Yamaha med rx

[Smitty244]

Just bought a 2021 sx195. Time to winterize and keep it in the garage for 6 months. Do any of you use or recommend Yamaha med rx? From the way it sounds this can be used as a stabilizer but also might be a good thing to run in every tank after winter is over also. Does anyone add this to every tank?

 

[Ronnie]

Not me, I use stabil 360 (sounds like new rx rebranded), one once for every 10 gallons
of fuel, and start about two weeks before the end of the season. I don’t see the need to stabilize fuel during the season.

 

[212s]

@Smitty244 Fuel Med rx is Yamaha's brand of stabilizer...you can use it if you wish but it's overpriced in my market with lots of cheaper alternatives that do the same thing.

I use Sta-Bil brand in the fall to stabilize the fuel at the last fill up before putting her to sleep for the winter to make sure stabilized fuel is run through the entire fuel system. I agree there is no reason to stabilize in the summer unless you won't be using the boat. In the spring I put in a few cans of Seafoam to help clean out and treat the system - not sure it needs it as it's never made a noticeable difference but it's cheap insurance.

 

[AZMark]

I bought a bottle with the boat and used it until I left it sitting at a gas station. Yamaha recommends it but who knows if it does anything.
I also use the much cheaper marine stabil when I know gas will be sitting for a while.

 

[Smitty244]

The main reason I wonder about running it all the time is because they also seam to recommend non ethanol gas which I can’t find around here.

 

[d_coyne1984]

I'm a Sta-bil guy too and I've never had any fuel issues when using it for 6-months of storage. I contaced Sta-bil a while back to ask them about their 360 Marine formula vs the standard storage formula. They recommended the 360 Marine for winter season boat storage or everyday use, but said use the storage formula for longer periods. I think the Marine formula says it keeps fuel fresh for 12 months where as the storage formula is good for 24 months.

 

[212s]

The main reason I wonder about running it all the time is because they also seam to recommend non ethanol gas which I can’t find around here.

Yamaha does not recommend anything except minimum octane levels...I don't know of any documentation that says to use non-ethanol gas. The normally aspirated engines run on minimum 86 octane and just about every station with 87 has ethanol. These engines are designed to run with ethanol without issues just like cars. Having said that, 91 octane for the supercharged engines is usually ethanol free - check the pumps at the gas station, many have percentage notes for each octane level.

Fuel Med rx is just stabilizer and condtioner - it does nothing to boost octane or remove ethanol. No reason to use it with each fill, just winter storage.

 

[Jeel]

Just bought a 2021 sx195. Time to winterize and keep it in the garage for 6 months. Do any of you use or recommend Yamaha med rx? From the way it sounds this can be used as a stabilizer but also might be a good thing to run in every tank after winter is over also. Does anyone add this to every tank?

I use it all season long, but i also use stabil marine for winter storage

 

[white2kstang]

The main reason I wonder about running it all the time is because they also seam to recommend non ethanol gas which I can’t find around here.

I run FuelMed in every tank. I buy it a gallon at a time. It may be a waste of money but for what boating in general costs its a drop in the bucket for something the manufacturer recommends. Haven't had any start issues or running issues with plain ethanol 93 pump gas. Stored it with the fuel med last season as well and it started right up in the spring. Our season is long in Texas so it usually only sits about 4 months and its stored indoors. So its probably not the harshest test either.

 

[Smitty244]

That’s what I was thinking I’d do. Mine will sit 6 months before the motor ever even gets to be ran.

 

[deadpool4514]

Yamaha does not recommend anything except minimum octane levels...I don't know of any documentation that says to use non-ethanol gas. The normally aspirated engines run on minimum 86 octane and just about every station with 87 has ethanol. These engines are designed to run with ethanol without issues just like cars. Having said that, 91 octane for the supercharged engines is usually ethanol free - check the pumps at the gas station, many have percentage notes for each octane level.

Fuel Med rx is just stabilizer and condtioner - it does nothing to boost octane or remove ethanol. No reason to use it with each fill, just winter storage.

Right from Yamaha's Maintenance Guide

What can I do to protect myself from the potentially damaging effects of ethanol? Fortunately, there are simple procedures that can help, but it’s important that you do your part. This is one part of maintenance you must proactively do for yourself. • Add fuel stabilizer and conditioner to every tank of fuel. Make sure to add a quality, marine-specific non-alcohol-based formula, like Yamalube® Fuel Med RX. These formulations are specifically designed to work effectively in the moisture-rich environments common to boats. And don’t believe some of the claims you see today; no matter what you add to bad gas, it’s still bad gas. No additive will restore stale fuel, remove water, or cure ethanol-related issues. Tip: Today’s gasoline can begin to break down in a matter of weeks, not months. Make sure to treat every tank of fuel, not just for extended storage. It’s cheap protection against a world of hurt. • Add Engine Med RX internal engine cleaner to every tank of fuel. The cleansing additives in the majority of today’s gas are a great start, but they’re formulated for automobiles, so they may not work as well on your boat. Do them one better. Med RX makes performancerobbing carbon chemically unable to stick to internal engine components. Its proprietary blend of synthetic anti-corrosion additives helps protect the “yellow metals” in your fuel system (copper, brass and silver solder) from corrosion. These are key components to proper fuel system operation. This helps maintain their performance and reliability. Engine Med RX also

 

[212s]

Right from Yamaha's Maintenance Guide

Wow...necro'd.

Yup. Marketing to sell Yamaha's Fuel additives.

Nothing extra is needed except good quality gas (top tier) for regular operation, same as your car. People forget that cars operate in 100% humidity levels when it's pouring rain and they don't grind to a halt when you're driving, even older carb cars. And personally I've never been out boating in 100% humidity and pouring rain.

