I’m sure this will likely elicit hyper partisan responses but are there any brands of engines that are significantly better/worse? For instance, I found a 2005 Montauk 170 w 4s mercury a state away. One of my capt buddies is adamant that Mercury = garbage and to avoid at all costs. I’ve seen all the maintenance records for this engine and everything seems legit. FWIW at the asking price I could repower tomorrow and still be ahead compared to some of the asking prices of boats on the market nearby.
Complicated answer honestly. Mercs are not well-regarded in the saltwater sportfishing community here. You see more on the Columbia around my parts, but few if any out on the coast. They are the engine you hear by far the most complaints about. BUT... they also have one of the better local dealers (Stevens), so that keeps them going.
Here's a rundown of each brand for the most part. I'd say this applies to the last half decade or so, but Merc has kind of been the same category for a while:
Mercury: Prioritizes new tech and high performance, often at the expense of reliability and efficiency. Best motor if going fast is your goal.
Yamaha: Not as well-regarded as they once were due to not really updating their stuff for a long time, and have a few models that have been problematic. Problematic as in catastrophic failures. Overall, they're solid and I wouldn't hesitate to buy one but not really my first choice. I've owned a few and they did the job. My peers also have some and like theirs.
Honda: Rock solid, dependabe workhorses. Not the fastest, usually the heaviest (sometimes by a wide margin), but just bomb proof.
Suzuki: Bang for buck value is high here. They've really come a long way in their most recent generations of motors and are very reliable, efficient and lightweight. Had some engines with issues over the years, but they seem very on top of correcting things.
Tohatsu: Awesome little motors. Anything over like a 90hp is a rebadged Honda, but they are the king of small engines.