Evinrude E-TEC 60 oil

[phil0044]

I have the Evinrude E-TEC60 engine which comes programmed for the XD-50 oil but the local dealer said I should switch to the XD100 and have the engine re-programmed saying that while the XD100 is more expensive I will get better gas mileage, the engine will run smoother, and won't produce as much smoke. What is the experience and general concensus on this subject? The dealer also said I should use high octane fuel not regular.

[TAW02]

I have an Etec 50hp on my

Dealer told me basically the same thing, however my excessive smoking problem was due to the fact that the engine was brand new and the microcontroller juices-up the fuel mix with a bit mor oil during this early break-in period. This is why you don't have to be concerned about breaking-in the motor yourself. And of course why they advertise WOT right out of the box.

Dealer told me that here in Florida XD100 oil wasn't that crucial since tempratures remain warm and there are no freezing conditions and no fogging being necessary. Fuel economy not withstanding.

So for the past two years I have been running XD50 oil. Consumption of oil has gone down as well as the smoking problem. No smoke. I believe that after over a 100 hrs of runtime, she is about broke-in.

As for gasoline, I run 92/93 octane in my Etec. It doesn't cost that much more and the engine runs great and very reliable. Reliable is the big issue when it comes to marine applications. Skrimp here and you will be sorry. Higher octane fuels remain stable longer than the cheap stuff and burns hotter longer so that in the end you get better perfomance, longer plug life and less engine crud buildup.

87/89 octane just ain't worth the trouble it carries with it.

That's my opinion ... for what it is worth.

Big T

[March]

When I got it used (5 hours running time all in all) my ETEC 50 was programmed to run on XD 100--or at least that's what claimed the dealer who sold it to me. They all do. Two seasons on a tankful of the original oil--we did a lot of sailing, but used the engine plenty, even so. I finally got a gallon of XD 100 and had my mechanic double-check which kind of oil it was programmed to run on--sure enough, 100. However, the color of the original oil seems slightly different. I half-heartedly filled up the oil trank with the new oil, it seems to be running OK. We did two tanks of gas this summer, and the oil tank is still almost full. So yeah, it seem economical all right, but there's no way of telling if it's MORE economical than the XD 50.
On the great lakes, I did notice some smoke (or vapor?) coming out of the engine at WOT, but nowhere as badly as my ole Johnson 50 HP.. If TAW02 is right--this is still undr 100 hours, I'd bet, so the engine is still settling in. I always use good gas for the reasons outlined above, too.
I do not think that the difference between the 100 and the 50 is merely a matter of viscosity though

[TAW02]

March;

My wife and I just got back from a 8 day cruise in the ICW along Florida (canaveral to ft. pierce) and back to Melbourne. We covered nearly 130 miles on the Etec alone. Gobbled up 18 gallons of gas as we were averaging 8 mph most of the time. Not bad, eh? Over 7 miles per gallon.

Annnnywaaaay .... as far as oil goes, I topped it off before the cruise. So after 18 gallons of 93 octane gasoline, I used very little over a pint of XD50 oil. Maybe a pint and a half ... but no more

Big T

[dxg68]

I have new 60HP E-Tec. My dealer told me that XD100 is better oil and the motor can be programmed to use just this oil. But this programming simply makes the motor to use less oil. He recommended NOT to program the motor for XD100. He said if I want to use better oil then it is my choice. I decided to use XD100 and 1 gallon last me all season.

[March]

dxg68 wrote

I have new 60HP E-Tec. My dealer told me that XD100 is better oil and the motor can be programmed to use just this oil. But this programming simply makes the motor to use less oil. He recommended NOT to program the motor for XD100. He said if I want to use better oil then it is my choice.

I don't get it.

[dxg68]

March,

What exactly you didn’t get . These motors are not programmed to use specific oil except for XD100. This programming affects how much oil is injected. Evinrude says that XD100 is better oil and you don’t need it as much as the other oil. If you decide to use XD100 oil only you can ask Evinrude dealer to “program” you motor for XD100. My dealer suggested that if I decide to use XD100 then NOT to program the motor and allow the motor to inject as much XD100 as any other oil. This is what I decided to do.

[Hamin' X]

Um, do you by chance buy the XD100 from the dealer?

~Rich

[David Mellon]

I use regular gas and XD100 as suggested by my dealer. I get almost no smoke, great milage and low oil consumption, I had my three year service in March and was told the engine is in perfect shape. It starts instantly and idles so quietly I have reached for the key more than once to restart it! Love my ETEC and can't imagine why I would use anything other than what the manufacturer suggests.

[March]

What I still don't get is: if these engines are programmed to use DX 100 from the factory get-go, and if they come with an original DX 100 tankful of oil, why would anyone program it to run on DX 100? It's aready pre-programmed to run on DX 100. Now if what you mean is, people can re-program it to run on DX 50, that's a different matter, but that's not what your message says. According to your mechanic, however, programming it to run on 50 simply means, the engine will suck twice as much oil. So if your mechanic is correct and it's "still your choice to use DX 100" even if the engine is re-programmed to use DX 50, this suggestion is kind of senseless; why would anyone tune an engine for 50 and still use 100, as a matter of "choice"? Only to see how much faster the level of the oil goes down? Or: to program it once again to run on DX 100 and run it on DX 100 (as a matter of choice) when in fact the engine was initially programmed to run on DX 100 and comes with DX 100, also sounds puzzling to me

I guess yout mechanic is right. It's also a matter of choice not to use any oil at all.

Besides, your mechanic specifically suggests NOT to use DX 100, even if the engine is pre-programmed to use DX 100? Sorry, but it's still foggy to me.

[dxg68]

March,

I bought 60 HP E-TEC brand new this year. In my case it was not preprogrammed to use XD100 and it came with no oil. It was my choice what oil to use. From what I understand XD50 is also very good oil. But since the motor doesn’t consume much oil anyway I decided to buy the best oil Evinrude offers XD100. My dealer believes that it is better for the motor in a long run not to reduce the amount of oil that is being injected when one decides to use XD100. And this is what I do. I use XD100 and left the motor the way it came from the factory – in my case set up to use any appropriate oil.

[TAW02]

Etecs' come from the factory ready to roar using nothing but a mere XD50 oil. For the engine to run different oil, it must be programmed from an Evinrude dealer.

If your dealer installed the engine only, then pretty good chance it runs the XD50. This is especially true of engines install in Sunny California and Florida. Engines destined to colder temprate climes may have been programmed to use XD100.

Either case, an Etec not programmed to use the higher grade XD100, will not be harmed by using it. And of course, vice-versa. I would not be concerned about it unless I lived in Cleveland Ohio/Medin/Akron/Great lakes area. Or any area where freezing temps are expected. Check into a dealer/ get a data scan and find out which oil has been suited for the engine, or better yet have them program the Etec for fogging and have them do it. They will automatically make sure the Etec is program to use XD100.

Big T