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BRP going out of business!

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mkus

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Man, they build some great engines and outdoor products. What a shame.

 

I can't say I'm surprised. The 4stroke heads ruined the dirt bikes first. A few held their ground like KTM, but also caved and built 4strokes. Evinrude didn't cave.

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We are proud to have supplied you with outboard engines over the past 110 years. For business reasons, we have made the difficult and thoughtful decision to discontinue manufacturing of our outboard engines to focus on the next generation of propulsion. 

 

We know you probably have questions about how this decision will impact where to go for services, parts availability and whether your current  warranty coverage or service contract are affected. Rest assured, our teams and dealer network will continue to be there to support you.

 

 

 

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OMC made a major strategic error in the late 1980s/early 1990s, and could never recover.

 

When I was growing up, Evinrudes and Johnsons were all anyone used.  Mercurys were viewed as "speed" and ":freshwater" engines, and not popular among fishermen.  Homelite 4-cycles were available, but they were only made in 55 hp, were expensive, and not completely reliable.  Some little Sears and other off-brands were around.  The Japanese engines had not yet arrived.  OMC ruled the roost.  Tough, reliable and easy to fix.

 

Then sometime around 1990 give or take a year or two, they changed their manufacturing process, trying to cheapen things up by using the same overall design for all of their engines except for the very small ones.  If I recall correctly, a V-6 235 was their big engine back then.  The cylinders on their V-4s, which included the workhorse 150s, which were probably the most popular engines they made at the time, were essentially made in the same casting process as the V-6s, but with 2 fewer cylinders.  Then they made a straight 3 for somewhat smaller engines, cast as one side of the V-6.

 

The new process cheapened production, but it didn't work.  The 150s started blowing up on a regular basis; appoarently, there was a problem with the way the piston rings were designed, and the pistons were binding.  A friend bought a 28-foot Grady White with a pair of 235s; the engines never ran right, and other people were finding the same problem.  It turned out the solution was to de-tune the engines, which effectively left you with 185s--which you could have purchased for less in the first place, if that was what you were willing to settle for.  The long-earned reputation for reliability began to fall apart.  You started seeing more Mercurys on the salt water.  And Yamaha was making its big push, emphasized reliability, and captured a big piece of the market.  

 

OMC was in trouble, but it was trouble it had earned.  An outdoor writer I know, who specializes in salt water fishing and, in particular, salt water fishing boats, told me that he was offered special deals on OMC engines, but had so many problems with them, that he wouldn't put them on his boat if Evinrude gave them to him for free--and if you knew this particular writer, you'd know that "free" was his primary requirment for anything that he used.

 

So OMC went bankrupt.  Bombardier devoured the corpse, and produced engines under the Evinrude name.  But even if the new E-TECs were better engines--and I can't speak to that, because I never knew anyone willing to buy one, and never fished on an E-TEC powered boat, the damage was done.  Once your reputation is in the crapper, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to get it back.

 

And so Evinrude died.

"I have always believed that outdoor writers who come out against fish and wildlife conservation are in the wrong business. To me, it makes as much sense golf writers coming out against grass.."  --  Ted Williams

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13 hours ago, CWitek said:

OMC made a major strategic error in the late 1980s/early 1990s, and could never recover.

 

When I was growing up, Evinrudes and Johnsons were all anyone used.  Mercurys were viewed as "speed" and ":freshwater" engines, and not popular among fishermen.  Homelite 4-cycles were available, but they were only made in 55 hp, were expensive, and not completely reliable.  Some little Sears and other off-brands were around.  The Japanese engines had not yet arrived.  OMC ruled the roost.  Tough, reliable and easy to fix.

 

Then sometime around 1990 give or take a year or two, they changed their manufacturing process, trying to cheapen things up by using the same overall design for all of their engines except for the very small ones.  If I recall correctly, a V-6 235 was their big engine back then.  The cylinders on their V-4s, which included the workhorse 150s, which were probably the most popular engines they made at the time, were essentially made in the same casting process as the V-6s, but with 2 fewer cylinders.  Then they made a straight 3 for somewhat smaller engines, cast as one side of the V-6.

