MXZ 24 or G23 Purchase

[nyryan2001]

as far as the pockets being sewn into the biminis... folks across all the brands of boats are doing that as a neat solution for surf storage vs adding more racks for them.. many of the best pricepoint boards dont do well in racks... as in any racks, they get dinged up very easily. not talking the Z5.... that thing is like $4000+. this standard bimini is perfect for me as I trailer. I want really good shade but want it up and down fast, I can tow 80mph as you see it here, pockets def could be sewn into this one to provide 2 more surfboard storage.

[Nitrousbird]

Also part of that price jump includes 1/2 loop cooling, puts AF in the engine... Raw water still in the manifolds, heat exchanger, Vdrive, tranny.

What motor did your 247 have? Partial closed cooling is also available on Malibus as well.

I have to disagree with your Seadek comment. I think it looks great in pictures and uber cheap in person. That said, I haven't seen the gray in person only the teak look, so maybe the gray is better.

[nyryan2001]

I had the 6.0L 410hp, this has the 6.0L 450hp. They feel about the same, as I am sure the inceased HP is lost to the increased G weight. I prop'd the G down to a 2315, and it will surf the near 11,000lbs (7000?+2800+1100) easily.

Also of note... BIG note...just recently PCM offers a $6k ish upgrade on a no frills version of the SC 550hp. you go from closed loop cooling to the 1/2 loop like mine, lose the SS headers, and engine parts and fancy paint and a few others.

Edited May 14, 2013 by nyryan2001

[TrickyNicky]

happy to discuss. Not trying to be difficult, but its been happening as far as the racks... I dont want to call out by name and drag folks into this, also with the pockets. some folks prefer the double surf and some of the other options vs the combo racks, and doing the swap and selling the OEMs is cheaper becuase they are so pricey. Also as far as being such an issue, only like 2/10 or so folks have 4 racks? Seems a niche issue that has a simple aftermarket solution. But yes, valid point. Nautique could have put a 2nd pair of lugs on the tower to accept a 2nd set of racks.

and you certainly can add aftermarket racks... pick your brand of aftermarket swivel rack..mount them there above my others where my Revs are. folks who say it cant be done must not be aware you can invert the OEM racks to creat more space. yes you'd have to pick and choose the placement of the wakeboards with boots, but doable. I dont need a 2nd set of racks. Mine here in this pic are inverted, creates the space you need for not head hitting speaker installation, or it could be a 2nd set of racks...obviously you need to send them out to get poweder coated to match, considered having that done for my Rev clamps.

Just switched from another thread and wanted to say you definitely have the real estate to install some speakers into that transom and due without the towers. Will you do it? I don't think so. But I'll still egg you on to cut 8" holes into the G, I want to see it!

[nyryan2001]

what in the world are you talking about? im not doing that, never suggested i would.

[TrickyNicky]

what in the world are you talking about? im not doing that, never suggested i would.

Someone else was discussing doing it in another thread and one of the issues was space on the transom, jumping straight to this thread I saw you had tons of space on your transom so I thought I would egg you on. Wasn't expecting any results, but the seed has been planted...

[nyryan2001]

hahhaaa no way. no speakers in my transom, 1 pair of Revs is plenty for us..on the tower that is..... might change up the amp for them in the future though.

[85 Barefoot]

look at bobby brights new 247 thread 85. I know he did the samsons, and maybe surf pockets too. why is that a big deal to you.... your post reads as being super defensive about it. btw, here's the first hit on google it you search "samson racks on g3 tower":http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?/topic/42271-new-samson-surf-surf-rack-on-g3-tower/

You're a better googler than me! I did that exact serach and got squat! Thanks, looks nice although not sure of the need? All my boards fit in the standard racks fine

[wakeboarder3780]

Yeah I was def asking over on PN about quad racks. There were some PN members that supported the notion but the loudest (but fewest thank God) of the group really roasted me on *why* I would ever really *need* quad racks on the boat with all the storage the G23 has - even after I clearly stated I have 4 racks currently and use them on a weekly basis and that I want to put ballast bags in the rear compartments (then it was OMG why do you need more ballast in the back, why not put boards on top of the ballast bags, etc, etc)! It's like I was asking nautique to consider adding laser guided paintball tower turrets to mercilessly fire upon all lake lice within 100'. In all seriousness though I would like to see some quad rack capabilities stock. I think it's only fair on a boat that seats that many to have 4 available. That being said? I'll still buy it because the wake is sick and I won't have to install piggy back systems to run big ballast (I'll still put a piggy back on it to see what it can do tho )

Now I'll be honest, the G23 has massive amounts of storage. If you've ever been in an 06 or newer 23 LSV you know those rear lockers are b*tchin. Enough space to kneel down and wrench on stuff with. The G's compartment destroys on storage big time - everywhere.

