2001 Utopia 200 hp V6 - pre-purchase question about motor

[schnur7]

I'm looking at purchasing a 2001 Utopia 185 listed on Craigslist. They list it as having a Mercury 200 hp V6. Can somebody tell about this motor and whether I should avoid this motor or not? Would it be better to wait and find a newer version? EFI? And if it's a decent motor, any questions I should ask the buyer about it? I'd like to know if he has any service records, but wondering if there's anything of particular concern I should ask related to this motor. Also wondering how hard it is to have somebody work on it. I'm not mechanically enough inclined with boats to do much of the work myself. I currently have a Sugar Sand Mirage with a 175 hp Mercury Sportjet but looking for something that can sit more than 5 people.

thanks for any help you can provide

 

[Coastiejoe]

Generally speaking, very good motor. Most here, as well as at Sea Doo dealers, know the Seadoo engines. When the Merc engine needs service they are a bit more challenging and expensive. [MENTION=16022]Dr Honda[/MENTION] knows these engines well and he can provide good additional info.

 

[schnur7]

Thanks for the reply. I called the owner and asked him about the boat and he said the motor was rebuilt about 3 years ago. Said it was the Optimax. He said he took it to Anthony Truck Repair in Tacoma Wa and then the motor was sent to Pittsburgh to be rebuilt. He said it cost him $7500. Does any of this make sense? Why would they have to send it to Pittsburgh?

I also called a mercury motor repair shop and he said he can work on carbureted versions but doesn't have the equipment to work on fuel injection. Isn't the OPtimax carbureted? He said they're a pain to work on because there's no room to get at them. He prefers outboards...

 

[Dr Honda]

The Merc engines are very reliable... and if it got a new engine 3 years ago... then it should be fine.

The 200hp merc, as you were told, is an "Optimax" engine. It is a DFI engine. (direct fuel injection) It makes good power, and is more fuel efficient than the carbs or regular EFI engines.

If you would look at my posts from 4~5 years ago... You would see me telling people to stay away from the merc engines. Mostly because they are expensive to work on. But as the 2-strokes get older... you will run into the same issues. If you buy a twin rotax boat... and need an engine, you can be assured that the second engine needs replaced too. So... that will be a $2k~$3k project. But, the merc engines are VERY reliable, and the up side is, the HP is relatively low for their size. Because of that, they are more tolerant of conditions that are less than perfect.


Regardless of "is it any good" or "is it reliable"... you have to take a step back, and realize you are looking at a 15 year old boat. Reliability all comes from the last owner, and how well they took care of it. Boats are not like cars. If they are neglected, or poorly winterized... then they can be junk after just a couple years.


With that all said... if you can work on the boat yourself... an it's running well now... then I wouldn't hesitate to buy it. If you have to pay a shop to work on it... then go finance a new boat with a warranty, because a small problem can get VERY expensive.