Outboard hours - how many is to many
 

I've never had larger hp outboards before except for small 15/25 hp fishing motors, anyway I'll be looking for a CC after the first of the year, I know what is acceptable hours for me for inboard/outboards, but how do they compare with outboards.

Does 300 hours use on a outboard equal 300 hours on a i/o, I would think the hours on twin 300 mercs would be harder than on my twin 502s, any comments, of course this is assuming they were run the same way, I'm talking just pure amount of hours.

Example 32' 2008 CC with twin 300hp, how many hours is pushing it, is 500 too many and when would they have to be rebuilt.

Thanks for your help, Jim

It depends which 300's you're referring to. If you're talking about 300x, I hear 250-300 is about all you get out of them on my friends skaters. I would expect to get more on the other models (xs)... the 4 stokes should go a lot further.

Depending on maintenance and usage 2000hours plus life span is quite common on larger 4 stroke outboards, invariably these motors (and the boats the are used on) aren't run as hard as your typical offshore boat.

Personally I'd be comfortable at anywhere upto 1000 hours but would be looking at the computers for run times and how they where run.

Would much rather have the four stroke, at least that's what I'll be looking for when I get started.

300 Verado's will run forever !!! Well almost.

You see the majority of the Hull Truth guys trading in or upgrading around 800-1200 hrs. on just about every make and model out there. I'm sure there's plenty of life left in most them. The hardcore fishing crowd seems to want to keep things 100% turn key and under warranty.

Definitely will depend on which motor they are and also how hard they've been run. Most of the newer OB's with fuel injection can be connected to a scan tool which will not only give you total hours, but will also give you total hours throughout the RPM ranges. Just as you would do with a BBC, a compression check at minimum, but a leakdown is even better. Compression will vary depending on model, but you want to see all of the cylinders within a few pounds. Leakdown should be 10% or less (at least on 2 strokes)

I would sure ask around about the Honda's for reliability. I'm not so sure that they wouldn't run pretty fast if set up correctly.
I've got real close to 500 hrs on my Promax 300's, still run over 100, with 4 peeps and 100 gallons of fuel.

Thanks for the help, my first choice would be the 300 verados, they seem pretty much bullet proof, but we'll see what kind of deals come along.

One of the fishing captains I know down here ran 2000+hrs on his Hondas before swapping them out for Suzukis.