The loan engine was carefully run in on two other hulls before commencing performance and fuel-flow trials on Richard’s Walker Bay.
The integral tank gave well over two hours of cruising and when throttled back to trolling rpm, up to 10 hours! Even with the small prop it pushed the Walker Bay well past hull speed and delivered very good fuel economy because the engine was never overloaded. Since this hull has a relatively short waterline length that limits hull speed, I swapped for the optional 4.5-inch pitch weedless alloy prop which enabled the engine to rev well out. However, on my mate Richard Ardizzone’s Walker Bay 10 dinghy, which has a strong polyethylene hull, the vibration was easily absorbed. On my 3.8-metre Fairlite Gull fibreglass dinghy the vibration levels were almost intolerable, whereas an F2.5 transmitted hardly any vibration. And because the piston stroke is much longer in relation to cylinder bore diameter, vibration levels are significantly higher.
#SUZUKI DT4 OUTBOARD PORTABLE#
After the first 20 hours or three months I recommend changing the oil every 50 hours or six months as no replaceable oil filter is fitted.įrom the time testing commenced it was obvious the Suzuki DF2.5 had nowhere near the torque of its Mercury F2.5 portable outboard competition, which is de-rated from 3.5hp. The large capacity sump (for such a small engine) holds 0.38 litres to absorb oil dilution that occurs during extended low speed operation, such as trolling. Gravity feeds fuel from the one-litre integral tank to the carbie mounted alongside the power head to reduce vapour lock on hot days.
This can be a pain as it’s getting harder to buy standard unleaded that doesn’t have some ethanol (aka weedkiller) in it.
#SUZUKI DT4 OUTBOARD FULL#
Four trim positions and a full tilt stopper knob are provided, along with 360° turning for full boat control.īecause the CD ignition has fixed timing only standard 91 RON unleaded should be used – the engine may suffer pre-ignition from higher octane fuel such as premium unleaded. The chromed rocker cover is a nice touch and it’s easily removed for valve clearance adjustments, and the thermostat can be quickly replaced should it fail. Accessing the power head isn’t that easy as the recoil starter cord passes through the upper cowl, preventing it from being completely separated from the engine pan/lower cowl.īut apart from these issues the Suzuki DF2.5 outboard motor is a pretty logical design. And as there’s no pilot water discharge a look over the transom is the only way of telling if the water pump’s impeller is doing its job. In designing the engine Suzuki omitted a few items I regard as essential for user-friendliness – there’s no low-oil warning light, so unknown oil starvation could cause the Suzuki DF2.5 portable engine to seize. The distance from transom bracket to anti-ventilation plate is only 16 inches, so forget using this engine on older hulls with 16-inch transoms designed for the universal short-shaft measurement of 17 inches from brackets to plate. Like the Suzuki DT2.2, the Suzuki DF2.5 is designed strictly for 15-inch transoms.
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