Mercury Marine Oil Capacity Guide

Changing your engine’s oil and gear lube is an essential part of maintaining your Mercury Outboard. For maximum protection and performance, we recommend using Mercury Precision Lubricants. These products are rigorously tested to meet strict standards for performance. All Mercury oils contain specially designed additives to reduce friction, improve performance, and protect against engine wear.

Table of Contents

• Why Choose Mercury Engine Oils
• When Should I Change my Outboard's Oil & Gear Lube
• Oil Change Kits
• Mercury Oil Capacity Chart
• Maintenance Tips for DIY'ers

Why Choose Mercury Engine Oils?

• Specially formulated for marine environments.
• Mercury oil provides 40% more protection than other marine oils.
• Delivers significantly better protection than NMMA industry minimum.
• Keeps engines performing their best even when operating at max output.

For 4-Stroke engines, Mercury offers mineral, synthetic blend, and full synthetic formulas. Each formula provides varying levels of protection – mineral is good, synthetic blend is better, and full synthetic is the best. Full synthetic 4-stroke oil has 45% more dispersant, 24% more detergent and 49% more anti-wear additives than the synthetic blend.

Mercury’s line of 2-stroke oils includes the Premium, Premium Plus, and Optimax oils. Premium 2-Stroke oil is a conventional oil manufactured for low- to mid-horsepower outboard engines. Premium Plus and Optimax are synthetic blend oils that provide maximum protection and superior lubrication.

When Should I Change my Outboard’s Oil and Gear Lube?

It is recommended that you change your oil and gear lube at the end of the season. During use, lubricants accumulate moisture, combustion by-products, and other contaminants. Storing your engine with a large amount of these contaminants present can be detrimental. For year-round boaters, gear lube and oil changes should be done annually, or at every 100 hours of use. 

Oil Change Kits Make DIY Maintenance Easy

Routine maintenance doesn’t have to be a hassle. Mercury oil change kits are a great option for DIYers who prefer to get everything they need in  one convenient kit. Oil change kits come with everything you need for a routine oil change, including a new oil filter. In addition to the kit, basic hand tools, an oil extractor pump, and a container for the used oil, will also be needed to complete your oil change. Kits are available based on horsepower and come with instructions printed right on the box.

Mercury Oil Capacity Chart

Please note that the engine oil capacities listed below are approximations directly from Mercury Marine. Check your operation and service manuals for more information for your specific engine.

Click Here to Download a PDF of the below chart.

Maintenance Tips for DIY’ers

• Gear lube pumps are a great way to make changing your gear lube quicker and easier.
• After draining your gear lube, inspect it for large metal flakes. Fine metal particles are fine, but larger metal chips can indicate significant damage or wear on internal parts. Gear housing disassembly and inspection is recommended.
• Drained gear lube should also be inspected for color. If it is milky in color instead of blue/green or brown, then water is getting into your gearcase.
• For 4-Stroke Outboards, engine oil should be warmed up before drained.
• Before installing your new oil filter, smear a thin coat of engine oil onto the filter’s rubber gasket.

Routine oil and gear lube changes are a DIY-friendly maintenance task to keep your engine running like new. Online resources such as  Mercury Marine’s Official Youtube channel combined with complete oil change kits make this maintenance task easy. If you are unsure which oil is best for your engine, or if you need help finding a replacement oil filter, contact us. Our customer service team can help you find the right products for your outboard.