Cruising World - May 2016

HANDS-ON SAILOR

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58

fuel-injected engines.

Those might address fuel

problems, as my experience

with fuel-injected outboard

engines versus carbureted

ones indicates that the fuel-

injected units have fewer

fuel-system problems. This

is probably because the fuel-

injected engine’s onboard

CPU is programmed to

compensate to some degree

for minor fuel inequities;

in other words, it has some

inherent intelligence.

Unfortunately, carburetors

have an IQ of zero.

Last but not least, Lehr

of ers a propane fuel option

in 2.5- to 25-horsepower

confi gurations. With these

units, you certainly don’t

have to worry about clogged

carburetors due to ethanol

content, but they still have

issues. Complaints in online

forums question the quality of

things like cover latches that

break during normal use — a

small but annoying matter.

The other issue is noise. In

a comparison test conducted

by BoatU.S., three things

stood out on the Lehr

2.5-horsepower engine: It was

noisier than the competition

and it vibrated more, but on

the plus side, it propelled

the test boat faster than

comparable motors in its

class. By all reports, Lehr’s

larger motors are not quite

as noisy. Lehr also deserves

some special kudos for

its electric-start features;

better yet, the company has

designed the starter utilizing

a 2-pound lithium-ion battery

that is self-contained in the

power head of the engine,

eliminating the need for a

separate battery that takes up

space in an already cramped

dinghy. These starters are

available on Lehr’s 9.9 -, 15-

and 25-horsepower engines,

meaning that all but the

smallest dinghies could

benefi t from this feature.

Another cool option for Lehr

motors of up to 15 horsepower

is the ability to use a small

camp-stove-style propane

bottle that screws right into a

recess in the power head. It’s

one less thing to take up space

in the smaller dinghies that

typically use these engines.

WEIGHT MATTERS

A profound issue for all

outboard engines is the great

weight discrepancy between

air- and water-polluting two-

stroke models and the much

more EPA-friendly four-

stroke technology. The new

four-strokes are typically

Evinrude’s two-stroke 15 hp electronically fuel-injected

outboard (1) weighs about 184 pounds — quite heavy when

compared to the 114-pound four-stroke model of the same

horsepower (2).

COURTESY OF THE MANUFACTURER

TECH TIPS

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