All this mine is fast then yours don't mean anything under the conditions that most bay boats are built to run in, its great to have a 100mph boat under the right conditions but what's it matter when its rough water. I can take an aluminum and make it do 70MPH but if it beats the crap out of you what good is it. If I have the money when I buy my next boat it will have a motor that gets from point A to point B and back to A, you maybe faster but I will pass you up on my way back in.

I suggest test rides before you buy. Lots of people like to give an opinion when they have owned neither. If your bay boat will not run in rough water you may want another boat.

Has anyone ran a sho on a low side? I do know the sho is every bit as fast on an ho as they both run in the 64 to 66
range, I'm willing to bet there would be similar results on
the low side only at slightly higher speeds.

If bay boat speed were what this was about it would be no contest, as an sbc would win by 10mph or more. It sounds like the OP is looking for reliability based upon his response.

Nice boat by the way, a 300 on a low side is scary fast.

^^^ here we go hahaha....

My opinion they are all gonna break...they are all gonna cost money....

But this ain't the 1990's get the sho yammy makes a much better motor than they did in 1995

And in my opinion merc made a better motor in the 90's

The SHO and the Merc ProXS motors (3.0L) show their weights as 505 lbs.

http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outboard...pecifications/

http://www.mercurymarine.com/engines...optimax/proxs/

I agree that IF the SHO was more fuel efficient, then rest assured Yamaha would have that posted on their website. From my experience it is very close.
That said, I have owned the Merc 225 and 250 ProXS motors and now have my 2nd SHO on my 2nd new boat. The SHO is very impressive - quiet, efficient, big time torque & excellent top end - despite being a 'Year' 1 product. There have been a few TSBs on the SHO to modify the thermostats and water pickups, as the early models would not get to desired operating temps in ultra cold water situations. My 2nd SHO had them done at the factory, so all new SHOs should be good to go.

With a motor serial number, the Atlanta Yamaha Outboard folks can tell you if the SHO you have in mind is up to spec. As you try to make your decision call the Yamaha Outboard guys in Atlanta and ask them about the SHO, saltwater use, etc. http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outboard...ctus/home.aspx

Also a number of boat companies have performance data on bay boats with the SHO from Scout, Maverick, Pathfinder, Skeeter, etc.

The LMC guys sell Mercs and Yams, so maybe go talk to them too before you decide. They do my SHO service work and I have been impressed LMC.

Good luck.

Good post Skeeter77, thanks for the information. I also shop at LMC and they now sponsor our website. I am working with David to adjust their banner before we go live.

One thing you're all over looking is the fact that ANY 4 stroke motor will burn lots of fuel at WOT. They are not designed for that speed. Where they really seperate themselves is at cruising speeds & below. You can run a 4 stoke at cruise all day long.

ETA - I would go with the SHO just for the simple fact that it is a 4 stroke and not a 2 stroke.

my 23LS/250ss is a shade over 68 on the rev limiter in cool weather with 2 people and half a tank of gas. when i re-prop this fall, i am willing to bet that i can get it even closer to 70.

the SHO should be faster than my ss.

Does anyone know the maintenance schedule on the SHO?

becuase a boat can go fast doesnt mean that you always drive it at 70mph. it does, however, mean that you can cruise efficiently at 45mph, which is a big deal when travelling 60-100miles round trip in a day.

The easier you run an engine, the longer it will last.
Going fast all the time will lessen the life of any engine.
Getting on plane quick counts most in my opinion, second in reliability.
I have a Yamaha 150, it runs good, and starts good, except in cold weather.
It's slow to start in cold weather and it sometimes dies when shifting from fwd to rev.
Most of the times it dies is when I really really need it to NOT die.

I have a 150 YAMAHA 4 stoke to. My motor is NOT any harder to start in cold weather. Like you mentioned, when going from reverse to forward or forward to reverse mine will kill to only if I move the throttle shift quickly from one to the other. If I do it slowly it does not.

My Yahama dies too much. It dies when I drop from a high speed to idle. Not just fwd to rev.
It is under warranty, but no one can find out why.

Guess I really should have worded it differently. I did have an idea about the average spped for both models. When I mentioned performance, I was really asking if anyone had experienced any problems, electronics, mechanical, nussance issues that may have been a regular occurance in the models. top speed really wasn't my main concern, whether one or the other is faster by 3,4, or 5 mph, really will have no bearing on my final decision. fuel economy, mechanical issues, and maintenance schedules were my main concern.

There are a buttload of crabbers in Big Lake that run Yamaha's on the back of Carolina Skiffs.
But if you look at the Oyster boats, they run everything on anything.

Most of those offshore rigs in Venice got yammys hangin on em. But I do love the optis. It would be hard not to go 4 stroke tho

If I were getting a new motor, it would be a 4 stroke. No particular manufacturer in mind. But that ain't happening anytime soon. Going 40mph WOT in my whaler doesn't bother me one bit. I just run in the dark so I can beat everyone there. :)

Triton has been sold and is now owned by the same group that owns Ranger, Stratos, and Champion. They are also all made in the same location.

No problem, I understand what you are looking for now. If you sort through these posts at least four of them should be helpful to you.