I personally find the seadek attractive but more than anything i want to see it stand the test of time. I like the idea of it, like how well it should clean up and not get matted down. I like that if my dog pukes on the floor it shouldnt stain (hey ryan can you go throw some puke on your new G's floor and tell me if it stains - TIA! ) So for me I think it's a great idea so long as it holds up - time will tell.

As far as the throttle, no it's not a deal breaker for me but i like to be aware of maintenance issues ahead of time. For the life of me I don't know why nautique would do that but I'll prolly research it further. There has to be a reason because as it stands the way they implemented it sounds both overly complicated and more of a maintenance pitfall where as havig a simple position sensor communicate to the computer makes way more sense to me. I dont think nautique would do something that dumb without a reason, I'll have to figure out what the reason is. More than anything I just wanted to know. Nautiques throttles have always had a learning curve for me. I drove a bu first and recently have been driving a buddies naughty. There is much less of an area between N and F/R for nautiques so I constantly find myself clunking his boat into gear and I feel like an a** because I know how to drive but the throttle is so different to learn.

Funny story about malibu's TBW throttle. I had only driven a cable throttle before in my life. The guy I bought this LSV from took me out on the lake and let me drive. Like a dipsh*t I thought there would be as much resistance as my last cable throttle boat. my wife was sitting, previous owner was standing. One touch on the throttle and my wife went from sitting to laying on the seats. luckily the previous owner was nimble enough to catch himself. Man that was embarrassing HAHA!

Edit: Fixed my atrocious typing from my iphone

Edited May 15, 2013 by wakeboarder3780

[wakeboarder3780]

Oh also someone asked me what small hatches I was referring to on the MXZ. I'm talking about the pizza box size rear hatch hole you have to shimmy into to work on the engine (oil changes, spring/fall winterizations). Also once you're in the locker towards the rear there are cup holder and storage compartments that invade the area limiting ballast bag storage space inside. At first I hated the look of the MXZ. Then it grew on me when I saw the wake it could produce, I actually like the look of them now. Then I saw one in person and was very frustrated with the design from a storage / maintenance aspect. Then I walked over to the G23 where I felt like the design and maintenance aspect was the best I had ever seen in my life. I understand boats are highly subjective but from a functional design aspect of the boat itself from: a smart design, big storage, and "maintenance friendly" aspect - the G23 slays it. There are of course some things I don't like about the G (throttle design, no quad racks) but honestly I'll get over it for the things I love about the boat.

G23 Hatch Size (rough): 19" wide x 30" long x 29" deep - notice by the transom the locker is all open like the LSV - also gas strut does NOT get in the way of someone trying to climb into the locker.

MXZ Hatch Size (rough): 20" wide x 21" long x unknown depth (didn't get a pic) - notice back by the transom your locker is invaded by a "bucket" - all because the MXZ just needed to have these "seats" in the rear with storage and cup holders. ALSO notice the gas strut COMPLETELY impedes your ability to climb into the hatch - I would imagine a lot of MXZ owners will see these getting bent if they are regularly in the hatch. Kids will be leaning over them, buddies not in the know will put body weight on them.

My advice to malibu - GET RID OF THESE STORAGE BUCKETS / CUP HOLDERS AND MOST IMPORTANTLY OPEN UP YOUR REAR LOCKERS AT ALL COSTS. Some folks want to actually get IN the lockers to do maintenance on the boat once in a while.

I don't want to knock anyone that has an MXZ - it's still a great boat - just a terrible choice for me - rear locker size is huge for me. I need to be able to work on my boat and when you have shoulders like this, you can't / don't want to fit in a pizza box size rear locker hatch that has buckets that further invade the space.

Hope that makes my stance / opinion clear. I still love to drool at the MXZ's - I will just never own one unless they open up the rear hatches more. To date this is the most crowded rear locker setup I've seen on any inboard. If they "fixed" that and cleaned up the surf wake, I'd be stepping in line to buy one up - maybe even new.

Edit: Fixed my atrocious mobile spelling and added pictures to back up the exact hatch size / design to add objectivity to my point

Edited May 15, 2013 by wakeboarder3780

[bamabonners]

with a boat as tall as a G, I would expect more room. simply physics here... The boat is huge, it should have more room. why is this surprising to people?

