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Is this '05 VLX a good deal...?


IXFE

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I have been lurking on this site for quite a while as I contemplate my first boat purchase. I think I want a VLX or VTX.

I found this one and wondered what you all thought about it.

2005 Wakesetter VLX for $41.5k with 520 hours

It seems really loaded. I don't often see the smaller Malibus with the Hammerhead engine. Is the Hammerhead too much for my first boat? Should I be looking for Monsoon instead?

I am concerned that it has over 500 hours since most boats I see have much less. Is 500 hours considered high for a boat??

Thanks for your input!

01010001040101030120080509708070b92624669554007e23.jpg

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I like the colors.

Price looks good too. I would not worry too much about 500 hours as long as it has been well maintained. Although 500 hours on a 2-3 yr old boat means they have used it quite often I imagine.

My 2002 had 500 hours when I bought it last year FWIW.

The hammerhead is a good engine.

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Looks like a decent deal and he stated OBO. I think everybody would love to have the hammerhaed whether it's their first boat or not. It's not like you have to be worried about too much power like to do in a sports car.

500 is hardly any hours. It's like 50K miles on a car. The boat looks clean, too

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I have been lurking on this site for quite a while as I contemplate my first boat purchase. I think I want a VLX or VTX.

I found this one and wondered what you all thought about it.

2005 Wakesetter VLX for $41.5k with 520 hours

It seems really loaded. I don't often see the smaller Malibus with the Hammerhead engine. Is the Hammerhead too much for my first boat? Should I be looking for Monsoon instead?

I am concerned that it has over 500 hours since most boats I see have much less. Is 500 hours considered high for a boat??

Thanks for your input!

01010001040101030120080509708070b92624669554007e23.jpg

There is one for sale on this site you can use to compare:

http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index....showtopic=14736

Hours are not so bad (maybe 170 per season?) if used correctly with all maintenance records and priced accordingly. I'd get familiar with the maintenance schedules, then call Bakes Marine and validate that all scheduled maintenance was performed and what if any warranty work was needed (history). HH is a great engine.

In my search in the past I've found people saying all regular scheduled maintenance was performed, but actually was not, especially if used heavily every year…I found a few tend to put off oil changes to end of season. For 500 hours you should be seeing at least 10 oil changes past the break in period IMO.

I think I've seen this discussed on here before, but I had an email a couple years ago from a person at Indmar that told me they "generally" used the formula of 100 hours = 10,000 miles for comparison, BUT maintenance was key no matter the hours.

You can see general maintenance schedules here on pg 6-3:

http://www.indmar.com/About/ContactIndmar/..._Presentweb.pdf

Good luck. Looks like a well cared for boat.

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Well since the guy selling it has a bakesmarine email address, I'm gonna guess he works there and knows how to maintain, and drive a boat.

I would rather have a 500 hour boat driven by someone who knows their stuff, than some 200 hour boat driven by joe smoe who dosen't have a clue.

I would say it's a really good deal on a pretty loaded boat.

-Chris

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I know this boat personaly. all i can say is it is worth every penny. it is owned by one of the sales men. the hours are up there but thats cuz he uses it. the boat has been maintained very well. and is loaded to the tilt. the only reason he is selling it is due to the fact that he has an 08 on order. and fyi he has just dropped the price to 41500 for a quick sale. I would not hesitate to look at or own this boat. the other good thing is when you buy a boat you buy a dealer and you couldnt ask for a better combonation. a steal on a used boat and an awsome dealer to back it up. Thumbup.gif

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I wouldn't naturally assume just because someone at the dealership owned it's been maintained correctly, some used boats at dealers that were personal boats were in bad shape imho. Therefore, I'd inspect this boat just as I would on any other used boat I was looking at. The '05 HH is a great engine the only problem was the oil sensor going off. IIRC Indmar recommends 40w or 50w oil if the problem persists when you're on a test drive then I'd definitely get this ironed out before going any further. It's a lopie engine lots of high end power, while it's a great engine the monsoon is a rock solid engine and works fine in a VLX. While the seller may work at the dealership, the boat itself may not have any affiliation with it in terms of offering a warranty. Furthermore, you only get 3 yrs to transfer the lifetime hull warranty so depending upon when it was first registered in ’05 it may be already past the transfer timeframe.

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Being that it's at Bake's is a big thing in its favor though. That dealership knows how to do things right by all accounts. It's not remotely the same as buying a boat from a salesman that works at UWS. ;)

Point taken, yes I've heard good things from them as well. Wasn't it that Clubmyke guy that had issues years ago....

