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Two plaintiffs have filed a class action lawsuit against Yamaha Motor Corp. USA, alleging that the company manufactured outboard boating motors with a defective aluminum coating that are susceptible to corrosion and premature engine failure.
Florida residents Clifton Mitchell and Keith Johnson filed the Yamaha boat motor class action lawsuit on July 22. They allege that Yamaha should have known about the motor defect and taken steps to provide a remedy for customers who were affected by it.
The proposed members of the Yamaha boat motor class action lawsuit include Florida residents who bought a model year 2000-05 Yamaha first-generation F-Series four-stroke outboard motor for their personal use. The plaintiffs claim that because Yamaha failed to fix the problem with the motor, the Class Members have been forced to either pay thousands of dollars to repair the defect or be stuck with a defective motor that they never would have purchased had they known about the flaw.
Mitchell and Johnson purchased boats with the Yamaha F-Series motors from a boat dealership in Pensacola, Florida. Both plaintiffs were informed about the motor corrosion after they had their boats inspected after approximately 650 hours of recreational use. It cost Mitchell approximately $7,000 to repair the motor, while Johnson experienced close to $3,800 in repair costs.
In their class action lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim that there is either a design or manufacturing defect in the coating on the aluminum exhaust components. They claim that this coating allows hot gasses to corrode the exhaust passages, eventually creating holes in the passages that cause engine problems or failure.
The plaintiffs claim that the expected life of a motor made by a major manufacturer like Yamaha is several thousand hours of usage before failing or requiring significant repairs. According to the class action lawsuit, the affected Yamaha motors sometimes only 500 hours before failing.
The affected Yamaha motors came with a three-year warranty. However, because these motors are marketed for recreational use, most users only average about 100 hours of use per year. As a result, the warranty usually expires before the customer experiences problems with the motor. Because the affected components are within the dry exhaust system, the corrosion takes place within the fully enclosed engine housing and is not visible. Therefore, boaters are unaware that the damage exists until they experience engine problems.
The plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit allege that standard engineering tests should have revealed the motor defect to Yamaha during the design or manufacturing stage of production. Despite receiving numerous complaints about the defect, Yamaha failed to take steps to fix the situation. While Yamaha has changed the coating and created a kit to repair the defect, the kit alone costs $650 and will cost thousands of dollars to implement, the class action lawsuit says. The plaintiffs claim that Yamaha did not notify its customers about the defect or issue any service bulletins or recalls. The class action lawsuit accuses Yamaha of negligence, product liability, and violating the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. The plaintiffs have requested a trial by jury.
The plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit are represented by Peter J. Mougey and James Kauffman of Levin Papantonio Thomas Mitchell Rafferty & Proctor PA, and by Steven R. Jaffe and Mark S. Fistos of Farmer Jaffe Weissing Edwards Fistos & Lehrman PL.
The Yamaha Boat Engine Coating Class Action Lawsuitis Mitchell, et al. v. Yamaha Motor Corp. USA, case number 3:13-cv-00417, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.
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94 thoughts onClass Action Lawsuit Targets Yamaha Boat Motor Defect
Hi I have a 2005 F150 with exhaust rot issues. How van I get on this class action suit?
I have a 2001 200hp vmax hpdi 2 stoke and it did this do they make a kit
I have a 2012 f250 with just over 400 hrs on it that did the same thing.
Is there a way to enter into the lawsuit for compensation. Have a 2006 4stroke 225hp that is going to have to be rebuilt?
I have a 06 Yamaha F250 Outboard that blew up with 484hrs… Inside of the motor looks brand new, crank in perfect condition, rod bearings perfect as well as crank bearings… Few mechanics believe the one rod that snapped at the top was because the metal impurities… Wish Yamaha would handle this because this motor should of never failed after 484hrs…
I have a 2005 Yamaha txr 250 hp 4 stroke that just developed a hole spraying saltwater from the block. I bought it on a Grady 222 in 2015 with only 200 hrs on the engine. It now has 320 hrs. It ran fine but I noticed rust on flywheel and treated it with T9 and thought it was due to water leaking in cowling. Now faced with posssible welding hole or repowering. Any thoughts….major mess on my hands.
I have A 2005 225yamaha txrd with 1550 hours so far no problem with this corrosion keeping my hopes up I WANT . Have heard A lot of boaters have it A shame A company as big as yamaha dose not stand behind its motors.
I am a O3 Yamaha 225 outboard. Is there a current class action lawsuit case for this issue?
I have a 2011 F 150TXR with 215 hours on it just discovered a hole In the top of the thermostat area. I’m see a lot of the same problems here.
I have a F150 TRX with a hole in the thermostat area . How can I get on the class action law suit.
The motor was fresh water flushed every time and ran well until the starter froze up. Water was being sprayed onto the timing belt and entered the intake and froze up 2 exhaust valves.
What are my options? Other than replacing the power head.
I have a twin F150 TRX with a 02/2006 manufacture date, one now with a hole in the thermostat area . How can I get on the class action law suit.
The motor’s are fresh water flushed every time after use. The yamaha dealer said to correctly repair the issue it would require a new powerhead at a cost of $6000. Right now I’m operating with a temporary repair which could fail at anytime.
What are my options? Other than replacing the power head.