Hollywood Outboard Motor Repair

A mere 11 miles from Fort Lauderdale and 21 miles from Miami, lies the Florida version of Hollywood. This version is quintessential Florida with its 2.5-mile beachside walkway called the Hollywood Beach Broadwalk (yes, correct spelling!) along the Atlantic Ocean, three oceanfront parks, and a quaint historic downtown. Of course, you see plenty of boats too with marinas offering boaters a five-minute ride away from the ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway also offering ocean access or a calm place to take the family boating. It is important to line up an outboard motor marine mechanic you can depend on for maintenance and repairs, so you do not have to try to get an appointment with a mechanic who is booked up for weeks. When choosing an outboard motor marine technician, set some reasonable expectations because you want to start the relationship with the mechanic on the right foot. The following are just a few items to give you an idea of reasonable expectations.

Ask for reasonable assistance with learning some basic maintenance tasks – A boat repair service with good customer service will teach you some very basic DIY tasks if you need some training or will help you locate good training resources. “Very basic” means just that, like changing sparkplugs or learning where to look for corrosion since saltwater can cause major problems when basic maintenance is not performed. It is unreasonable to expect the busy marine mechanic to give you free maintenance lessons because time is money. (Ever been waiting in a repair shop while a customer ties up the mechanic with chitchat and endless questions?)

Expect honesty about known and potential costs - You should expect the marine mechanic to be honest about the expected costs. Everyone knows a story where a mechanic gives an estimate and then keeps adding to the costs. There will always be times when the repair costs are driven higher when the mechanic runs into a problem that could only be detected by removing certain outboard motor parts. This should not be a regular occurrence. The cost estimate should be clear about what it includes and an explanation of what could increase the cost based on the marine mechanic’s knowledge of potential outboard motor issues during diagnostics.

Expect the mechanic to charge a reasonable competitive price - Related to costs is the expectation the marine repair shop will charge a reasonable price for diagnosing the outboard more, factory-authorized parts, and the mechanic’s time. You can use a resource like Mariner Exchange to easily locate multiple Hollywood, FL marine repair services you can contact for price information for comparison purposes.

Expect the mechanic to stay in touch – An outboard motor repair may take longer than planned. It happens anytime motors are involved. However, you can have a legitimate expectation the marine technician will keep you informed. There are plenty of horror stories of outboard motors held hostage by repair shops that were not honest about when the mechanic would be able to begin work.

EXPECT A QUALIFIED HOLLYWOOD OUTBOARD MOTOR MECHANIC TO DO THE REPAIR

While this may seem obvious, you need to verify the outboard motor mechanic is fully qualified to work on your specific outboard motor. A qualified marine mechanic is certified by the American Boat & Yacht Council (ABYC) or by one or more factories manufacturing outboard motor brands. You also have a right to expect the outboard motor mechanic to have experience repairing and maintaining your type of outboard motor, i.e. two-stroke, four-stroke, a brand like Honda or Yamaha, etc. Hollywood, FL has numerous marine mechanics in the area, so spend the necessary time to make sure your expectations are met.