Looking to buy a 2004 Wakesetter 23 LSV - what to look for?

[TNT_WAKE]

I'm REALLY interested in a 2004 Wakesetter 23 LSV... the one i'm currently checking out is the 383 hammerhead, which has been rebuilt (rebuilt engine has 80 hours of the boat's 270 hours). A few questions about the boat:

Any issues with the V-drive, or the 383 that I should be looking for? The only thing I've read is that the 383 uses a little oil.

Am I taking any major steps back in going with a 2004 LSV vs 2005 VLX? I really like the idea of the 23 vs 21.5 and the pricepoint seems to be good. I know the VLX got some makeovers in 2005, but they don't seem significant (bigger glovebox, etc.)

Any other major changes between 2004 & 2005? It looks like drive by wire wasn't until 2006.

Sorry about all the questions, but I haven't seen one yet in person, so I'm just figuring out what to look for.

T

Edited July 23, 2010 by TNT_WAKE

[Woodsprinter]

2005 has two rear ballast tanks under floor while 2004 has hard tanks on side in rear lockers.

[99response]

An 04 boat will have the 380 hp hammerhead which is 350 cubic inches, the 383 was put out in 05, makes 400 ish hp and is 383 cubic inches.

There were a run of bad hammerheads in 04 which your boat was obviously one of them, but I'd look more into what happened with that motor especially if it was rebuilt versus a reman or new engine.

[TNT_WAKE]

An 04 boat will have the 380 hp hammerhead which is 350 cubic inches, the 383 was put out in 05, makes 400 ish hp and is 383 cubic inches.

There were a run of bad hammerheads in 04 which your boat was obviously one of them, but I'd look more into what happened with that motor especially if it was rebuilt versus a reman or new engine.

It sounds like it was a bad winterization. The block was replaced, new pistons, new bearings. I guess they checked everything else and it was fine. It's got about 80 hours after the rebuild, and my local Malibu dealer said that's a good indication that everything's probably OK. I'm still going to have it inspected by a local dealership before I take a 20hour drive to get it.

So with the 04 HH, did they just replace the head/cams to get the extra 40hp? The dealer mentioned that the HH is a 350ci bored & stroked to 383ci, but he may have been thinking of the '05 400hp version.

[99response]

Frozen block is a real good reason to replace the motor. With those hours I wouldn't be worried about any other issues.

The extra 40 hp came from aluminum fast burn heads, cam, and ECM tuning.

Dealer was thinking of the newer motor unless they replaced the frozen motor with a stroker (unlikely)