time to upgrade

[Surffx]

Thinking of upgrading in the next couple of seasons. We currentley have a 2005 bayliner 175 that we bought brand new and are very happy with it. But the kids are getting bigger and we are fast out growing it.

In the spring and fall we fish and cruise Lake Tahoe and Lake pyramid (big lakes) and lake davis and Frenchmans (small lakes).

In the summer we like to wakeboard and tube and swim in thses same lakes.

Wife says the next boat has to have a cabin, porta potty, and curtains.

So I have narrowed it down to two choices that are pretty much in our price range.

I would like some opinions one which one I should pick based on the activites listed above.

--Bayliner Discovery 192 cuddy

--Trophy 1902 (yes the outboard not the 1952)

The biggest differance is the outboard verses the I/o. I am tired of extra maintenance of the I/O and would like to move towards and outbaord. But that wouldn't completley stop me from buying another I/O. The 192 has the same motor as we have now and I am happy with it. I'm not really into going fast so that isn't a factor.

The last thing I forgot to mention is that the Trophy would open up the possibilty of a bay/ocean trip. We only live 4 hours from prime salmon fishing.

Sorry for carrying on, what do YOU think? and why?

 

[oops!]

Re: time to upgrade

there is a lot of reason why people want an ob.......but. !

you are going to a bigger boat with a cuddy......wifey might want a proper head and galley......you might need a v8 to get you to pull a wake board properly.....or at least a boat load of props !

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: time to upgrade

i would go bigger than the 192, 210 as the cabin eats a lot of space, 5.0 .

 

[slasmith1]

Re: time to upgrade

Any reason for only looking at Bayliner/Trophy brands?

 

[BMWboatski]

Re: time to upgrade

Hello all just bought a new home on the water in MI. Lake is good size and all-sports. Looking to buy first boat in next couple of months.

Noticed on topigraphical map lake is about 15ft in depth all around.

Moved in during the fall, but I did see skiers, tubers and fishing. Do I need to take the depth into consideration when purchasing a boat? Or is that plenty of depth for the type of activities I would be doing (Wakeboarding, Tubing, Fishing, cruising)


Looking at 20-22ft deck boats with I/O motors such as the Tahoe 216 wt, Larson, Four winns etc. Heard some good and bad things about these any reccomendations for a 17-25k budget?

Is a deckboat for me over bowrider?

Thanks you very much for the guidance.

 

[Surffx]

Re: time to upgrade

Thanks for taking the time to reply. (not sure why boakski didn't start a new topic) anyway...

I do see your point about pulling a wakeboarder. I'm not really into going fast to hopefull I could get away with putting a lower pitch prop on to get them out of the water. You only go 20-25 when you wakeboarding. If this upgrade is going to happen I will be test driving both boats and I will try to find that out then.

tashasdaddy: I would like to move up in size but the budget just won't allow it. The more expensive of the two (trophy) is listed at 28K and the 210 is listed at 33k.

slasmith: Here are the three biggest reasons I am looking at bayliner/trophy. The bayliner/trophy dealer here in town (where we bought our last boat) is owned by people we consider personal friends and have become like family since we bought our 175 from them new 4 years ago. The sales/serverce expierance there has made boating that much funner and I couldn't imagine going anywhere else. The next reason is that the price on these models is in our budget. If I could afford a Pro Line or Robalo I guess that would be a different story. The last reason is that we want to buy new again. After buying our last boat brand new it would be really hard to go back. There is nothing like buying it off the show room floor and knowing you are not inheriting other peoples problems. That's not to say I wouldn't ever look else where...its just that right now I am looking for reasons why I would go with one of these verses the other.

Any other advice?

 

[superpop]

Re: time to upgrade

Before you buy new I would really think about why you do not want a used boat. I am not talking about a 4 or 5 year old boat that is ready for a bunch of repairs but a one or two year old boat that has already taken the depreciation hit. You pay a huge premium to drive it off the showroom floor. I am looking at open bow run abouts right now and have settled on Chaparral as my manufacturer, I have researched all up and down the west coast and I cannot find a new 204SSI for under 34K new. But guess what, I found several bank repos that can be had for 20-24K. These are boats that are 1 or 2 years old with 50 or less hours, to put that in perspective, it is like buying a used car with under 5000 miles on it. As long as the previous owner did not do anything stupid like drill holes in the boat or run it dry until stuff started to break then the used boat will be just as good as a new one. Just have it surveyed for 300 bucks for some extra reassurance. The boat I am looking to buy can be had for about half of what some poor sucker paid for it two years ago. And it looks brand new and I will not lose it to a repo man. You get a lot more boat when you look at 1 or 2 year old boats right now because there are a ton of owners out there that are upside down or do not have the funds for a fat boat payment so back to the bank it goes. It is worse than the housing crisis right now because a boat is the first thing most financially distraught people will give up. In the final analysis I always ask, could I turn around and sell this boat, car, house for what I am paying right now. With cars and boats the answer is always no because you are paying a huge premium to be the first owner. And if you are that close to the folks at your dealership they will understand.

 

[Surffx]

Re: time to upgrade

Ok pop, everything you said makes perfect sense. Thank you.

Now let's say I am looking at a 1-2 year old bayliner discovery 192 and a 1-2 year old trophy 1902. With the activities mentioned in my original post in mind, why should I lean towards one and not the other.

 

[superpop]

Re: time to upgrade

I would look at which one has the features that you most like, the Trophy will hold its value longer as it can be sold as a fishing boat and the outboard is nice for maintenance and winterizing. If they are the same price then I would pick the trophy for resale value and powerplant options.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: time to upgrade

First you should be commended on your stay local and do business with friends attitude! I like that.

My best advice is to seek out those friends that own the dealership and ask them for their advice and help. They will respect your honesty and probably steer you in a direction that is best.

How old are the kids? Will you be in the same place (needing more room) in a few years?

TD brought up a good suggestion too..... a 5 liter and maybe just 2 more feet and going to a 21 footer.

Once you add a porta pot to the cabin it occupies that space permanently which is actually the space of a whole person. IMO a 19' with extras will leave you cramped up the way you are now.

 

[tmh]

Re: time to upgrade

Abssolutely on going bigger - or face the same problem. A 4-5 year old boat can be in very near mint condition as some folks hardly use theirs then realize boating's not their thing. Or they baby it and then move up. Whatever. in this economy used boats are a great value. unfortunatley, your current one may not fetch as much $$$ as you'd like in this environment.

Good luck.

 

[KLINDWW]

Re: time to upgrade

Personally I would go with the Trophy and the outboard. Going with the outboard will free up a little more deck space also. I know that the motor cover makes a nice seat but that seat is ALWAYS there. I also agree with the comment about going bigger. I think that you will find out that the 19 cuddy will be more cramped than the boat you have now. I like the idea of asking the people that you are looking at buying the boat from though. If you have built a relationship with them like you say they will give you some of the best advise. What ever you decide, best of luck to you and happy boating.