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I would guess that the block still has plugs above the oil pan, which may be occupied by knock sensors. Remove them and you will drain the block. You'll also want to drain the heat exchanger, which could be accomplished by removing a hose from it that goes to the engine. The "J" hose on a SBC is the normal choice, so look for a hose from the exchanger to the circulation pump.

Talk me out of this boat! coming from a 95 prostar190 but family is growing and right now the kids are wakeboarding but will be trying skiing again this spring/summer. Looking at adding a tower to the 95 but it’s such a clean original 95 I don’t really want to go that route. We have a skylon pole for wakeboarding but it’s a bit of a pain and running out of room. Plus wife wants an open bow for the times we’re just hanging on the boat. https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1125934938412637/

Curious if anyone has came up with a device to hold the tower that can easily be stored in the boat. Only big flaw of this tower...

The reports reference the Malibu segment, the saltwater fishing segment, and the Cobalt segment. Looking at it, you're correct, the three segments decreased by 866, 337, and 145 units to combine for a total loss of 1368 across all segments. I'd have to go back and look at all the older reports to pull Malibu "segment" only numbers, and the formats change over time so the data may not be there. Maybe one day when I'm bored....

Another drawback to the Milwaukee is low speed polishes sometimes don't work well with it. It's lowest speed setting is higher than some of my polishes recommend. other than that though I love the M18 ROs. Game changer for me, I hate managing the cable on my old porter cable. On the original subject of pads and polishes, I also recommend Rupes. I've been using their stuff for a couple of years now after talking to the detailer at Inland Boat Company on the 'Gram. Their detail team pumps out some flawless looking boats. I asked Inland Dave to share his secrets - and it's all Rupes in their shop. It's good stuff.

I don’t know for sure, but could you be including statements about units that include the other brands like cobalt, pursuit, Maverick, etc? @IXFE was talking Malibu-specific

This was with others; in the Bahamas, mostly I didn't ☺ I can't wait to get back out on the water...

https://radarskis.com/products/mens-session. Get a 69” or even a 67”. Thank me later. Then pare down the width and speed and angle start going up. Have fun w your new boat!

OK, I will take another look at the brushes...maybe they have just slid in their respective lanes. Not sure about the fluid. It was definitely in the motor cavity. I will see how I can get into the pump side.

i would not worry about the winterizing thing - a lake test is a must! Check oil color and for any leaks after it is run. There will be some dripping at the read of the ending b/c of the drive shaft. Would check the date code on the tires and replace them at Walmart on the way home if they are over 6 years old. Not a bad idea to pick up a spare if it doesn't have one. As for towing without brakes i would just have a bigger vehicle like a truck or suburban that could stop it easily. We love our 03 SSLXI and had to do some brake work too (mostly bleeding)

I'm nominally (changes with the time of day at my age) 6-3 +/- and 195 +/- 5 pounds, so a large (72" in the instant case) ski, and my 14s, XXXL boots, make it unlikely that I'll buy a today-ski unless some ski fairy bestows one on me. Lines will be new-ish, having lived most of their life out of the sun and with very limited use (said son no longer skiing); other-ski which binding my (other) son who bought the boat managing to stuff my sasquatchian feet into, tearing the outer shell in one case, not likely being what I'll ride, but which fits boat-son just fine, with similar limited use. Both of us will be resuming a pleasant trip down memory lane (our skiing together was the proximate reason for his building the house and buying the boat, so I could teach his boys, and when *I'm* compost, he could ride (we got the crossover cuz we don't know whether wake or ski will make them shine) with HIS sons...

It sounds good except the trailer. SLXI isn't a light boat for a single axle trailer. Doable, but I would have the bearings redone before I hauled it 4 hours. Tires are probably junk too, even though they might look good. That is a decent price, but I would offer less.

I put in new spark plugs, cap, and rotor this spring. Have not checked ignition coil or timing, I'll have to do some research on those!