While fuel technically starts to break down immediately on it's way to the gas station, it's at a very slow rate and doesn't affect combustion performance for many weeks or months. I forgot to add stabilizer one winter in my old boat (fuel injected) and though it was rough starting in the spring, it ran fine once warmed up. A fresh tank of fuel the next day ran the same. Carb engines are a different story as the float bowls are vented to atmosphere and the small amount of fuel in the bowl breaks down quickly without stabilizer. If you run your carb engine every weekend, you're fine, but if you go away for a few weeks, it may be hard to start. Over longer winter storage, the fuel will break down, varnish and gum up the carb requiring a cleaning - been there, done that with my first 2-cyl motorcycle. The same can happen with lawnmowers and trimmers that sit unused all winter. My trimmer is 2-stroke though and the mixing oil has stabilizer in it so I don't worry about it.

This all about the manufacturers pumping up sales for the dealers and themselves. That's why your car dealer "recommends" you bring it to them for their "quality oil change", which is BS because they put in the cheapest stuff by the barrel that meets minimum spec. Which is why I do my own oil changes and use a better quality oil and filter for my vehicles. Saves me money too.

I use Yamalube in my Yamaha boat. Not because it's required in any way, but because it's formulated for the engines and has additives that most car oils today lack (moly). If I knew exactly what was in their Yamalube (we don't because Yamaha won't tell us) and could find a cheaper replacement, I'd run that instead. Oddly enough the owner's manual specifically states I can run almost anything I want without caring about formulations because it doesn't mention any special requirements beyond:

Recommended engine oil:
YAMALUBE 4W
Recommended engine oil type:
SAE 10W-30, 10W-40, 20W-40, 20W-50
Recommended engine oil grade
(3-star models):
API SG,SH,SJ,SL
Recommended engine oil grade
(4-star models):
API SJ,SL

This means any 10w40 meeting SG or higher spec oil will work in my engines (SJ is required in catalytic models). SG is over 20 years old which would mean our engines are pretty basic for needs. Heck it doesn't even say NMMA FC-W or marine grade required either...makes sense since Yamalube 4W is not FC-W listed, only their synthetic 10w30 is on the list. I think most oils would beat the unknown FC-W spec. Besides, what did everyone use in their boats before NMMA came up with their FC-W spec 15 years ago?

 

[deadpool4514]

Wow...necro'd.

Yup. Marketing to sell Yamaha's Fuel additives.

Nothing extra is needed except good quality gas (top tier) for regular operation, same as your car. People forget that cars operate in 100% humidity levels when it's pouring rain and they don't grind to a halt when you're driving, even older carb cars. And personally I've never been out boating in 100% humidity and pouring rain.

While fuel technically starts to break down immediately on it's way to the gas station, it's at a very slow rate and doesn't affect combustion performance for many weeks or months. I forgot to add stabilizer one winter in my old boat (fuel injected) and though it was rough starting in the spring, it ran fine once warmed up. A fresh tank of fuel the next day ran the same. Carb engines are a different story as the float bowls are vented to atmosphere and the small amount of fuel in the bowl breaks down quickly without stabilizer. If you run your carb engine every weekend, you're fine, but if you go away for a few weeks, it may be hard to start. Over longer winter storage, the fuel will break down, varnish and gum up the carb requiring a cleaning - been there, done that with my first 2-cyl motorcycle. The same can happen with lawnmowers and trimmers that sit unused all winter. My trimmer is 2-stroke though and the mixing oil has stabilizer in it so I don't worry about it.

This all about the manufacturers pumping up sales for the dealers and themselves. That's why your car dealer "recommends" you bring it to them for their "quality oil change", which is BS because they put in the cheapest stuff by the barrel that meets minimum spec. Which is why I do my own oil changes and use a better quality oil and filter for my vehicles. Saves me money too.

I use Yamalube in my Yamaha boat. Not because it's required in any way, but because it's formulated for the engines and has additives that most car oils today lack (moly). If I knew exactly what was in their Yamalube (we don't because Yamaha won't tell us) and could find a cheaper replacement, I'd run that instead. Oddly enough the owner's manual specifically states I can run almost anything I want without caring about formulations because it doesn't mention any special requirements beyond:

Recommended engine oil:
YAMALUBE 4W
Recommended engine oil type:
SAE 10W-30, 10W-40, 20W-40, 20W-50
Recommended engine oil grade
(3-star models):
API SG,SH,SJ,SL
Recommended engine oil grade
(4-star models):
API SJ,SL

This means any 10w40 meeting SG or higher spec oil will work in my engines (SJ is required in catalytic models). SG is over 20 years old which would mean our engines are pretty basic for needs. Heck it doesn't even say NMMA FC-W or marine grade required either...makes sense since Yamalube 4W is not FC-W listed, only their synthetic 10w30 is on the list. I think most oils would beat the unknown FC-W spec. Besides, what did everyone use in their boats before NMMA came up with their FC-W spec 15 years ago?

Didn't say I agreed with it. It is totally a marketing ploy. I was just showing there is something in writing.

 

[212s]

Didn't say I agreed with it. It is totally a marketing ploy. I was just showing there is something in writing.

Ok I get that, no worries.

But none of that is in the owner's manual which is all the owner needs to follow to comply with warranty requirements. I got a bit verbose with my reply, but basically they're trying to up-sell their own stuff for extra profit - like all dealers - I don't knock them for that. A lot of people don't get it though. You get it, but many "guests" who read this forum don't know the difference.

It's like the BITOG forum...been there for years and it's almost a daily nightmare - lots of people with educated info, and lots of fluff from others who just like to spout marketing info. It can be very frustrating trying to fight back the "fake info" storm.

For the record...I'm an easy going guy. Mostly because my wife would kill me otherwise!
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