More New Outboard News: Yamaha F115 is Lighter, Quieter, More Efficient

 

Since its introduction in 1999, the Yamaha F115 was always a sweetheart of an outboard. There are an awful lot of people running around out there with an F115 on their boats, and the vast majority of them love that outboard. But technology marches on, and Yamaha, never a company to sit back and relax in the face of success, has introduced a new F115.

The first change is in displacement; the old F115 displaced 1741cc, and the new one, 1832cc. Intake and exhaust valves are larger, there’s a new 60mm throttle body, and wide-open RPM goes up from 5000 – 6000 to 5300 – 6300. Net result? Even though the new version still carries a 115 horsepower designation, this is a low-ball number.

The charging system has also been beefed up, with a 35-amp alternator. Yet despite all these improvements, the motor weighs less than the old F115 by 24-pounds. That brings it within a couple of pounds of two-strokes like the Optimax 115 and the ETEC 115.

Sounds great, right? Sure. But what really gets me jazzed about the new F115 is that it’s compatible with Command Link digital instrumentation and is NMEA 2000 compatible. All too often you lose the ability to take advantage of modern electronics as you move down in outboard size. Yamaha also claims that it’s smoother than the old F115, which is a heck of a claim if only because the older model was already incredibly smooth. Are they serious? Check out this video of a new F115 in action, and see for yourself.