Business ProfileforYamaha Marine Group

I own a **** Proline 22WA. It came with a 200 Mercury EFI which was a piece of junk. In 2006 I bought a Yamaha F225xa hp motor from Lenteni Marine in ****** *******. Little did I know that this engine was well known to have corrosion issues. 6 years later, that engine was pronounced dead by Tuppins Marine in **********, **. ******* Marine had gone out of business. Tuppins Marine, who also sold Yamaha motors, told me about the corrosion issues with the older motors but lead me to believe that the newer motors, made after 2006, were ok and that the corrosion issues had been solved in the newer engines. So on 8/5/2015 I purchases a brand new F 225xa motor from ******* Marine. We did a "drop and swap" which means we used all the old gauges, throttle, hydraulics, even the old prop. The motor was manufactured in 2013. It cost me $19,000. I have now owned the engine for 5 1/2 years. It has 464 hours on it. I treat it nice. I religiously rinse the motor after every use. All the annual, 100 hours services and other routine maintenance were performed on time by ******* Marine. This week, I started the motor and water started pouring out of the cowling cover and the engine would not power up. I immediately brought it to ******* Marine and the diagnosed that there was corrosion on the top port side by the thermostat. Internal corrosion has eaten a hold into the block. The repair would be a long block assembly costing $11,364 plus labor. I called Yamaha customer service and the squarely placed the blame on me, for not maintaining the motor properly. Zero goodwill from Yamaha. Only to find out, that once again, Yamaha knew, back when I bought the engine, that this particular motor still had corrosion issues. As much as you rinse the engine with the garden hose attachment on the lower starboard side of the motor, the fresh water will never reach that upper section of the motor. So now what do I do? Do I spend $13,000 on a 6 year old motor that has other corrosion issues?

We appreciate your feedback regarding the corrosion concern you have with your F225XA outboard. This warranty provided coverage against manufacturer defects for the elected five years; corrosion, however, is not considered a manufacturer defect and your unit was fifty months outside of its warranty period. The **************** representative informed you that, although we strive to provide the most satisfying experiences possible to our customers during times such as yours, we were unable to offer financial assistance for these reasons. Despite the fact that this may not be the answer you were seeking, we hope to continue earning your business in the future.