Honda 25HP Outboard | BF25D3SHG

Tiller-steered and built on a 15-inch shaft, the BF25D3SHG is Honda's lightest 25 HP four-stroke in this range at 155 pounds, with a gas-assisted tilt strut rather than remote or powered controls. New.

Who a short-shaft tiller rig like this fits

Putting throttle and steering together at the transom suits a smaller hull where the operator sits near the stern, and the 15-inch shaft is sized for a lower-transom boat rather than a taller one. A gas-assisted strut lifts and lowers the engine by hand, trimming installed weight compared with an electric trim system. The three-cylinder, 552cc block draws through triple carburetors and reaches full throttle somewhere between 5000 and 6000 rpm.

Before you buy

Check the transom height against the 15-inch figure; a shaft this short doesn't suit a high-transom hull, and Honda builds longer-shaft versions of this same 25 HP block for that case. Starting is electric here, so there's no pull cord to fight with on a cold morning, and the lower unit still needs a propeller sized correctly to the boat it pushes.

What ships with it

Expect the propeller, an onboard charging system, the gas-assisted tilt strut, a stop switch lanyard, and the printed owner's manual, under a five-year factory warranty.

Q: Does this version use power trim? No, tilt is gas-assisted and set by hand at the transom.