# Mercury v Yamaha kickers



## cwk33041 (Dec 30, 2013)

Looking for some feedback on what is the preferred kicker motor merc pro 9.9 or Yamaha 9.9. Looking to upgrade from my current manual tilt 9.9 (it's in the forsale section...).
Anyways any advice from you guys is greatly appreciated.


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## Stillkickin (Jan 7, 2018)

Both are good motors, I always lean toward Yamaha but that’s just my personal preference.


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## flinchjerk (May 3, 2018)

Buy both,Yammy for good reliable power and Merc if you need an anchor.


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## hawgeye (Mar 3, 2011)

Suzuki. They're the only one with efi. 

Sent from my moto z3 using Michigan Sportsman mobile app


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## Northernfisher (Jul 29, 2010)

Honda are good also.


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## ESOX (Nov 20, 2000)

hawgeye said:


> Suzuki. They're the only one with efi.
> 
> Sent from my moto z3 using Michigan Sportsman mobile app


Love my Yamahas, but the EFI on the Suzuki would be enough to convince me to get one. They build a solid motor, and no choke to hang over the stern messing with is very desirable.


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## sullyxlh (Oct 28, 2004)

flinchjerk said:


> ..and Merc if you need an anchor.


What's your experience with the new ones?


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## flinchjerk (May 3, 2018)

sullyxlh said:


> What's your experience with the new ones?


None, not normally one to let a company sell me complete junk more than twice.


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## sportsman98 (Dec 6, 2010)

Some of the merc's also only have a 6 Amp alternator. Not sure about the Yamaha's but my honda 9.9 has a 12 amp and it's awesome to have. 

Sent from my SM-G930V using Michigan Sportsman mobile app


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## aquaalf (May 28, 2017)

I would take a Yamaha, Suzuki, or Honda before a Merc., just my opinion. I have only been stranded on the water 2 times, both on boats powered by Merc.


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## Gater DONE (Jan 17, 2010)

aquaalf said:


> I would take a Yamaha, Suzuki, or Honda before a Merc., just my opinion. I have only been stranded on the water 2 times, both on boats powered by Merc.


I may be mistaken but Tohatsu makes the Merc,and Evinrude kickers currently.

the Tohatsu and Suzuki 9.9 are EFI the Merc, yamaha & Evinrude are still Carbed

The 15hp merc is efi.


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## Gater DONE (Jan 17, 2010)

sportsman98 said:


> Some of the merc's also only have a 6 Amp alternator. Not sure about the Yamaha's but my honda 9.9 has a 12 amp and it's awesome to have.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930V using Michigan Sportsman mobile app


Yamaha are only 6 amp as well

edit, tohatsu 9.9's are 12 amp


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## piketroller (Oct 24, 2016)

The EFI 9.9 Suzuki is the same size as their 15 HP motor. I believe the Merc ProKicker 15 is also EFI, so that would be your apples to apples comparison.

If you want the absolute best kicker on the market and can handle an extra 60 pounds or so, the Evinrude E-tec 15 H.O. is the way to go. 

On the Yamaha side, they make a kicker version of their 25 HP motor with EFI which is the lightest 25 HP motor on the market. It’s not marked as a kicker for walleye boats, but the west coast guys use it for that purpose on heavy boats.


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## flinchjerk (May 3, 2018)

aquaalf said:


> I would take a Yamaha, Suzuki, or Honda before a Merc., just my opinion. I have only been stranded on the water 2 times, both on boats powered by Merc.


I would take a quality set of oars over the Merc for the same reasons.


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## sullyxlh (Oct 28, 2004)

flinchjerk said:


> None, not normally one to let a company sell me complete junk more than twice.


Every automaker has had vehicles with issues and recalls do you walk everywhere?

OP,
No issues with my 2016 9.9 CT Merc kicker at all

And none with my 16 150 4s or my old 06 90hp or my 97 25hp

Take care off your stuff it'll last.

Some good motor's coming out of Merc right now..


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## flinchjerk (May 3, 2018)

sullyxlh said:


> Every automaker has had vehicles with issues and recalls do you walk everywhere?
> 
> OP,
> No issues with my 2016 9.9 CT Merc kicker at all
> ...


