28 replies to this topic

[CliffB]

Hi All,

New guy here, would like to say hello and ask a question or two if you'll humor me.

I'm looking for a family-friendly Malibu for under $10K. I like the looks of the early boats (late 80's), particularly the open bow Sunsetter. I have four small children so I think I'll need the open bow to help accommodate all the little ones when out on the lake for the day messing around. The later boats (say, 1991 onwards with the different profile) don't look as good to me.

My question is, what years was this particular model made, and are there a lot of them available?

What are the main things to watch out for? I've heard that stringers de-laminate and the floor can get soft. Were the floors wood? Rot? Do stringers de-laminate from the hull or ??

Thank you to anyone that can help me figure some of this out.

[Steve B.]

Pre-94 or 05 (?), boats had wood stringers, floor, interior parts. After that, no wood. Yes, the early years are prone to wood damage, just like other manufacturers.

You may be able to find a 95 'ish for around 10 if you look everywhere. I'd recommend it, also, they are bigger, so with the family it might be nice.

I love the look of the old Sunsetters too.

Good luck,

Steve B.

[james11music]

Pre-94 or 05 (?), boats had wood stringers, floor, interior parts. After that, no wood. Yes, the early years are prone to wood damage, just like other manufacturers.

You may be able to find a 95 'ish for around 10 if you look everywhere. I'd recommend it, also, they are bigger, so with the family it might be nice.

I love the look of the old Sunsetters too.

Good luck,

Steve B.

Correction. 1993 was the first year Malibu put fiberglass stringers and floors in their Sunsetters. I can vouch for this because i own a 93 sunsetter. The only wood in the boat are the seat backs and bases.

[tvano]

check out the 'specifications' link on the 'resources' tab.
pretty good indication of which models were make during each model year.

[kengrutza]

That was true for the Euros, I have a 93 Sunsetter and it has wood everything (I rebuilt it) 94 I believe the regular Sunsetters were all fiberglass.
Love my 93 but I hear the newer (95 and up) were a little bigger with a higher gunwale so there's a little more protection for the little ones.

[james11music]

That was true for the Euros, I have a 93 Sunsetter and it has wood everything (I rebuilt it) 94 I believe the regular Sunsetters were all fiberglass.
Love my 93 but I hear the newer (95 and up) were a little bigger with a higher gunwale so there's a little more protection for the little ones.

Good to know. Thanks for clarifying.

[CliffB]

Thank you all, very much appreciated. That's great information. I'm looking at an '89 tonight just for the heck off it - will be looking closely at the condition of the wood. If I can't find anything in that vintage with good wood I'll go looking for a '95 or later w/o the wood.

Thanks!

[mnhays]

Get a 96-99 Sunsetter, after that they evolved staying more ski boat ish IMHO, (instead of neutral [but still on the ski side]) but the sunsetter VLX's are awesome boats, GREAT for families, in 98 it was the top of Malibu! and who doesn't love an early v-drive?

[Nitrousbird]

You should be able to find a 96+ Sunsetter DD for 10k. Might have to look and negotiate some to get to that point. Take your time and find the right boat.

[inlandlaker]

I can say, as an owner of a 97 Sunsetter LX, that it's a great all around boat. You could find one for around $10k with some good negotiations, but at that price point, you should expect some things would need attention however it should run well and have little to no mechanical problems.


Good luck and keep us posted.

[CliffB]

Thank you guys. Well, I did exactly what you're NOT supposed to do.....I went and bought the first Malibu I saw!

Unfortunately, there just aren't any early open bow Malibus anywhere near me in Seattle. And, with the scant few days of summer ticking away that we get here in Seattle (plus it's SeaFair weekend this weekend!), I bought a standard (non-open bow) 1989 Malibu Skier for $5,750. The wood in the boat is in excellent condition, it's always been stored indoors or on a covered lift on the lake (and it shows), good upholstery, white/blue, the engine (chev 350) runs great (400 hrs) and she has the borg warner drive. A bit grubby but some cleaning and polishing in the driveway will correct that.

It always suprises me when somebody is selling a boat or a car and they don't bother to even give it a wash and a vacuum out before people come looking.

I'm excited to get out on the water with the kids. I know what I'm doing with boats having been around both power and sail since I was a boy so not too worried about operating the boat. I am a little concerned about how in the hell I'm going to teach my wife to drive the thing properly while I'm out on the end of the ski rope....

Thank you all.

ps. how do I insert a .jpg pic file in here so I can show her off?

Edited by CliffB, August 03, 2012 - 09:46 PM.

[Nitrousbird]

ps. how do I insert a .jpg pic file in here so I can show her off?

Either become a paid member (well worth the money in discounts with vendors) or use an image hosting side and use the img tags to post it.

[inlandlaker]

The wife thing will take some time. Good luck and congrats on the purchase.

[Levi900RR]

Can't wait to see it. Congrats

[mnhays]

Awesome, those boats are always a joy to see on the forums with what their members do with them! Congratulations on the new BU!

[CliffB]

Thank you gents. Have to give a quick update here.

The '89 Malibu I had a deal on....fell through. On a handshake, the owner and I agreed on $5,750 one evening after a ride and a bit of negotiating. It got somewhat late in the eve by then so there wasn't time to get the boat out and onto the trailer. We agreed to meet up at 10:30 the next morning to get the boat loaded up and get him paid. At 10am I call him to confirm timing at which point he says the price isn't $5,750, it's now $6,500. Huh?

Who does that? The guy was kind of drunk I think when I was there the evening before with my kids, but we very clearly negotiated and agreed on the $5,750 price. What a nut.

Sooooooo, I went and checked out a different 'Bu ('88) closer to me in Seattle and it's a gem. The stringers look very solid and the floors are solid. The gel coat isn't faded or oxidized, engine looks clean and has had maintenance, red/grey, 529 hours. We agreed on a price of $6,000 and I picked her up tonight with my kids (boy, were they excited!). She needs some cleaning but overall she's in very good condition. Trailer is good, even came with a ski rope and an very nice tube. A little bit of upholstery work to do but not bad. A few evenings of cleaning her up in the driveway and we'll be on the water. Probably change the belts and impeller for the heck of it.

Heck of a lot of boat (and fun) for the money!

Edited by CliffB, August 06, 2012 - 04:16 PM.

[CliffB]

pic

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•  Malibugarage31.jpg   125.38K   42 downloads

[CliffB]

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•  Malibugarage41.jpg   198.89K   23 downloads

[CliffB]

Added a Momo steering wheel in place of the nasty old wheel. The old (Malibu) wheel looked like something out of a 70's dune buggy left out in a field for 10 years.

Attached Files

•  Malibugarage51.jpg   136.52K   31 downloads

[jk13]

Added a Momo steering wheel in place of the nasty old wheel. The old (Malibu) wheel looked like something out of a 70's dune buggy left out in a field for 10 years.

But how do you steer the Alfa?


Seriously, nice boat. You should enjoy that one for sure.