Re: Need advice on buying first boat
1)The boats that I've seen that are in my price range are: Bayliner, Searay, Stingray, Sylvan, Chapparal, Regal, Four Winns. Any thoughts here? Particularly what about the boats on the lower end of the price range?
We purchased a 2005 Bayliner 185 in the winter of 2008 (fired her up in spring of '09). I did a lot of research online, here at iboats, talking w/locals (lot of boat owners in MN), etc. The general consensus seemed to be that Bayliner had a reputation as being a "lower end" boat, but no one could really back up a claim that the boat wouldn't be durable and operate consistenly. For the most part I think this "lower end" label comes from the fit/finish/bells and whistles attributes of the boat. People also told me that your main concern should be with the engine; choose a good one and you'll likely be in good shape. We are first time boaters and we didn't want to drop $20k or $30k+ on a simple ski boat, without knowing if we'd enjoy it (we love it). Plus, I'm frugal by nature so the Bayliner fits us well. We paid $9k for the boat, trailer and Lowrance GPS.
2) 3.0, 4.3, or 5.0? Will the 3.0 get it done for me?
Based on my research I searched out a 4.3L for our 18' boat. Our family consists of me, my wife and two kids (11 and 9) - all normal size. But I've found that usually when we go boating we have at least two other kids with us (our kids always want to bring a friend) and sometimes another family of four. The 4.3L is a must in my opinion. With five of us in the boat it easily pulls a tuber or skier. With seven of us in the boat it pulls a tuber or skier, but you can feel it working. Forget what people say about extra gas consumption. On our "worst" gas day of the summer I think we burned $20 worth of gas. I suppose if we'd had the 3.0L we might have "only" burned $15 worth of gas. Oh, one other thing, when there's a small group in the boat and you gun it, that 4.3L makes you feel like you're driving a muscle car - great acceleration and sound.
3)Any advice on pricing? What's the best way to determine what is a fair price for a used boat?
I looked at Ebay, Craigslist (where I found my boat), in the online local papers (not much there anymore), talked w/boat owners, etc. Then I created a spreadsheet and started tracking everything - length, engine size, boat brand, features, hours, condition, price, blue book value, etc. After I had about 30 boats on the spreadsheet I started to get a feel for what range I "should" pay for the boat I wanted. Then it was just a matter of waiting until I found the right boat, and the right seller. The guy selling my boat had two very young kids that couldn't sit still on the boat, and the guy was a big fisherman/outdoorsman so he wanted more of a true fishing boat. He'd only had it out on the water about 10x. Most people will tell you not to buy a boat unless you can take it out on the water - probably good advice. However, the guy selling my boat seemed like a good guy and I believed him when he told me he took good care of the boat. Additionally, the boat was in great shape as was the engine. Since it was only a couple years old I decided to purchase it even though it was too cold (December) to test it. We're very happy with our purchase - the boat has been great.
You're not going to get the same advice from everyone in iboats. But you'll start to see trends in what you're reading along w/your other research. Take that advice into account and then trust your gut. I've found iboats to be invaluable - the guys here are great. Good luck to you!