 

The new process cheapened production, but it didn't work.  The 150s started blowing up on a regular basis; appoarently, there was a problem with the way the piston rings were designed, and the pistons were binding.  A friend bought a 28-foot Grady White with a pair of 235s; the engines never ran right, and other people were finding the same problem.  It turned out the solution was to de-tune the engines, which effectively left you with 185s--which you could have purchased for less in the first place, if that was what you were willing to settle for.  The long-earned reputation for reliability began to fall apart.  You started seeing more Mercurys on the salt water.  And Yamaha was making its big push, emphasized reliability, and captured a big piece of the market.  

 

OMC was in trouble, but it was trouble it had earned.  An outdoor writer I know, who specializes in salt water fishing and, in particular, salt water fishing boats, told me that he was offered special deals on OMC engines, but had so many problems with them, that he wouldn't put them on his boat if Evinrude gave them to him for free--and if you knew this particular writer, you'd know that "free" was his primary requirment for anything that he used.

 

So OMC went bankrupt.  Bombardier devoured the corpse, and produced engines under the Evinrude name.  But even if the new E-TECs were better engines--and I can't speak to that, because I never knew anyone willing to buy one, and never fished on an E-TEC powered boat, the damage was done.  Once your reputation is in the crapper, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to get it back.

 

And so Evinrude died.

This is not true at all. I doubt you know anything about outboard motors. Evinrude and Johnson have always made quality engines. They were the best on the market. Everything you said is total crap. What caused them to go out of business is the fact they do not have pockets as deep as Brunswick Corporation. They were not able to purchase every major boat manufacturer in the country and sell their engine with it like Brunswick was able to. What really happened here is sad because Brunswick cornered the market and eliminated the consumer from purchasing the engine of their choice. Have you ever tried to find a new boat available with an E Tech? Almost impossible! This is the actual reason why they couldn't compete. Not because they made an inferior product. I owned an Evenrude now for 26 years and never had a problem with it. Always maintained it properly and never abused it. Runs today like the day I bought it. It's sad to see this happen to them. But the first thing people like you do when they hear something like this is bash the company and say they deserved to go under because they made garbage! They have been making outboards for 110 years! Over the years they made a few bad ones like every other company out there but they also made a more good ones and really showed the world how to make an outboard. 

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Wow.  SO much misinformation in so few posts.

 

First, the title is completely false.  BRP is not going out of business.  They are in fact a very profitable company and their jetski business is doing very well.  The Evinrude part of the business had been losing money for a while and the covid-19 crisis was the tipping point for finally shutting down this unprofitable part of their business.

 

CW, I can't speak to the accuracy of your statement that theoutboards produced starting in the 90's were inferior to the earlier models.  But I think the big turning point for the company was the spectacular failure of the FICHT line.  Old technology 2 strokes were going the way of the dinosaur, and OMC's answer to producing a "clean" burning 2 stroke was the FICHT technology.  They were an unmitigated disaster, with reliability issues and powerheads blowing at alarming rates.  The FICHT's bankrupted OMC and forced the sale to bombardier.  

 

Flip, how many FICHT motors do you own?  And your statements about why you didn't see Evinrudes on new transoms is totally off base.  Brunswick had nothing to do with it.  New boat manufacturers realized that people buying boats simply didn't want 2 strokes.  A boat manufacturer isn't going to partner up with an engine manufacturer that is producing a motor that isn't desirable.  Yamaha, Suzuki, and mercury have all figured this out and have focused on building lighter, more efficient 4 stroke engines. Bombardier tried to sell what they believed was a better product, even though the consumer clearly had a preference for 4 strokes.  You've got to sell what people want, not what you think they should want.

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The late 80's Loopers were some of the most reliable and easily repairable engines ever made.

 

Thirsty beasts, yes, and hard to start in the cold, but they ran and ran and ran and ran, and repair was about as easy as it gets.

 

And on a completely irrelevant side note, my current 2010 200HO is currently running off the starter from my parted out 1987 (I think) 225.

 

Guess my next engine will be a Suzuki...............

