1997 Stingray 180RS possible buy need opinion

[jay32827]

I am going to look at a 1997 Stingray 180RS tomorrow morning. I've seen pics and this boat looks pretty good. The guy who seems to care greatly about this boat, claims the boat is in excellent condition with the exception of one of the jump seats in the back where people got in and out. He says the bellows were replaced last year, along with the belts and the alternator went out, so that was replaced. He says there is no hour meter? Whats the deal with that? My fathers 1993 checkmate had an hour meter so shouldn't a 1997 Stingray have one? He claims that no more than 30 hours a year were put on this boat..any way to verify? Supposedly this boat runs perfect and is in really clean condition. I will definitely have to see it run.. Any recommendations on checks I need to perform? He wants $6000, is it worth it? I've never had a sterndrive before so I greatly appreciate any input and opinions. Thanks.

 

[jkust]

Re: 1997 Stingray 180RS possible buy need opinion

I am going to look at a 1997 Stingray 180RS tomorrow morning. I've seen pics and this boat looks pretty good. The guy who seems to care greatly about this boat, claims the boat is in excellent condition with the exception of one of the jump seats in the back where people got in and out. He says the bellows were replaced last year, along with the belts and the alternator went out, so that was replaced. He says there is no hour meter? Whats the deal with that? My fathers 1993 checkmate had an hour meter so shouldn't a 1997 Stingray have one? He claims that no more than 30 hours a year were put on this boat..any way to verify? Supposedly this boat runs perfect and is in really clean condition. I will definitely have to see it run.. Any recommendations on checks I need to perform? He wants $6000, is it worth it? I've never had a sterndrive before so I greatly appreciate any input and opinions. Thanks.

Stingray is a budget boat. Many times budget boats do not have an hour meter. That particular RS model sounds exceptionally over priced as it is their entry level model however I do not know where you are shopping. You may be in Canada but I don't know. That boat in my opinion is in the dime-a-dozen category. There is no legitimate method to verify the hours on that particular engine. If you are truly interested in buying the boat, an inspection and sea trial are a must as you mentioned. I certainly would not take the seller's word on much. Not that NADA is the end all but it retails at $2,950. I'd bet it was purchased new at 10k out the door. Again, I don't know which market you are in but in the midwest that would be an egregious price tag. I highly suggest you continue shopping and do some more reseach and get the lay of the land.

 

[jay32827]

Re: 1997 Stingray 180RS possible buy need opinion

I took a look at the boat... It appeared to be in good condition, I couldn't verify that anything worked cause it was winterized, and the battery was disconnected and it was very dirty. The tear in the rear jump seat was worse than expected. All the other seats and everything looked good. There was a massive stain in the carpet. I was very turned off by the cleanliness of the boat, and what makes it worse, the guy called it a "very clean boat" in the title on craigslist. If someone cannot keep a boat clean(especially for sale) I have to wonder what else was mistreated. I am in the hartford,ct area.

 

[jay32827]

Re: 1997 Stingray 180RS possible buy need opinion

the guy dropped the price down to $5000. The boat books for just over 4k here plus the trailer after that.

 

[jkust]

Re: 1997 Stingray 180RS possible buy need opinion

Only opinion, but for 5k it would have to be a trailer queen and even then I would have to be able to do a full sea trial. I understand you are in an expensive area. How does it compare to similar boats price/condition wise on boat sites? If it's not at least clean, what suprises await the next owner? To me even if they were giving it away for free, it's about the hassel and downtime if it turns out to be a project.

 

[jay32827]

Re: 1997 Stingray 180RS possible buy need opinion

Did some more thinking and we are going to go for a newer 2007 Stingray 185RS. This boat is a dealer trade in with less than 50 hours on it, and still has 3 years on the engine and outdrive warranty. even has 2 years on the hull. They want 11,900 for it, but I think i can talk him down to 11k out the door. Alot more money, even if it breaks I dont have to fix it and thats worth a million bucks.