Northstar 170

[OttawaRiver]

Anyone ever heard of NorthStars boat manufacturer?
I was looking in the autotrader and I saw a beautiful 1998 Northstar (17.6feet long). The boat is in mint condition but I didn't try the motor (it look like they didn't use the boat that much!). The motor is a 1998 70hp Johnson.
The boat doesn't come with a trailer. The asking price is 6500CDN$ (5200US$).
I was thinking of making a offer between 4000-4500US$ (keep in mind that a still need a trailer which is around 1250$ used).
Do you think that it's a good price?
I attached some pictures of the actual boat

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Northstar 170

nice looking boat, they would atleast have to put muffs on the motor and start it for me. check it out throughly.
Buying a boat

1st you need to decide what you want to use it for, fishing, cruising, or water sports.

2nd how many people adults, children you want on board of the average outing.

3rd outboard, inboard-outboard, or inboard power plant.

4th Budget, what you want to pay, and what you are willing to pay, when you find
Exactly what you want.

You can hire a marine surveyor, to inspect the boat, or you can do it yourself.

You are mainly looking for soft spots in the deck, transom, cracks, all signs of a rotten, under frame. You walk all over the deck, that a mallot, or hammer with wooden handle, using handle, tap all over the transom, a shape rap is good solid base, a thud, is questionable base.

The motor should be clean, no spots where the paint is discolored, or pealing from heat, having run hot. (This part for outboard motors Compression should be atleast 100psi, and within 10% of each other,)
Spark on all cylinders, good pee stream, check lower unit for water in oil.

The overall condition of the boat will tell you a lot, as to how it has been maintained.
boat motor combo, A 30 year old may be in better condition, than a 3 year old

 

[OttawaRiver]

Re: Northstar 170

Thanks Tashasdaddy!
I have a fishing boat and this one will be used to spend time with my family and friends.
There will be between 4-6people on the boat.
Do you think that the boat is underpowered (especially for water skying)?

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Northstar 170

the 70 is a fantastic more, imho, it puts out more power per pound of it's weight than any other motor. not knowing the weight of the hull, or your people, the answer is hard to answer. it should be a good performer though. see if you can find the max hp capacity plate on the boat. 70 % of that is absolute minimum hp for that hull.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Northstar 170

i did some research. http://www.nadaguides.com/default.a...4&p=38&f=5694&gc=MR&gtc=MR&m=1144&y=1998&ml=N

the boat is in good cosmetic condition, but his price may be high. but the Canadian market is much different than the US.

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: Northstar 170

That looks like a really nice boat. I really like the transom/swim platform design with the outboard.

The 70 HP OMC motor is probably one of the best motors ever made. I had a 1976 version that just loved to run. The fact that the same basic motor was made so long should be some indication of how good it was.

The boat weighs about 1000 lbs dry. By the time you add fuel, people and gear it will be closer to 2000 lbs. That is a pretty good load for a 70 HP to push. Luckily it has power tilt/trim so you will be able to trim it up once on plane to help stability and top end.

I would say with 4 people on the boat it would be pretty tough to pull a slalom skier out of the water. You could probably get someone on two skis, a tube, kneeboard or wakeboard up though.

 

[OttawaRiver]

Re: Northstar 170

There will be 2 people on the boat when water skiing to obtain the maximum performance.
I was worried that the 70hp was very underpowered to handle 4-6people but I think that it's the best choice for fuel economy and a acceptable performance especially with the 70hp Johnson!

Thanks a lot!
I will look at the motor next week to see the condition. If he's able to lower a litle the price (i think it's high without the trailer), I will definitely buy it!

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Northstar 170

Looks like a real nice boat. It won't be a speed demon with the 70 but I think it will be acceptable. Price seems high with no trailer.

 

[OttawaRiver]

Re: Northstar 170

Is my offer between 4000$ and 4500$ (depending on the condition of the motor) reasonable? Should I go lower?
Also, I don't want to be a low baller!
and again, thank you for your feedbacks!
I Really Appreciate it! http://forums.iboats.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Northstar 170

i think his price is really high for an 11 year old boat, even in the best condition. especially with no trailer. here i would not go over $3,000. your economy is not much better than ours right now.