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hope fully bakes will chime in here but I have to say that boat has seen alot of love as far as being taken care of. I have been in it driven it even ridin behind it. my 2cents are that if I was in the market I would have been on the phone already and setting up a test drive.

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I think it looks like a great deal.

I surprised wakegirl didn't chime in on the HH383.... Whistling.gif It is an awesome engine and in the VLX it will make you smile every time you put the hammer down.

There are quite a few people that have about 150 hours a season. So 520 hours in not really that bad.

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hope fully bakes will chime in here but I have to say that boat has seen alot of love as far as being taken care of. I have been in it driven it even ridin behind it. my 2cents are that if I was in the market I would have been on the phone already and setting up a test drive.

So is it a dealership owned boat or a personally owned boat of someone that works there?

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I think it looks like a great deal.

I surprised wakegirl didn't chime in on the HH383.... Whistling.gif It is an awesome engine and in the VLX it will make you smile every time you put the hammer down.

There are quite a few people that have about 150 hours a season. So 520 hours in not really that bad.

We put almost 14 hours on our boat this past weekend.. Rockon.gif So far about 40ish hours for the season. Yahoo.gif

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I think it looks like a great deal.

I surprised wakegirl didn't chime in on the HH383.... Whistling.gif It is an awesome engine and in the VLX it will make you smile every time you put the hammer down.

There are quite a few people that have about 150 hours a season. So 520 hours in not really that bad.

We put almost 14 hours on our boat this past weekend.. Rockon.gif So far about 40ish hours for the season. Yahoo.gif

:biteme:

We will be putting our first hours on this weekend Yahoo.gif

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I don't know where you are located but there is a pretty sweet deal for a wakesetter here in Bozeman MT>

59 hours on an '04

<a href="http://montana.craigslist.org/boa/681182731.html" target="_blank">http://montana.craigslist.org/boa/681182731.html</a>

I wouldn't buy a low hours 04 hammerhead.....

04 completely different hull

04 Hammerhead 380 Blowup.gif

Not to be confused with the 05-present Hammerhead 383 Thumbup.gif

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I think it looks like a great deal.

I surprised wakegirl didn't chime in on the HH383.... Whistling.gif It is an awesome engine and in the VLX it will make you smile every time you put the hammer down.

There are quite a few people that have about 150 hours a season. So 520 hours in not really that bad.

We put almost 14 hours on our boat this past weekend.. Rockon.gif So far about 40ish hours for the season. Yahoo.gif

:biteme:

We will be putting our first hours on this weekend Yahoo.gif

Plus1.gif

Of course I have helped him with those hours. :)

I have 275 hours on my 06 VLX so really the 500 is nothing just means he used it every weekend. I usually do two oil changes a season and then the winterization oil change. Looks like a good deal to me snag it before someone else does.

Oh, Welcome.gif

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hope fully bakes will chime in here but I have to say that boat has seen alot of love as far as being taken care of. I have been in it driven it even ridin behind it. my 2cents are that if I was in the market I would have been on the phone already and setting up a test drive.

As I mentiond before, I'd just validate all the assumptions. If well cared for, should be as simple as pulling the records and a 15 min discussion.

Looks nice though. But hey, how does someone working full time have that much time to get that many hours on a boat! I want his job!!!

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I think it looks like a great deal.

I surprised wakegirl didn't chime in on the HH383.... Whistling.gif It is an awesome engine and in the VLX it will make you smile every time you put the hammer down.

There are quite a few people that have about 150 hours a season. So 520 hours in not really that bad.

We put almost 14 hours on our boat this past weekend.. Rockon.gif So far about 40ish hours for the season. Yahoo.gif

:biteme:

We will be putting our first hours on this weekend Yahoo.gif

Plus1.gif

Of course I have helped him with those hours. :)

I have 275 hours on my 06 VLX so really the 500 is nothing just means he used it every weekend. I usually do two oil changes a season and then the winterization oil change. Looks like a good deal to me snag it before someone else does.

Oh, Welcome.gif

Yep you're a machine dude!! Soon you'll have the backroll. Rockon.gif

Is this a dealer boat or a private sale from someone whom merely works at the dealer?

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Besides looking for the best deal, you should be looking at which boat best fits the way you will be using the boat.

The VLX is awesome for wakeboarding, surfing, or just cruising on the river, but is not so good if you want to slalom ski.

The VTX, especially if outfitted with the Cut Diamond hull, will be ok for wakeboarding, good at surfing, and pretty darn good for slalom skiing. Get the boat that will get used by you.

Glad to see someone else from Sherwood.

There are sure a lot of Malibus out on the Upper Willamette. I was out last night and must have seen at least 6 or 7 Wakesetters out there besides mine.

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