We tested Yamaha's new V6 four-strokes on a 26-foot Grady-White center console. At idle, the water shooting out of the telltales was more noticeable than the engines.

With the recent recall of Evinrude 200- and 225-hp Ficht direct fuel injection (DFI) engines and the abrupt production stoppage of Mercury’s OptiMax DFI motors of the same horsepowers (see sidebar, Page 13), the smelly, smoky old carbureted two-stroke looked pretty darn attractive to boat buyers this spring. On the docks, sarcasm was at an all-time high. And despite both Mercury and Bombardier’s swift efforts to solve their problems, DFI might as well have been DOA in the minds of some outboard buyers. …