Need advice, new or used

[ckone0814]

Re: Need advice, new or used

tashasdaddy you have one sweet ride there!

 

[waterone1@aol.com]

Re: Need advice, new or used

Sorry to double-post, but I thought I had better explain what I wrote in my earlier post. When I said that you should have a surveyor, even if buying a new boat, there are reasons for that.
Yes, a new boat will come with a warranty. However, there are many people that have bought new boats that will tell you, that their new boat came with several problems. In many cases their new boat spent at least half of it's first season in the shop. The real problem is that many first time buyers will sign for and "accept" that boat withoutout spending any time on it or even taking a "shakedown cruise". A surveyor should stop you from doing that, and hopefully this post will stop you from doing that. The salesman and dealer is not "your friend". Realize that !! Look at your sales contract carefully and cross out and amend it as you should while you still have the power ( before you or your bank have agreed to pay for this boat). Amend it to read that delivery or acceptance does not take place untill you have driven and tested YOUR boat in the water. Further it should read that you have not accepted or taken delivery of the boat untill all problems have been resolved. In many cases the dealer and the salesman will tell you "you can't do that"......sure you can, or else you will walk out of their office and find a dealer that will co-operate with you. Remember, your goal is to get what you paid for. A dealer that has a multi thousand dollar sale "pending" will move mountains to get the problems resolved. That same dealer that has already been paid, and is "just" honoring the warranty will string you out for weeks. Even in a new sale situation, a surveyor THAT YOU PAY, will make things smoother for you.

 

[meryl36]

Re: Need advice, new or used

Hey everyone,
Thanks for all the good advice. We spoke to the dealer & told her no thanks, that we need a bigger boat so the search is still on!!!
tashasdaddy.....wow, that is a nice boat. I always thought deck boats looked more like pontoon boats but i guess not. there's a place down by my lake house that sells them so i'm gonna have to go check it out

As for what i want i want to do with the boat.....well, i'm 46 & as i said, it's mainly going to be me & my husband so for the most part, we'll just be crusing around the lake. I may try sking or wake boarding but i've got bad knees so I may not be able to do that. I enjoy just lounging on the water & swiming around when I get my hubby to actually stop the boat!

Guess I'll keep an open mind about everything & keep looking.
you guys are a wealth of info....thanks so much & sorry for all the questions!

Meryl

 

[jkust]

Re: Need advice, new or used

I will chime in on a couple things. I have a 2003 Chap and at least for the year and the size, the Chap had a leg up on many brands I looked at. I saw someone else say this on a different thread but Chap did the little things right on their smaller models. Now I can't compare the 2003 to a 2008/9 since many the things that were considered premium on the Chap back then are now more standard on lots of brands. The exception still remains the much more robust construction of the Chap (read much heavier dry weight). I considered a used boat when there were no new models in stock and then only a boat that was just past the 20 hour break in mark since at least in theory now it is a buyers market. (I can't really say the same when I bought in August). Now that the season is just about wrapped up here in MN, I see lots of larger runabouts greater than 20 feet at firesale prices. If you plan to entertain and do not have storage or towing issues, get the biggest boat for your circumstance within your budget without settling. I can also say that unmended scratches on a Chap are far and few amongst Chap owners.

 

[sparkie1962]

Re: Need advice, new or used

I was a rookie boat buyer almost 2 years ago, and really had no idea what to look for in a boat, but I did know that I wanted a fish and ski. So I started looking on craigslist here in the Austin TX area until I found what I thought was a good looking match for me. Now I knew nothing about boats, but I grew up on a farm, and I was always told by my dad that if you take care of your equipment, it will take care of you, and Ive always lived by that motto, and to this day it holds true for me.
Back to the subject, I found a 1994 Glastron 17.5ft ski and fish and went to see it and bought it without even making an offer! The reason I did was that this boat had obviously been extremely well kept, and garaged, and he had all his maitanance records for the boat.
I was not dissapointed at all, and this boat was a great learning experience, meaning not alot of money, and small enough not to be intimidated (except for large waves).
Now I have a 1997 Larson with 140 Hrs on it, and Im loving it also, but it is 2 feet longer and wider, and that is the only reason I sold the Glastron was to go bigger. Do NOT go to small, you might regret it in the long run.
Dont let people tell you that one brand is that much better that the other brand either, because Glastron and Larson are both supposed lower end boats and Ive had no issue at all.Thx, and good luck