Tell me the truth about Larson...

[ematheus]

Hi all:

Here is my dilema. My wife and I want to buy a cruiser that we can trailor. We wnat the creature comforts, but it also should be fishable. So I did my research, and I found the Larson 240 Cabrio. Love the layout, and for me - it's fishable enough. I heard goo things about Larson and some horrible remarks like "it's a Bayliner with a bow around it" - very cheap boat etc.
So here I am, asking the people who own one....
I would appreciate your input - either way!!!
:/ Ernst

 

[imported_jiml]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I just purchaed 274 in July. .Love it
just be careful who you buy it from

Our dealer had/has several complaints with the BBB and I did not check. my mistake :^

 

[mlodowd]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

would never buy a larson again
have a 206 senza and after the first choppy day on the sea stress marks appear on the gel coat and worse 2 cracks appear on the hull
larsons so called lifetime waranty wouldnt cover them as they claimed it was down to abuse.if you are only using it in your bath go ahead but if you want to trailer and drive it buy a sea ray,even a bay liner

 

[kbjorklund]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

So far so good for us. Went from a 06' 186 5.0 GL Senza to the 07' 206 5.0GXi Senza and its performing well. Like the layout\styling. You do get what you pay for most of the time though. We could have gone Baja but would have had to pony up $20,000 more. So far, our experience has been a good one and we're faster than those 454's!

 

[204 Escape]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

We could have bought almost anyboat that we wanted to. Matter of fact, we did buy a Viper Coral 21' Fish/ski. (nice boat, GPS'd at 78 mph, with a 225 Merc., but wasn't the boat the Larson is).

We had originally bought the 204 Escape that we now have, but the property taxes bothered me, and I almost missed the Larson.

6 months later we bought the Larson, and traded off the Viper. THe quality, the operation, the ride, the plane time is all great. Will be glad when winter is over, an dI can go fishing and skiing again !!!!!!

Dad bern weather !!!!!!!

 

[orion25]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

would never buy a larson again
have a 206 senza and after the first choppy day on the sea stress marks appear on the gel coat and worse 2 cracks appear on the hull
larsons so called lifetime waranty wouldnt cover them as they claimed it was down to abuse.if you are only using it in your bath go ahead but if you want to trailer and drive it buy a sea ray,even a bay liner

I have a 2007 207LXi and I have beat the crap out of it a couple of times in choppy water crashing into and over waves. No complaints here. I actually paid less for it than a comparable bayliner would have been. We love it and cannot wait until the spring when it can get wet again! A sea Ray would have been $10K more. The only problem I have had is the depth sounder was hooked up incorrectly and did not "sound". One spade connector, 1 foot of wire and 5 minutes solved that!

 

[orion25]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I love my Larson and would only consider trading it in for a Larson Cuddy...........

 

[AZSenza]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

We JUST bought a 186 Senza, sold our 85 4Winns. Its equipped with the 5.0 and so far so good? The price was less than a comperable Sea Ray and has the V8.

 

[flowjet_man]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

Excellent choice. I love my LXI 228.

 

[magster65]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

A buddy of mine has an '05 274 Larson Cabrio (28'). They layout is great... quite roomy in fact with all the goodies. The stepped hull works absolutely great! The boat is fast for it's 5.7 mag mpi at 46 mph... very impressive. If this were my budget to spend, I'd consider it for sure... but know that it's not the highest quality boat out there.
The 28' Sundancer weighs in at 8600 lbs and the 28' Larson is only 6000. It feels 'thin' and you can definitely feel it in the ride when there's a chop. Even the 26' Sundancer is 7800 lbs...
I know... heavier might not mean better but there's other fit, finish, material quality, hardware, railings... etc. things that are noticeable.
I'm not trying to sell you on a Sea Ray either, there are nicer boats. Cobalt, Doral, Kavalk...
It's about your budget really!

 

[id30066]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I looked for 2 years before I bought my new boat last summer. I was looking at boats like Chapparal, Cobalt and SeaRay along with less expensive brands like Maxum, Tahoe and Bluewater. I chose Larson because I felt the fit and finish was there with the expensive brands without the huge price. I liked the 5 yr warranty. We put 40 hours on the boat last July, August and September with no problems at all. However, you are looking at one of there larger boats and I know they use a different process for hulls then in the LXi 208 that I bought. Based on my experiance with the model I purchased, I would not hesitate to purchase another one of any size. With that in mind, I feel that maybe more important is the dealer you buy from. No matter what boat you buy, if the dealer is crap, then your experiance will most likely be crap. For instance, the dealer I bought from, no longer is selling boats, so the nearest Larson dealer is now 5 hours away.

Austin

 

[MyIsla]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

Have owned a 1995 Cabrio 250 for the past 2 season and looking forward to the 3rd. We did upgrades to meet our needs but had no handling or power concerns.

Wouldn't hesitate to buy another. Feel its a upper middle of the road boat and in budget.

Good Luck!

 

[id30066]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I just saw some good interviews from boatTEST.com regarding Larson. Very interesting. You should check it out. Again, I have had a great experiance with them and would not hesitate to purchase another.

Austin

 

[gprince]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I have a 2006 208 LXI and love it. It's my 5th boat. I have had a Mastercraft, Stingray and (2) Four Winns. The larson has the nicest interior of any and the MPI engine makes it even better. The Mastercraft and Stingray were more sport boats and the ride was rough, both Four Winns listed to the right. I also like the custom trailer on my 208 LXI. Fits perfect every time, no problems. If your looking for an mid-range priced runabout with upgraded interior, I would choose Larson. BTW, I would also install a set of Nauticus Trim Tabs - Smart Tabs.

 

[lakemac]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I have a 2004 Cabrio 260 which I have owned now for 3 years. It is my first motor boat after being a dedicated rag boat owner (sailor) for many years.
I looked at all makes available "downunder" and felt the Larson the best value for money.Originally I had my heart set on a Sea Ray 275 but once i stepped into the 260 it was "no contest".
The larson is nearly 4 inches wider than any other boat of its lengh and that makes all the difference. Extra feet in length aren't as noticeable as a few inches in width.
The build quality is excellent for the price.

I don't tow our boat on the road, as to legally tow anything bigger than a bath tub in Australia is a nightmare.
We are thrilled with our Larson and everyone who steps on board (including a few sea ray owners are always impressed)

 

[puppydan]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

Hi we have a 20 ft larson hampton with a 5.7 merc the boat is assome and fast had it three years no problems great boat we are selling to go bigger mabe the larson 23.5 hampton

 

[eastont]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I've got a 1988 25' cruiser and other than a couple of problems, for a 20 year old boat it's great. Quite often we get complimented on it and it is actually faster than a friends 23' Sea Ray with the same engine.

It's all about maintenance and care. There's a 2004, Regal I think, just down from us and it looks 25 years old.

 

[wkb2460]

Re: Tell me the truth about Larson...

I have a 2000 Larson 220 cabrio which i've had for two years.
Best boat i've owned. Love the ride and the interior layout.
I would definitely purchase another larson.