I've Been Running Yamaha Outboards for 30 Years. Here's Why I'll Never Switch.

I've been on the water since before some of you were born. Started fishing with my father in the early '70s, got my first boat in 1987, and have owned six outboards since then. I've seen motors come and go, watched brands make promises they couldn't keep, and learned the hard way what separates a good engine from a great one.

And I'll tell you this flat out: I've been running Yamaha for over 30 years, and I have zero intention of changing that.

Now I know what some of you are thinking — "here goes another brand loyalist who won't even consider the alternatives." Fair enough. So let me walk you through exactly why I feel the way I do, and how Yamaha stacks up against the other big names out there. I'll be straight with you, because that's the only way I know how to be.

First, a Little History

I didn't start on Yamaha. My first motor was a Mercury. Ran it for four years, had two significant breakdowns, and spent more time at the marina than I care to remember. The second breakdown happened on a Saturday morning in July, about 8 miles off Pompano Beach. Dead in the water, two friends on board, sun already cooking us at 9am. Coast Guard tow, $400 out of pocket, and a two-week wait for parts. That'll test your loyalty to a brand real fast.

Then a buddy of mine — guy named Dale, been fishing since the '60s — told me to try a Yamaha. Said he'd been running his for twelve years without a single major problem. Twelve years. On the same motor.

I was skeptical. But I made the switch, and I never looked back.

That was 1993. Since then I've put more hours on Yamaha motors than I can count, fished from the Keys to the Carolinas, and run them hard in saltwater that'll eat lesser engines alive. Every single time, Yamaha has shown up.

Yamaha vs. Mercury: The One That Gets Compared the Most

Look, Mercury makes a decent motor. I'll give them that. They've got loyal fans just like Yamaha does, and I'm not here to trash talk. But here's what I've seen over the decades:

Mercury has gone through more redesigns and engineering changes than I can keep track of. My neighbor Frank switched to a Mercury OptiMax back in the early 2000s because the salesman told him it was the future of outboard technology. Two years later he was dealing with fuel injector problems that the local dealer had never seen before. Parts took three weeks to come in. That's not a knock on Mercury alone — it's what happens when a company pushes new technology before it's truly sorted out. Yamaha has stayed the course — steady improvements without reinventing the wheel every few years.

In saltwater, which is all I've ever run, Yamaha's corrosion resistance is in a different league. I've seen Mercury motors that looked ten years older than they were because of what the salt did to them. I pulled up next to a guy at the Haulover boat ramp a few years back — he had a Mercury that was maybe six years old but the lower unit looked like it had been sitting on the bottom of the ocean. My Yamaha motors have always cleaned up like they're supposed to, year after year. A good freshwater rinse and proper flushing after every trip makes a difference, but the materials have to be there to begin with.

Fuel costs money. Always has, always will. I did the math one season — kept a log of every fill-up from March through October. Running my Yamaha F150 against a buddy's comparable Mercury on similar trips, I was consistently getting 10 to 15 percent better mileage. Over a full season that worked out to roughly $300 saved. That's a car payment. That's a new rod and reel. It adds up.

The short version: Mercury is a capable motor. Yamaha is a better one, especially if you're in saltwater and plan to keep your motor for more than a few years.

Yamaha vs. Honda: Good Motor, Wrong Priorities

I respect Honda. They build things to last and their quality control is serious. But here's the thing about Honda outboards — they feel like they were built by engineers who don't spend much time on the water.

They're smooth. They're quiet. They sip fuel. But when you want to get up on plane fast, when you need that hole shot to count, when you're offshore and need power you can trust — Honda just doesn't have the same fire in it that a Yamaha does.

I had a guy out on my boat a couple years ago who owned a Honda BF150. He'd been happy with it on his 19-foot bay boat fishing the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee. Calm, protected water. Fine for that. But we went out offshore that day, ran 25 miles to the reef, hit some 3-foot chop on the way back, and he said "my boat would be miserable in this." That's the difference. Yamaha is built for open water. Honda is built for comfortable conditions.

