Thinking about a new boat?

[Bubba1235]

Just curious how others are viewing the "new" market right now and who is buying?

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

You should be able to haggle on price with a dealer right now.
The boating industry is hurting,especially on smaller boat sales.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

but watch who you buy from, you may not have anyone to back the warranty.

 

[Fish~n~Chips]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

Personally, I would wait till around Jan. or Feb. Then you get the advandage of model year closeouts, plus the straining econmy.

~Jason

 

[bowman316]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

I would never buy new, you save a lot by buying slightly used. Right now though i only have the money for older boats, older than 1995 ish.

 

[eaglejim]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

No,I buy slightly used also in or around 30+ year old boats there seems to be a lot of good deals out there

 

[642mx]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

This summer we almost pulled the trigger on an 08 Baja Outlaw 20. It was $40K and the dealer offered a fair trade in price on my current Baja, but we walked away because I wasn't 100% sure I wanted the 20.

I think it was a good decision. After looking at some other boats, I think I want either a 23 Outlaw or a 23 foot Crownline. I still can't decide.... so I guess I'll keep what I have for now.

 

[sundowner205]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

I'm thinking about going bigger after the new year...somewhere around a 30-35 Regal or the like. Not sure about brand new or not - there are alot of great used boats here on LI that are just a couple of years old, always marina maintained, and quite honestly, most are hardly ever used. The Sundowner is a great boat, but getting a little too small for entertaining guests. Also, we want to start taking trips on the boat and need something with a full head and galley.

The market seems rite. I think we're going to keep the Sundowner and bring it up to the lake house in Maine, and keep the new toy around here

 

[jacknbella]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

I'm working with a dealer who quoted me a lower price on a 2009 model from the factory compared to a 2008 left-over. Go figure? Times are REALLY tough for dealers but I still can't figure-out why BRAND new is cheaper than just new. Any ideas?

 

[dingbat]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

This summer we almost pulled the trigger on an 08 Baja Outlaw 20. It was $40K and the dealer offered a fair trade in price on my current Baja, but we walked away because I wasn't 100% sure I wanted the 20.

I think it was a good decision. After looking at some other boats, I think I want either a 23 Outlaw or a 23 foot Crownline. I still can't decide.... so I guess I'll keep what I have for now.

You should have just bought the 20' and got it over with. Twofootice is a disease with no cure. If you buy the 23' then you'll want a 25' within a couple of years. You might as well get used to the feeling becouse it doesn't go away.....ever.

Buying a new boat, never. I just can't see taking the deprication hit.
Let someone else buy the boat, figure out it's not for them, and sell it to me at a substanually reduced price.

 

[bowman316]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

plus you have to break in new engines, and you prob can't run at full throttle for a while.
But I do wish i had a diesel inboard, because diesel gets the best gas milage.

 

[642mx]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

I'm working with a dealer who quoted me a lower price on a 2009 model from the factory compared to a 2008 left-over. Go figure? Times are REALLY tough for dealers but I still can't figure-out why BRAND new is cheaper than just new. Any ideas?

The dealer is probably paying juice on the left-over. Boats are financed on the showroom floor, every month a floor checker comes by and charges interest on them. They normally get a certain amount of months with free flooring, so that could be why the 09 is cheaper. Your dealer has probably paid a lot of interest on the 08 and needs more out of it to break even.

 

[642mx]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

You should have just bought the 20' and got it over with. Twofootice is a disease with no cure. If you buy the 23' then you'll want a 25' within a couple of years. You might as well get used to the feeling becouse it doesn't go away.....ever.

I hear ya. But there are a bunch of differences in the 23 Outlaw and 20. The biggest difference is the 23 has a cuddy you can walk in. The 20 just has some storage in the bow. I think it would be nice to have a place to "snuggle" if the weather gets bad....lol.

 

[cdnfthree2]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

Interesting. I had always thought boat were all on the floor as "sale or return". Didn't think that dealers had their own money in them. If that's not the case then these dealers are about to lose their shirts.

 

[642mx]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

Interesting. I had always thought boat were all on the floor as "sale or return". Didn't think that dealers had their own money in them. If that's not the case then these dealers are about to lose their shirts.

Its like that in a lot of business's. I work at an ATV dealer and our monthly interest bill is in the thousands.

 

[Navy Jr.]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

plus you have to break in new engines, and you prob can't run at full throttle for a while.

If you buy used, it can be difficult to be sure the proper break-in procedures were followed by the original owner. Same for general maintenance.

I became quite frustrated when it was difficult to almost impossible to get service records on "almost new" boats in the model I was looking for. The warranty doesn't cover problems caused by neglect or misuse.

So, I bought new. Heavily discounted factory order. Got free extended warranty on the motor (Merc 115hp 4-stroke outboard). Also got the color scheme wife wanted. Loves it. No regrets. Just yesterday I dropped it off for winterizing at the selling dealer. I have a 3-ring binder to keep all records for the next owner who will most likely be my son as he has fallen in love with it. Truth be known, his name is already on the title and the warranty since the boat came with a lifetime warranty to the original owner(s) on certain components.

Depreciation? Yea. But less of an issue the longer you keep it.

I can very well understand why buying used is better for some (okay, most) than buying new, but it doesn't mean those who buy new are complete idiots.

Perhaps this doesn't make sense, but in my case this was my retirement gift to myself, something I had saved for for years and years. It would have been great to save some $$ on a used model, but at my age I don't have time to try and unload something that doesn't work out, and then go through the process all over again to find something that does.

 

[Fish~n~Chips]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

I hear ya. But there are a bunch of differences in the 23 Outlaw and 20. The biggest difference is the 23 has a cuddy you can walk in. The 20 just has some storage in the bow. I think it would be nice to have a place to "snuggle" if the weather gets bad....lol.

Or even if the weather is good...

 

[642mx]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

Or even if the weather is good...

Exactly!

 

[Dirty Dawg]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

624MX, do not understand that, isn't that more of a reason to get rid of the 08 as fast as possible, even at the expense of a profit margin? What will change in the near future that will allow the dealer to recoup the $ in the 08?

Never understood that theory. Bought a used truck and we had the same discussion. They had "X" into the truck and could not let it go for anything less. I had asked them how long they had it, it was one year. I asked them if they " were for real" and if the understood depreciation on model year and what they had already lost. They rethought it and made the deal.

Selling trucks and boats is a tough business that just got a hell of a lot tougher!! Ike

 

[642mx]

Re: Thinking about a new boat?

624MX, do not understand that, isn't that more of a reason to get rid of the 08 as fast as possible, even at the expense of a profit margin? What will change in the near future that will allow the dealer to recoup the $ in the 08?

Thats what I would think also. But in the ATV world (which I don't think is much different from the boat sales world), we hang on and keep paying interest (or "juice" as we call it). Eventually the manufacture will feel sorry for the dealers with 300+ days old inventory and offer a huge manufacture rebate. I've seen our manufacture offer up to 30% off on 300 or more days old inventory. The trick is to blow out the units before interest starts making a dent in the profit margin. If it sits around awhile, then you wait for the big rebates and then blow it out the door. Its a fun business....