Best Engine in the History of Bass Fishing

No doubt the engine is well proven.

Steve, you statement ” arguably best engine for a bass boat ever made” is certainly a matter of opinion.  I don’t know if you’re old enough to remember several years back and the Opti is certainly one of the best, but as to the best, it was hard to beat the old 4cylinder 90 degree V’s from OMC.  These included the 115, the 135 and the 140.  Another one to give the Opti a run for the money is the 2.5 Mercury, either in a 135, 150 (workhorse for years) and 175.  I do agree with you that shying away from the 3.0 Mercury because the new 4 strokes are out doesn’t make sense. 

BTW, I run a 3.0 225 on my Puma and it does really well

John

Also hard to forget the Merc XR-6.  Stout motor, ran forever, without all the electronics of EFI and such.  They spent a TON of time and money developing that motor which became the standard to beat.

This may surprise everyone, though we really like the old Johnson/Evinrude Fastrike and Intruder Series. Great products and seemed to still be durable.

On my third 2.5 Merc 200.  Had two Pro XS’s also.  It’s a shame to see people shying away from the two strokes with the deals that are out on the used market.  Though my current 2.5 is trashed I bought the boat that way, the rest of the boat was neglected as well.  Mr Coleman in Houston will have me fixed up soon though.

Never had many problems with my Merc two strokes, especially the Pro XS.  My 14 PII had a ProXS that had to get the fuel pump diaphragm replaced one time and that was it. Nothing else needed but regular maintenance.

Myself, I want the new 4 stroke for its torque alone, and taller RPM band then an issue of durability. I believe that’s where the thought process falls with the 2 stroke having a issue of resale.

In response to Steve Doty’s Assertion as being old enough, my history goes back beyond the XR’2 day’s. That and several OMC engines as well! I guess today regardless of how well kept and maintained our 2 strokes are it boils down to perception over reality! As in politics preception is 90% and reality 10%. As Steve states there is nothing wrong with the ProXs 2 strokes, and there is an abundance of mega deals out there if folks get off there hands and check them out, ask for a check ride, I’m sure most if not all will gladly take you out! Just by looking some of these “deals” are not open-ended, those that are looking, better look hard!!  May not be around long!