buying used boat and outboard

[Picbrowning]

Have not had a boat for many years and find a lot have Yamaha outboards on which I am keen; any tips to assess the wellbeing of a used motor?

[amahaork]

only open cylinder head and inspect condition of cylinder walls gives you definite answer.
most used yamas on market in a bad shape, in diff degree. after year of searching I bought trailer with boat and engine required boring cylinders, but full set, nothing missing, not vandalized. I do all repairs myself and for me it makes a sense, financially. parts cost nothing compare to labor cost of repairs.

[rodbolt17]

why pull a head?
a leakdown test is simple, more accurate than eyerballs and only requires pulling a spark plug.

check the gearcase oil.

when you get a used outboard tune up the cooling system.

[99yam40]

have a good/experienced Yamaha shop do the testing/inspection and then make sure to take it for a good run out on the water to run it through all RPM ranges to see how it performs and does not have any problems before it becomes your problem