Boat sounds great. The SSLXI is a fun boat. Drives like a sport car and is a pretty good crossover boat between skiing and wakeboarding. Some have tried to make the SSLXI surf, we haven't. It really doesn't have the freeboard for a surf set up. Watch out when you have anymore than a light weight person in the bow as you can take on water over the bow when going slow. The impeller is an easy inexpensive replacement. The tachometer and other gauges will need replacing at some point. The original gauges are run off a Medallion Dash Computer (MDC) located under the dash. It will eventually fail. The work around is about $1k. Winterizing the boat is basically draining the water from the engine block and the exhaust manifolds to protect the manifolds and block from freeze damage. If kept warm, no reason to winterize. The trailer is a concern. The brake actuator is about $500 or so depending on the model. Check the trailer carefully for rust in the frames if it is a box frame trailer. Look at the trailer bunks and the condition of the trailer bunk mounting brackets on the trailer. Consider replacing the trailer tires if they are more than 4-5 years old and you have a four hour tow ahead of you.

What? I need to go buy some with patterns??? https://us.speedo.com/elysium.search?search=briefs TOTM is that I've not skied in some time. The ski in question is a 72" HO, label forgotten as I've not laid eyes on it for a while, and my son can't find it (or hasn't bothered to, yet) in the trash heap which is his basement. But I intend starting from scratch - get up, and then start in the mid-20s doing slow turns until I've got my timing and balance back in order. From there I'll start cutting a bit - actual direction change with an edge, and then wakes (going through on edge). Etc., rinse repeat. I doubt, as we didn't see any last summer in the week we were where our home was going to be built (no tool had touched the land yet), that I'll do any course work, though if I discover a coven of other course skiers, I'll ask - probably not before next year - if I can have a run. And my wife, despite several of my cruising buddies (we lived and cruised aboard a Morgan 46 sailboat for 15 years) wearing exactly the same sort of Speedo, has demanded I wear a suit that looks more like shorts, support and comfort and all the other reasons I wore Speedos for 60 years be damned. So likely any future photos won't be with my red or blue or green or black speedos... L8R, y'all!

@2011vlx do you mind sending a photo of the crossover bleed tube. I’m running into the same problem with my 2015 vlx with the 409.

Actually, that's not right, and I'm not sure where the mistake is. Does the "Malibu segment" include Axis boats? They claim in the Q3 2022 results that they sold 2562 units. Then Q3 2023 claims a 119 unit decrease from same Q in 2022, but states volumes was 2637, an increase of 75. Then these latest results state what you quoted, decrease of 886 from Q3 2023, which would put volume at 1751, but it's stated as actually 1269 units, which is a 51.87% decrease like they claim in the opening numbers. So I'm confused.... but sales volume from same Q 2023 to 2024 decreased from 2637 to 1269, so a little over half, not a two thirds. It's ugly no matter how you look at it!

electrical gremlins stink, and given variety of behavior you describe (stereo, throttle, dash), maybe something is loose. easy starting point is to crawl around everywhere and be sure nuts are on tight. a bad ground wire or loose connection can wreak havoc. Under dash like you mention is a hornets nest, but also check battery connections, by stereo in OB compartment, any lugs around engine or wiring harnesses/fusepanels relays back there, etc.

I am looking at a 2000 Sunsetter LXI. I used to be a frequent boat user, never a boat owner before. Below are some details about the boat. It looks in good shape from the photos. Please let me know if anything about the info seems concerning, or if there is anything about else I should look into. Asking price $21,000 350 Monsoon Engine 710 hours Always kept inside 2nd owner since 2004 - Upholstery completely redone 5 yrs ago - Bimini top added 5 years ago - New water pump in 2023 - New alternator in 2023 - New Original graphics in 2022 - Repainted windshield frame in 2022 - New trailer tires in 2021 What is broken: - tachometer intermittent, does not affect performance - Trailer brakes do not work. Trailer needs new brake actuator, (single axle trailer) Maintenance performed by owner yearly : oil, oil filter, fuel filters and air filter. Other repairs: replaced the steering cable about 6 years or so due to just getting old, replaced the exhaust hoses about 5 years ago due to getting old flushed/serviced transmission fluid about 3 years ago just because it was time too. the boat has never been winterized because it stays stored inside of an insulated shop during the winter (Central Mississippi) Trailer maintenance: grease the bearings every year, no other maintenance. Boat has NEVER been in salt water. Should I be concerned that it hasn't been winterized? Maybe it is not that big of a deal that far south with a heated building. The owner never mentioned changing the impeller which seems like a regular maintenance item, but I haven't asked them specifically. I am a little worried about the condition of the trailer since I have a 4 hour drive. Current owner is 3 miles from a lake so they are ok with a test drive, but they might not have been too concerned about trailer maintenance. Thank you!

