Give your Outboard Engine the Proper Maintenance it Needs for a Long Life!

Every outboard engine is precision-engineered and because it is constantly exposed to sea/fresh water, salt and wind, it requires your full attention. Would you like your outboard engine to last as long as possible? BENETEAU has a few maintenance best practices to keep your outboard engine in tip-top shape.

Boat maintenance after every trip

First, note that there are two types of maintenance: 

Routine maintenance is carried out by the owner (visual inspection and rinsing) and annual servicing is carried out by a professional in line with the recommendations of the engine manufacturer. These are indicated in the owner’s manual, which you can find on board your BENETEAU boat.

If your boat has twin engines, we advise you to carry out maintenance of the two engines at the same time.

Routine (or daily) maintenance  

After every boat outing, get into the habit of rinsing the engine with fresh water to get rid of any salt and spray deposits. We also advise you to check the propeller for any signs of impact or fishing lines that may have gotten wrapped around the shaft. If you have any reason for concern, make sure you get the problem checked out by your local dealer. 

When your boat and engine are out of the water, you can clean the engine’s internal cooling system using an engine flushing kit. This is important, since it flushes out the salt crystals that build up in the passages. This will optimize your engine cooling system.

Example of the flushing kit that makes this task easy.

Complete the visual inspection of the engine by opening the cover to see if there are any traces of water, oil or fuel. Inform your dealer as necessary. On some boats, you can check the oil level yourself (see the engine manufacturer’s owner manual).

Annual servicing 

Annual servicing is carried out by a professional and is done so using recommendations and frequency indicated by the engine manufacturer in the manual. Your dealer will tell you when it would be advisable to carry out the first service and all the following services. Your dealer can also winterize your outboard engine.

At the end of each season, remember to winterize your engine!

Winterizing an outboard boat  

It is important to winterize your outboard engine at the end of every season if your boat is in dry dock. Winterizing an engine involves taking the proper precautions to protect it over the long period of time it remains inactive. It is also a good time to take care of batteries (charging, cleaning the terminals and disconnecting), to add stabilizer to the remaining fuel in the tanks and then fill them with fuel to limit condensation. Lastly, it is an opportunity to visually inspect your steering system (check pipe clamps, hoses and covering).

Winterizing is also the perfect opportunity to carry out small maintenance jobs or to make improvements to your boat.

As you have probably noticed, winterizing an outboard boat requires a basic grasp of marine mechanics. This is why it is best to entrust this job to experts. BENETEAU dealers will carefully winterize your boat, to ensure that it is fully operational when the seasons starts.