Contrary to what I believed earlier, there is a Yamaha SHO engine shortage. It seems a couple of factors are driving this; increased demand due to many boats getting wiped out from 2017’s hurricanes and increased demand on new boat orders not related to hurricane (insurance) replacements.
I was told by my dealer that production of the Ranger Z 521 L I’ve ordered is on hold due to this engine shortage. It was to have gone into production to where I would be getting the boat by early March. But who knows now. From searching the web, I read from a couple of weeks to six months delay in getting the engines. My dealer has not received any official information from the manufacturer, but he is trying to get something he and I can plan with.
So now I’m back to considering a Verado or seeing if Mercury announces a new 4-stroke in the 250 hp version. It seems very odd to me that Mercury has let Yamaha hold the lightweight, high horsepower, high performing 4-stroke market by themselves for so many years but I have to consider all of the R&D money they have put into the Verado that has not gained wide acceptance in several boating niches.
Ranger does not offer the Verado on the build pages of their web site and I’ve heard (rumor) that they are not offering Verados on the boat I’ve ordered. I’ll just have to wait and see what my dealer finds out about that.
In the meantime, I am seriously considering deferring any engine decision until Mercury announces what they may at the Miami Boat Show that is coming up Feb 15-19. This is the traditional event Mercury announces new products and the show is less than 4 weeks away. Rumor has it they will announce a 4-stroke line that will compete with SHOs and they will be released by April. If that is the case, I will wait for a lightweight Mercury 4-stroke and say hasta la vista to Yamaha. I am hesitant to buy a Verado without demo’ing due primarily to its weight penalty.
Any thoughts or news is appreciated.
I was told by my dealer that production of the Ranger Z 521 L I’ve ordered is on hold due to this engine shortage. It was to have gone into production to where I would be getting the boat by early March. But who knows now. From searching the web, I read from a couple of weeks to six months delay in getting the engines. My dealer has not received any official information from the manufacturer, but he is trying to get something he and I can plan with.
So now I’m back to considering a Verado or seeing if Mercury announces a new 4-stroke in the 250 hp version. It seems very odd to me that Mercury has let Yamaha hold the lightweight, high horsepower, high performing 4-stroke market by themselves for so many years but I have to consider all of the R&D money they have put into the Verado that has not gained wide acceptance in several boating niches.
Ranger does not offer the Verado on the build pages of their web site and I’ve heard (rumor) that they are not offering Verados on the boat I’ve ordered. I’ll just have to wait and see what my dealer finds out about that.
In the meantime, I am seriously considering deferring any engine decision until Mercury announces what they may at the Miami Boat Show that is coming up Feb 15-19. This is the traditional event Mercury announces new products and the show is less than 4 weeks away. Rumor has it they will announce a 4-stroke line that will compete with SHOs and they will be released by April. If that is the case, I will wait for a lightweight Mercury 4-stroke and say hasta la vista to Yamaha. I am hesitant to buy a Verado without demo’ing due primarily to its weight penalty.
Any thoughts or news is appreciated.
