Sharphooks
Well-Known Member
There is a pitiful amount of information (close to zero!) on the web regarding the late model Honda outboards and the NMEA2000 output that Honda finally built in to their motors over the last few years so I thought I'd pitch some info for other guys ready to make the jump
It's true I had a perfectly good Honda BF150 that has treated me exceptionally well for the last 5 years but I thought I'd consider upgrading to the newer technology if I could get some value for my 2006 BF150 (700 hrs, yes, still just a teenager, I know, I know...)
I put it on Craigslist and it sold in 5 minutes so that was that (obviously I listed it too cheap...ha ha...story of my life) ---but don't look back on stuff like this---with cash in hand I stepped up for a brand spanking new 2015 BF150---got her on the boat last Friday, finally got her wet today
Honda put a bit more sex appeal into the late model outboards: the newer ones have an ice-blue tinge going on. They look pretty snazzy. It stands out when you see the newer cowls up close to an older (silver) cowl:
Here's what a tell-tale looks like from a motor with three minutes on the hour meter:
But the real reason for posting this: the NMEA200 output on my MFD screen:
Engine temp and tachometer:
how cool is that to see engine temp? Interesting to see it go from 80 degrees after firing it up to 210 degrees at WOT!
And last but not least: FUEL USAGE!!
Fuel usage: GPH + nautical miles per gallon
GPH + nautical miles per gallon---just what I needed for planning my long summer trips up to Central Coast:
No more guesswork on range: should I risk going to that sexy looking point for the tide change? Will I burn off more then my comfort level of gas going there and back? Now i won't have to bite my fingernails: with the GPS I can resort to math instead of wild arse guess
Meanwhile, with the fuel-flow meter it's pretty amazing to go WOT and realize you're burning (in real time) 14 gallons and hour and visually see the burn rate!!!!! Drop back down to 4,000 and you're back down to a waaaay more comfortable 5 gallons an hour (yes, easy to convert units to liters on all the MFD's but mine defaulted to gallons per hours)
So, I was all set to drop another $ 400 on a digital gauge and a wire harness to show all the information shown above. But after seeing the precise NMEA2000 data I saw today, I'm pulling the plug on the digital gauge --- my MFD captures all the info I really need (with the exception of an hour meter)
$ 50 for an hour meter sounds way better!
And I tried out a 4 blade prop today for the first time---amazing change from a 3 blade---wish I'd gone to a 4 blade years ago!
It's true I had a perfectly good Honda BF150 that has treated me exceptionally well for the last 5 years but I thought I'd consider upgrading to the newer technology if I could get some value for my 2006 BF150 (700 hrs, yes, still just a teenager, I know, I know...)
I put it on Craigslist and it sold in 5 minutes so that was that (obviously I listed it too cheap...ha ha...story of my life) ---but don't look back on stuff like this---with cash in hand I stepped up for a brand spanking new 2015 BF150---got her on the boat last Friday, finally got her wet today
Honda put a bit more sex appeal into the late model outboards: the newer ones have an ice-blue tinge going on. They look pretty snazzy. It stands out when you see the newer cowls up close to an older (silver) cowl:
Here's what a tell-tale looks like from a motor with three minutes on the hour meter:
But the real reason for posting this: the NMEA200 output on my MFD screen:
Engine temp and tachometer:
how cool is that to see engine temp? Interesting to see it go from 80 degrees after firing it up to 210 degrees at WOT!
And last but not least: FUEL USAGE!!
Fuel usage: GPH + nautical miles per gallon
GPH + nautical miles per gallon---just what I needed for planning my long summer trips up to Central Coast:
No more guesswork on range: should I risk going to that sexy looking point for the tide change? Will I burn off more then my comfort level of gas going there and back? Now i won't have to bite my fingernails: with the GPS I can resort to math instead of wild arse guess
Meanwhile, with the fuel-flow meter it's pretty amazing to go WOT and realize you're burning (in real time) 14 gallons and hour and visually see the burn rate!!!!! Drop back down to 4,000 and you're back down to a waaaay more comfortable 5 gallons an hour (yes, easy to convert units to liters on all the MFD's but mine defaulted to gallons per hours)
So, I was all set to drop another $ 400 on a digital gauge and a wire harness to show all the information shown above. But after seeing the precise NMEA2000 data I saw today, I'm pulling the plug on the digital gauge --- my MFD captures all the info I really need (with the exception of an hour meter)
$ 50 for an hour meter sounds way better!
And I tried out a 4 blade prop today for the first time---amazing change from a 3 blade---wish I'd gone to a 4 blade years ago!
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