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7 hours ago, Flip n Dip said:

This is not true at all. I doubt you know anything about outboard motors. Evinrude and Johnson have always made quality engines. They were the best on the market. Everything you said is total crap. What caused them to go out of business is the fact they do not have pockets as deep as Brunswick Corporation. They were not able to purchase every major boat manufacturer in the country and sell their engine with it like Brunswick was able to. What really happened here is sad because Brunswick cornered the market and eliminated the consumer from purchasing the engine of their choice. Have you ever tried to find a new boat available with an E Tech? Almost impossible! This is the actual reason why they couldn't compete. Not because they made an inferior product. I owned an Evenrude now for 26 years and never had a problem with it. Always maintained it properly and never abused it. Runs today like the day I bought it. It's sad to see this happen to them. But the first thing people like you do when they hear something like this is bash the company and say they deserved to go under because they made garbage! They have been making outboards for 110 years! Over the years they made a few bad ones like every other company out there but they also made a more good ones and really showed the world how to make an outboard. 

I lived through it.  I was lucky enough to go with Yamahas in 1988, after running Evinrude and Johnsons for 20 years before that. I had many friends and acquaintances who suffered through exactly the problems that I described.

 

what I said was most certainly not total crap.  But the engines that OMC put out during the period I described most certainly were.

"I have always believed that outdoor writers who come out against fish and wildlife conservation are in the wrong business. To me, it makes as much sense golf writers coming out against grass.."  --  Ted Williams

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6 hours ago, quiknet said:

 

 

CW, I can't speak to the accuracy of your statement that theoutboards produced starting in the 90's were inferior to the earlier models.  But I think the big turning point for the company was the spectacular failure of the FICHT line.  Old technology 2 strokes were going the way of the dinosaur, and OMC's answer to producing a "clean" burning 2 stroke was the FICHT technology.  They were an unmitigated disaster, with reliability issues and powerheads blowing at alarming rates.  The FICHT's bankrupted OMC and forced the sale to bombardier.  

 

I forgot the term “FICHT”, but seeing it again, those were the ones that the writer I mentioned said that he wouldn’t take if he got them for free.

"I have always believed that outdoor writers who come out against fish and wildlife conservation are in the wrong business. To me, it makes as much sense golf writers coming out against grass.."  --  Ted Williams

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I have only owned a 1986 15HP evinrude, and a 2012 25HP Etec. When I sold the 15 it was running like new, and 30 years old. The Etec runs very well.

Has the ETEC had significant problems, or are the other business factors forcing a shutdown of manufacturing?

Edited by yarddog59
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10 hours ago, quiknet said:

Wow.  SO much misinformation in so few posts.

 

First, the title is completely false.  BRP is not going out of business.  They are in fact a very profitable company and their jetski business is doing very well.  The Evinrude part of the business had been losing money for a while and the covid-19 crisis was the tipping point for finally shutting down this unprofitable part of their business.

 

CW, I can't speak to the accuracy of your statement that theoutboards produced starting in the 90's were inferior to the earlier models.  But I think the big turning point for the company was the spectacular failure of the FICHT line.  Old technology 2 strokes were going the way of the dinosaur, and OMC's answer to producing a "clean" burning 2 stroke was the FICHT technology.  They were an unmitigated disaster, with reliability issues and powerheads blowing at alarming rates.  The FICHT's bankrupted OMC and forced the sale to bombardier.  

 

Flip, how many FICHT motors do you own?  And your statements about why you didn't see Evinrudes on new transoms is totally off base.  Brunswick had nothing to do with it.  New boat manufacturers realized that people buying boats simply didn't want 2 strokes.  A boat manufacturer isn't going to partner up with an engine manufacturer that is producing a motor that isn't desirable.  Yamaha, Suzuki, and mercury have all figured this out and have focused on building lighter, more efficient 4 stroke engines. Bombardier tried to sell what they believed was a better product, even though the consumer clearly had a preference for 4 strokes.  You've got to sell what people want, not what you think they should want.

So let me get this straight. What you're saying here is that nobody wanted to buy their outboards because they were garbage? 2 strokes are no good? Nobody wants them anymore? Not the fact that you can't find a new boat with an Evinrude on the transom? Do you really think the consumer has a choice as to which outboard they want when the boat company is owned by the manufacturer of a particular outboard? That has nothing to do with it? Ok.

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1 hour ago, yarddog59 said:

I have only owned a 1986 15HP evinrude, and a 2012 25HP Etec. When I sold the 15 it was running like new, and 30 years old. The Etec runs very well.

Has the ETEC had significant problems, or are the other business factors forcing a shutdown of manufacturing?

My friend sold Suzuki motors years ago when they sold only two strokes now he just operates a repair business for outboards and a lot of Etec motors I see in his shop have fuel pump problems he says it’s quiet common with them.

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