The dealer network is another real issue. A friend of mine was up in the Panhandle — Destin area — when his Honda started running rough. Took him half a day to find a dealer who would even look at it, and another three days to get a part shipped in. He was stuck. I've had minor things come up over the years with my Yamahas, and I've never been more than 20 or 30 minutes from a dealer who knew the motor cold.

The short version: Honda is fine for a freshwater fisherman who wants a small, efficient motor and keeps close to home. For anything serious, Yamaha wins.

Yamaha vs. Suzuki: The Underdog That Can't Quite Catch Up

Suzuki is probably the most underrated motor on the market, and I say that with respect. They make a good 4-stroke, the fuel economy is competitive, and the quality is solid. If a friend told me he bought a Suzuki I wouldn't tell him he made a mistake.

But here's the reality: a guy in my fishing club — sharp guy, does his homework — bought a Suzuki DF175 about four years ago. Loved the motor. Then last spring he blew a water pump impeller down in the Keys. Happens to anyone, no big deal, except the nearest Suzuki dealer who had the part in stock was in Miami. He was in Marathon. By the time it was all sorted out he'd lost two full days of a fishing trip he'd been planning for six months. With a Yamaha, that part would have been findable within an hour. That's not a small thing when you're 100 miles from home.

Resale value is another thing I always think about. When I sold my 2003 Yamaha F115 in 2014, I got $4,200 for it. Eleven years old and still commanded a real price. Comparable Suzukis from the same era were selling for $500 to $800 less. The market knows what Yamahas are worth because owners take care of them and they last. That reputation is built over millions of hours on the water.

The short version: Suzuki is a respectable choice. But Yamaha's network, resale value, and track record in saltwater put it ahead.

What 30 Years Has Taught Me About Yamaha

Here's what I know from actually running these motors, not just reading spec sheets:

They're built for saltwater. Back in 2009 I ran my Yamaha F200 through back-to-back days offshore during a stretch when the water was particularly rough and the spray was constant. Came back, rinsed it down, ran it again the next morning without a hiccup. The aluminum alloy, the coatings, the sealed electrics — it all adds up to a motor that doesn't corrode out from under you.

The maintenance is simple and the parts are everywhere. I do my own oil changes, impeller replacements, and spark plug swaps. Always have. With Yamaha, everything I need comes in one maintenance kit — oil, filter, plugs, gear lube. I order it, it shows up, and I spend a Saturday morning in the driveway instead of $300 at a marina. One season I tracked my maintenance costs versus what a buddy paid having his serviced at the dealer. I spent $180 in parts. He spent $620 for the same work done to a different brand. That's money that stays in my pocket.

The propellers make a difference — and Yamaha gives you options. I run a 21-pitch 3-blade for most of my offshore trips, but I've got a 19-pitch 4-blade I swap in when I'm running in choppier water or need better bite for a heavier load. Yamaha's prop selection is deep enough to actually let you tune the performance. I've seen guys running the wrong prop on a great motor and wondering why their boat feels sluggish. Get the right Yamaha prop and the same engine feels like a different machine.

They hold their value. I already mentioned the F115 I sold. Before that I sold a 1998 Yamaha 90hp two-stroke in 2005 — got $2,800 for a seven-year-old motor in good condition. Buyers line up for used Yamahas. You won't find that with every brand.

The oil matters more than people think. I've seen guys dump off-brand oil in their Yamaha to save $10 and then complain at 350 hours that the motor is burning oil or running rough. Genuine Yamaha oil is formulated for these engines. It's not a marketing gimmick — it's chemistry designed specifically for how these motors are built. I've used it exclusively since day one. My motors have always run clean. Coincidence? I don't think so.

The Bottom Line, Plain and Simple

I've watched a lot of trends come and go in the boating world. Brands that were hot for a few years and then faded. New technology that promised everything and delivered half. Through all of it, Yamaha has been consistent — same commitment to quality, same reliability, same performance on the water.

If you're buying your first outboard, buy a Yamaha. If you're replacing one that's let you down, buy a Yamaha. And when you do, use genuine Yamaha oil, put the right prop on it, and keep up with the maintenance kits. Do that, and you'll be running the same motor twenty years from now telling somebody else why you'll never switch.

Trust me. Thirty years doesn't lie.

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