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Please help me evaluate this boat


Ithaca91

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Greetings to all -- new to the group but hoping that I can be the proud owner of a Malibu someday soon.

My deal is: never owned a boat but just got a slip at a lake in VA, so now we're in the market. I saw the ad linked below at a marina in the area and hope to tap the collective wisdom here to better understand if this is a credible boat at a credible price.

So that you know my objectives, they are (in order):

1) Own the right Malibu;

2) Be able to slalom ski in open water, board and surf -- none of the three need to be tournament quality -- and switch between the three without it being a major production;

3) Hold 7 to 9 people without be jam-packed; and

4) Have a boat that is sturdy enough to make open water runs across a relatively big lake from time to time without bouncing my familiy out of the boat.

All that for under $30k please!

I realize that critical information is missing from this ad, like the nature of the upkeep thus far. And it does seem strange that a boat that is 6 or 7 years old would have such low hours. But the marina is reputable and maybe it's just a good deal.

Please give me your impression. And if you have any additional suggestions, like what kind of questions I should be asking and what I should be looking for upon inspection, that would be great too. Also, I realize there's no tower here so if you have suggestions about what would be the right fit, I'd love to hear them.

http://www.lowmarine.com/pre_owned_detail.asp?sid=03591272X6K15K2010J7I57I28JPMQ6032R0&veh=1678191

Thanks for your help. Looking forward to learning and becoming a contributor to the Crew.

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Looks like diamond hull, so prolly a pretty good skier for a vdrive. Wedge, so you could get a decent wake out of it for wakeboarding. Should throw a decent surf wave too. Low hours, wow! No tower, probably no ballast? Figure another $3K+ to get those put on. No real stereo either? Dunno if that's a concern, but you could easily spend another $2K there.

That's kinda a small configuration if you are going to have 7-9 full sized people on the boat on the regular (my boat is same configuration). For 4-6 people it's great, but more than that people have to sit in the bow, which can get cold on all but the hottest days.

My $.02: For what you are looking for you have to weigh size vs. ski wake. Bigger boat like a 23LSV Escape/sunsetter/wakesetter of same era (pre 04) is prob best "big boat" compromise at your pricepoint. If your crew were going to be 6 or less regularly, then the boat you linked would be a great candidate.

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Greetings to all -- new to the group but hoping that I can be the proud owner of a Malibu someday soon.

My deal is: never owned a boat but just got a slip at a lake in VA, so now we're in the market. I saw the ad linked below at a marina in the area and hope to tap the collective wisdom here to better understand if this is a credible boat at a credible price.

So that you know my objectives, they are (in order):

1) Own the right Malibu;

2) Be able to slalom ski in open water, board and surf -- none of the three need to be tournament quality -- and switch between the three without it being a major production;

3) Hold 7 to 9 people without be jam-packed; and

4) Have a boat that is sturdy enough to make open water runs across a relatively big lake from time to time without bouncing my familiy out of the boat.

All that for under $30k please!

I realize that critical information is missing from this ad, like the nature of the upkeep thus far. And it does seem strange that a boat that is 6 or 7 years old would have such low hours. But the marina is reputable and maybe it's just a good deal.

Please give me your impression. And if you have any additional suggestions, like what kind of questions I should be asking and what I should be looking for upon inspection, that would be great too. Also, I realize there's no tower here so if you have suggestions about what would be the right fit, I'd love to hear them.

http://www.lowmarine.com/pre_owned_detail.asp?sid=03591272X6K15K2010J7I57I28JPMQ6032R0&veh=1678191

Thanks for your help. Looking forward to learning and becoming a contributor to the Crew.

Check out NADA for an idea on how much it should cost. As for the hours, I wouldn't worry about that as long as its the original engine. You don't want a boat with 1000 hours on the hull and 70 hours on the engine. You get the idea... Some people think they need a boat and then never use it.

:welcome:

:werule:

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Greetings to all -- new to the group but hoping that I can be the proud owner of a Malibu someday soon.

My deal is: never owned a boat but just got a slip at a lake in VA, so now we're in the market. I saw the ad linked below at a marina in the area and hope to tap the collective wisdom here to better understand if this is a credible boat at a credible price.

So that you know my objectives, they are (in order):

1) Own the right Malibu;

2) Be able to slalom ski in open water, board and surf -- none of the three need to be tournament quality -- and switch between the three without it being a major production;

3) Hold 7 to 9 people without be jam-packed; and

4) Have a boat that is sturdy enough to make open water runs across a relatively big lake from time to time without bouncing my familiy out of the boat.

All that for under $30k please!

I realize that critical information is missing from this ad, like the nature of the upkeep thus far. And it does seem strange that a boat that is 6 or 7 years old would have such low hours. But the marina is reputable and maybe it's just a good deal.

Please give me your impression. And if you have any additional suggestions, like what kind of questions I should be asking and what I should be looking for upon inspection, that would be great too. Also, I realize there's no tower here so if you have suggestions about what would be the right fit, I'd love to hear them.

http://www.lowmarine.com/pre_owned_detail.asp?sid=03591272X6K15K2010J7I57I28JPMQ6032R0&veh=1678191

Thanks for your help. Looking forward to learning and becoming a contributor to the Crew.

Looks like a super deal to me. I would inquire why the hours are so low and verify that it has been properly maintained. I have a cousin with an '02 sunscape and they say the slalom wake is great compared to alot of DD she's been pulled behind. ( Yeah I said she, and she's the best I've ever seen in person).

Switching from surfing to slalom and/or viced versa will be some work. It will all depend on how big and how automated you go with your ballast system. Run some searches, there's a wealth of knowledge on here.

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Uh an 03 with less than 100 hours.. I would seriously look over this boat for dry rot. I am a firm believer that boats need to be used. I would not want a boat that has sat its whole life. Things dry out and rust grows from the inside out. Personaly I would be looking for something that has had 50-100 hours a year on it. Don`t be afraid of hours. Be afraid of people who havent taken care of it for the hours. The rest of the boat will show you how it has been taken care of. my 2 cents for what it`s worth.

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Is this the first boat you've looked at? If so keep shopping. Shopping definitely includes getting boats on the water. The more you shop and ask questions the more educated you will be. Don't be afraid to wait. The "great deal" that gets away...another one will be around the corner. And welcome to the crew. We're the best group of children you'll ever get to know. :welcome::usa:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks everyone for the great feedback. Just found out that the mechanic found a "small" crack in the engine block so it looks like it's back to the ole' drawing board. Oh well.

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Low hours and a crack in the engine block. Something seems fishy about that. My suggestion for you is to test drive a couple different boats of different sizes and configurations. Look at direct drives and vdrives and how the layout works for you. Look at 20 footers all the way up to 24'7 footers. Drive them and see how they feel. You may not want a big boat because you think it is going to be a lot to handle, but you might be surprised by how nimble they really are. A 21'6 foot compared to a 20 foot boat might not seem like a big difference, but when you step into the boat you will notice a big difference. Same applies to boats with a 92 inch beam compared to a 98 inch beam.

I have a VLX because my primary activity is wakeboarding. I have slalomed behind it no problem. You seem to just want a boat that can do a little of everything and not worried about the best wake for any activity. I think that puts you in a great situation because you can look at every boat malibu makes. A 20 footer might be too small for you, but a 21'6 on up might be perfect for you whether it is a wakesetter or sunscape I think you will be happy either way. I also may be bias, but I think a tower, ballast, and wedge are a great idea for your boat not only for boarding but for resale value as well.

Good luck with your search.

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