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Pro's&Cons of auto oiling or premix

Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: General Forums
Forum Name: The Outboard Clinic
Forum Description: Anything related to outboard maintenance here....
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=139233
Printed Date: 01 Feb 2026 at 7:11am


Topic: Pro's&Cons of auto oiling or premix
Posted By: Ad Astra
Subject: Pro's&Cons of auto oiling or premix
Date Posted: 20 Apr 2025 at 12:15pm
I have a 2000 Johnson 115hp Ocean Pro with 450hrs on the clock which has given me 9yrs of trouble free use apart from the issue of being up the hard in an unusable condition awaiting the arrival from Crowley Marine in the US of a pair of vibration dampers.
During this down-time I was thinking about the VRO, it's maintenance or lack of it on a vitally important part of the engine. For all I know, this 25 yr old item has never had any done on it.
As I see it, I have two choices. Buy a repair kit or isolate it and go to pr-mix.
To buy a repair kit has its own issues eg: where from?
I have not found an example of an OEM kit! While the likes of eBay are selling kits from what appears to be dubious sources.
At this moment in time. I am leaning towards pre-mix.
So my question is, which way?
The pre-mix appears such a simplistic method to solve the issue, whereas an overhaul could be full of snags for the uninitiated!
I would appreciate any comments 


Replies:
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 21 Apr 2025 at 9:14am
The dubious ebay sources may well be the supplier to the factory . I have rebuilt my tohatsu completely with ebay China parts .........no issues .
However re the vro ,I haven't ever heard a good thing but they are plentiful . When mine proved to be faulty I just went pre mix . Fortunately 50:1 is not hard to calculate , double the fuel and add a zero gives the oil in mills
9L x 2 = 18, add zero ....=180 , 180ml oil for 9L fuel
Id go premix . I think I just left the vro pump there to pump fuel ,........not sure ,I sure dont remember buying another fuel pump .

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I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time

Posted By: Ad Astra
Date Posted: 21 Apr 2025 at 9:52am
Thanks for the info Mc Tool.
The other consideration is that having spent near $1800 on replacing the vibration dampers (one each side of the lower mid-section and still waiting for delivery of the dampers). 
Bearing in mind the lack of maintenance on the VRO, it could fail with little warning. It makes economic sense to choose premix rather than than an overhaul.

Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 21 Apr 2025 at 5:05pm
I’d go premix, the VRO pumps were only ever USA built and had their problems over the years. Running extra oil in the petrol was always recommended just in case the pump let go.

Many of them were disconnected.

Posted By: Ad Astra
Date Posted: 21 Apr 2025 at 8:35pm
Thanks Kandrew. Gives me something to do while I await the arrival of those bloody dampers


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