Mercury 4 Stroke Break-In - Common Questions Answered 

Straight forward and to the point. Thanks Dan. Well done.

This was so helpful. Thank you.

Excellent video! Thank you very much! Huge help!

Thank you for this

Thank you

You have just nailed it with a simple and very informative video on Mercury outboard break-in . Just ordered a new 30 hp ELTP EFI and my mind is now at peace on how to do this.

Very good my friend. Watched several videos on this topic. Your’s was the best and easiest to understand. Thank you!

Thanks for the reassuring and informative video. I purchased a 115 - 4 Stroke this spring 2023 ( just got in to the 5 Year warranty deal), haven't run the break in yet because I have been having to rebuild and reinforce an old PVC helm panel with carbon fiber & re-paint with epoxy, install the PROPER length throttle & shift cables ( install tech was in a hurry and did me dirty, I sucked it up and fixed it myself) adding a fuel filter / water separator, re-rigging all the electrical, installing new gauges NMEA2000 network, new sonar, and last step will be hydraulic steering before I hope to break it in mid-October and then get the 10 hour service done.

Great video

Thanks Dan

This is a great video. You are a great speaker. One question I was hoping you answered was, do these hours need to be done at once ? Or is shutting the motor on and off during the break okay. Obviously getting it back up to temp to perform the break in

I was told by the marina I use that part of the break in is performed after manufacture and he just told me to basically throttle if easy for the first ten hours. Basically just don’t ride it like a teenager with his first car. That said do what makes you comfortable, it’s a big investment.

What i dont understand is all motors are supposed to go through a break in period. But every motor, be it outboard, car, motor bike, truck what ever. When they are finished being built at the factory, every motor is put through its paces. No such thing as a break in period there. It will get run up to full throttle and every thing in between to look for possible flaws in the manufacture process of the motor. I have had lots of new outboards, cars motor bikes. Nearly all of which I followed the break in process. The last 2 new outboards i have had, both honda. From new, i ran them like i would normally run a motor, half to three quarter throttle, no up and down in the rev range. When getting out of the hole and onto the plane, full throttle all the way, as old mate here says that really helps to seat the rings in. Both motors i sold with over 500 hours on each, both never gave me an ounce of trouble and both never used even a drop of oil between the 100 hour services. The dealer i bought both motors off, I asked him about the break in period, he said to me straight out dont worry about it, just treat the motor as normal, just dont go wide open throttle for more than a few minutes at a time till after a few hours run time. What made me change my mind about break in periods is look at a truck, or semi, depending on where you live. They dont go through a break in period, they bget 50 odd tons slapped on the back on a trailer and away they go, them motors get way over a million ks or miles if you like no problems at all. So what is every one take on this?

Should I let the engine cool between hour 1 & 2? What about the other 8 hours? Do you need to take a break and let the engine cool between each hour?

First I've heard of a 10 hour service. Dealership I purchased from told me first service was at 100 hr

Can the smaller engines, 15efi to be exact, can they be broken in, in a barrel? In neutral? Or do they absolutely need to be in gear and under load? I've got 14 new mercs tgat will need a proper break in becore putting into service.

How much oil do you use during the break in process?

Does it have to be 2 consistent hours in a row? About to buy a boat. So could I take it out and vary the rpms and fish? Or should I just pick a day and knock out those first 2 hours cruising?

3:22 lmao

New owner, I start the motor cold with the choke out / open. After the motor is on in Neutral, after letting the motor warm up, I close the choke and the motor cuts off. I read that I should not run the motor out in the motor with the choke out. I can’t find the manual downloadable online. What am I doing wrong? Am I using the choke incorrectly or do I need to look at the fuel pump? Motor dies after I close the choke. Any thoughts or help is much appreciated

So I've just ordered a 2022 mercury 25hp 4stroke the newest model that isn't released in Australia yet so brand new. I've heard you don't have to break them in because they do it at the factory because to many people weren't breaking them in properly. IS THIS TRUE ?????

Do you have to do it all in one day

Hello from Turkey ... I bought 60 hp. but my friends said why didn't you buy japanese (yamaha-honda-suzuki or tohatsu). Mercury 40/50/60 is produced in China and they said it is of poor quality. what are you thinking? Did I buy the wrong engine😢

Why dont they just do this process at the plant

And yet you can get in a car, drive it off the lot and drive 500 miles down the road!

Pretty simple, dont run the balls off of it until she has some hours on her