Harry was saying 2 strokes are dead and I pointed out I still see
plenty. We were out yesterday and I made an effort to look. The
difference is the number of old boats. We have plenty here. I never
really paid attention but it seems people buy a new boat when they
think their motor is worn out. Repowers seem fairly rare. Having done
it 3 times I see why. Dealers are not really that helpful on "box
motors" and only the highest volume dealer can even offer a decent
price. The deals are all on boat/motor combos.
Since we have plenty of people here who are not in the top 10%, lots
of them are still nursing along old boats and old motors. Those will
be 2 strokes.
I agree, they are easy to fix and there is not a lot on them to go bad
so I expect to see them for a long time.
The outlier on all of this is the Etec, the new technology 2 stroke,
They are not that popular here, I really only know of one that runs
regularly on the river but it does seem to be aimed at that hard core
2 stroke fan. They are lighter per HP and the perception is that they
are easier to maintain. (No oil changes, automatic winterizing and
being to check/change the L/U grease from the top being the notable
things)
Since "winter" is not really a thing here and you don't really
winterize a 4 stroke, the main thing is just the snorkel down into the
L/U.
Since I pull the boat and drop the foot once or twice a year anyway,
that is not a thing.
The oil change thing is not that big a deal either. I can do an oil
change, on the lift for about $15 with the filter and that is not even
a half gallon of that magic oil you need to burn in an Etec.