How to properly care for a Merc. Unbolt from transom and push it, preferably over real deep water. Just my opinion don't let it bother you. Do you own a dealership or something?


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## scubajay (Jun 9, 2003)

Of course there are many things to consider when buying a new outboard. Folks form opinions based upon their own experiences.

Here are mine:
Honda: I have an 8hp kicker and it has been bulletproof for the past 20 years, but can be a little tough to start cold.
Suzuki: My current outboard, a 2018 30hp, is the best outboard motor I have ever owned. Love the battery-less EFI.
Johnson: The only experience I have with the e-tec was a bad one. New motor, less than 20 hours old, put a rod through the crankcase. Had to be towed in. Replaced under warranty, sold immediately. Won't own another.
Mercury: I wanted this to be a good choice, but it constantly had little problems until the day that it died all together. Won't own another.


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## kroppe (May 7, 2000)

Honda.

I have a 2003 Honda 9.9 4 stroke carbureted. It is reliable, quiet and fuel efficient. It can be hard to cold start as mentioned above, this seems to be common. Not sure if in the most recent models this has been improved.

Honda has very good parts support from their factory/corporate website. It allows you to run a Honda motor for many years.


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## Gater DONE (Jan 17, 2010)

flinchjerk said:


> How to properly care for a Merc. Unbolt from transom and push it, preferably over real deep water. Just my opinion don't let it bother you. Do you own a dealership or something?


What merc motor did you have an issue with? Other than the optimax, every one that I owned has been very simple and had easy maintaince. Even the old wme carbs are the easiest carbs I've ever rebuilt.

There are no real known issues with there 4 stroke motors that they put out now.


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## flinchjerk (May 3, 2018)

Gater DONE said:


> What merc motor did you have an issue with? Other than the optimax, every one that I owned has been very simple and had easy maintaince. Even the old wme carbs are the easiest carbs I've ever rebuilt.
> 
> There are no real known issues with there 4 stroke motors that they put out now.


87 20HP cold blooded P.O.S , not reliable coughed and gagged below 50 degrees if and when it started,ate coils and not even close to reliable, first name basis with marina owner on that one, bought new, sold cheap at 4 or 5 yrs old.

91 or 92 25HP same as above plus it ate head gaskets bought new gave it away 7 or 8 years later.

98 40 hp ate clutch parts like candy, pretty cold blooded also. Bought 1 yr old had it about 3 yrs installed several coils in it also. traded it for a 4hp internal tank Johnson for my rollover boat and felt guilty. 

My oldest current motor is a 79 35HP Johnson that was originally my Brothers. In all them years it has had a few water pumps from running in silt/sand on the way to the dock and from grounding it in duck marshes. It will start in seconds even if the water skims around the lower unit.

I am getting ready to re power another boat. I would pick up a 30 yr old Johnson/Evinrude from the scrapyard before I would accept a brand new merc for free.


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## cliftp (Jan 13, 2007)

ESOX said:


> gy1
> I have an '08 T8. It can be a bit cold blooded, but not a real pain. It just needs a little old fashioned choke manipulation. If yours is making oil, change the plugs. Those T8's can have a misfiring plug that you would somehow never notice any roughness in the engine. Both times I saw oil level increasing a new set of plugs cured it. The other thing is make sure the choke is indeed all the way open when you push in the choke lever. I helped a guy put a Troll Master on one that the choke wasn't opening all the way. I saw it when we were doing the installation. His quit "making oil" when the choke was properly opening completely.


Thanks, I'll check that too!

Paul C


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## cliftp (Jan 13, 2007)

perchjerker said:


> Hey Paul I have about the same vintage Yamaha what I have found for cold start is to pump the throttle all the way forward 10 times before cranking it up this gives a good shot of fuel for that initial cold start up works very well for my motor
> Mine has an automatic choke


Thanks, something else to try. The motor runs great for the whole day wants it gets past the initial start. Current plugs have probably 20 hours on them.

Thank you all.

Paul C.


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