Like to run the fuel out of carbi too dude
Whats your opinion on 6hp tohatsu? Currently have lots of issues, had it for 1yr and its year of 2023
Can't really comment Dude.
I have never had one.
Like the electric one I have now. Very simple.
Hi Norm, love to know what tender you have here,Please?
It's called a Spndrift. Were made in WA. Not sure if still available. Very bulletproof dude.
Any reliability issues in your previous suzuki motor??
No Very reliable. Just the pull start problem.
What year did you by the old Suzuki
Oh not sure. Think about 5 years ago. It was a good motor, but the compression on start was a killer dude.
@@MotorSailingforOldDudes
I just brought a small tender and I am thinking of putting a 6hp Suzuki on it.
They are really good points with starting the motor and I will consider that.
I love honders.....Lol
Yep. Good little unit.
Is suzuki outboards more reliable than yamaha??
Never had a Yammy, but by all accounts they are a pretty good product dude.
I’ll take a Yamaha over a Suzuki any day.