If you are confident your rebuilt was done correctly, then maybe your issue isn't the carb? Check your grounds first and foremost. Check you ignition coil? Have you done a new cap rotor in a while? how are your spark plugs and plug leads? Have you checked the timing? If your timing is off this could affect your idle. How about fuel filter? Do you run ethanol fuel?

We had our 2nd outing of the season yesterday and uncovered some new electrical issues. On our first day out, we noticed that the interior speakers weren't working. We shut down the boat, turned off the batteries, and when we restarted all was well. Until last night. It did the exact same thing as we were idling and filling the ballast. Again we shut off the engine, reset the batteries, and it appeared to work when starting back up. I was the first rider in the water and no issues getting up, both zones of speakers were working and perfect pass was functioning. However about 1 minute into being on plane the entire dash went blank and it "reset" the electronics so far as the blower even coming on when it came back up. For the rest of the night the screen didn't go out again, however now the tower speakers only work intermittently. You can hear them clicking (3 times) and working for about 2 seconds every 60 seconds or so and then going back off. We tried resetting the battery, etc and nothing. I pulled the under dash cover off and nothing appears out of the ordinary however there is a lot going on under there..... In addition we noticed that throttle "disengage" button wasn't working. I know that it worked a few weeks ago as I started the boat for the first time this season with a fake a lake in the driveway and had run the engine a few rpm's higher without engaging the transmission. Last night the little blue light wouldn't come on and it wouldn't disengage the transmission. Again, nothing out of the ordinary from what I can tell under the dash. It feels like something was up and then once the dash screens went out, it damaged or messed something up. Not sure if the throttle button would somehow be related? Any thoughts on where to start for tracking this down? The wiring harnesses are so tight under the dash it's hard to trace most of it.

Looking for some help here. My 2002 sportster with Holley 4150 carb runs great at skiing speed but despite my best efforts, it will not idle well and sputters in low gear. I had the carb rebuilt 5 years ago when I purchased the boat and while the idle and low gear speed has never ran particularly well, it seems to be getting worse. I adjust the idle speed and mixing but after running the boat or skiing and going back to neutral it is all over the place. Is it worth another rebuild or should I buy a new carb? Unfortunately, it appears that Holley no longer sells a 4150 with vacuum secondaries, only mechanical. I don't know if the 4160 will work as it is single gas feed and I am not sure what is entailed in that conversion process (i.e. new pump? Definitely new, longer fuel line?) Any help is appreciated, I love skiing behind this boat and it runs great but since I am often skiing in the course I really need better idle and low gear speed!

I agree that what they developed there is outstanding. You're right, prior to that development, there wasn't anything there other than the water.

You would likely get better engagement if you opened a new thread.

Who knows what the reality is, but Tommy's and their associated businesses own pretty much the entire "downtown" area of Walloon Lake Michigan. The comments regarding personal property in Boyne City could be referring to these properties. They pretty much rebuilt the entire Walloon Lake downtown in northern Michigan. Walloon as a very upscale lake for the area and the downtown area was very run down and not a destination other than the lake until around 2013, when Tommy's opened. They dumped a TON of $ into the area. They own 2 great restaurants and a very nice hotel. They just completed an upscale condo building and another is about 75% completed, both with retail areas. The area they developed is incredibly nice and we visit often, we are hoping all of this does not have a negative effect on that area!