[nyryan2001]

Bama-- the regular storage lockers are a little bigger as described above.

The observers/port compartment is HUGE. 2-3X bigger than 247/24MXZ. i have roughly the same build as 3780, 6'1" 200lbs and i can get in there and almost stretch out. And its not cluttered with batteries an stereo gear. they are out of the way entirely.

You gain front storage under the seats like a MC and you still have front ballast.

Not trying to sell you or anyone on the G23...but there is a lot more storage even over the largest Malibu at 12-16" longer than the G.

[shawndoggy]

Bama-- the regular storage lockers are a little bigger as described above.

The observers/port compartment is HUGE. 2-3X bigger than 247/24MXZ. i have roughly the same build as 3780, 6'1" 200lbs and i can get in there and almost stretch out. And its not cluttered with batteries an stereo gear. they are out of the way entirely.

You gain front storage under the seats like a MC and you still have front ballast.

Not trying to sell you or anyone on the G23...but there is a lot more storage even over the largest Malibu at 12-16" longer than the G.

Where is the front ballast? Is it under the floor? That's one thing I forgot to look at in the G at our boat show.

[nyryan2001]

Yep, under floor in the bow.

[Afun]

That's a huge boat, but it sure is pretty. I will never own such an expensive boat like a G23 or 24 MXZ. All day I would be stressed about keeping it clean, don't eat in the boat, and even getting it wet, lol. I would probably never even put it on a trailer. It would stay covered on a lift. I love the paint style graphics more than the Malibu. I am also a big fan of the Sea Deck and the Team Edition carpeting. Many will argue over the simple point that the Malibu seems to be the better performing and driver. I think the looks and the flooring go to Nautique. The boat size may be a little on the negative side, but you do get huge amounts of storage space. Your lucky to own either one.

[shawndoggy]

Yep, under floor in the bow.

so there's a separate bag and third pump? How big is the bow ballast alone?

[nyryan2001]

Yep 3 Jabscos to 3 bags. All 3 add up to 2800-2900lbs.

All the bags are custom for the G's, the bow is in the 700 range, 1100s or so on the 2 sides.... I removed the subwoofer to look at it and took some pics. its huge under the bow floor.

[Brett B]

So the G23 is using bags on timers and not hard tanks with ballast level monitors? How well does it work if you want to only fill half-full for example? That's one of the things I really like about the Malibu system, that it's very easy to get the wake exactly the same each time using the presets and ballast level sensors in the hard tank. I see people complaining about the timers on Mastercrafts all the time so I was wondering of the G23 had the same challenges.

[nyryan2001]

Yes, Yes and Yes. Bags, timers and level indicators. the level indicators are pressure indicators... so not as accurate as mechanical floater sensors like in Bu hard tanks. i would say the level indicators in my 247 hard tanks were 90% accraute... these 70-80% perhaps. it measures pressure of a fat sac.

No issues with the timers like 85 pointed out.... and I am familiar with the timer issues that MC has... one of my buddies here has a MC and timers are a PITA cutting off too soon. The timers on theses are about 90-95% accurate... meaning if you hit fill/drain... it will fill and cut off right before the tank is full/empty. hit fill again... it'll run for about 45secs till overflow starts to pee or run dry on the empty tank. the timers are pretty accurate. I dont see any issues there.

Bottom line is you arent going to have a hard time getting a partially filled tank if that is what you want.

[wakeboarder3780]

with a boat as tall as a G, I would expect more room. simply physics here... The boat is huge, it should have more room. why is this surprising to people?

The locker issue that I have posted here have absolutely nothing to do with how "tall" the G23 is. I am making an argument for the hatch OPENING length and width (not even depth leave that out for now). The MXZ has a small square hatch where the locker is FURTHER impeded by a gas strut completely blocking entry and tubs on the underside further impeding the locker storage. I compared that to both my 23 LSV (no tubs and big rectangle opening) and the G23 (no tubs, big rectangle opening, AND no gas struts in the way). Compared to either of those boats the lockers on the MXZ is simply the poorest design on any inboard I've ever seen if you care about locker storage and being able to wrench on the engine. No where do I remember calling into light the depth being the important part, i just provided the measurement since I had it.

As I stated - in MY *humble* opinion the MXZ locker design is broken and needs fixing. Clearly it's acceptable for many, but they either have a much more narrow build than I or simply do not put the same value in having room to work on the engine like I do (which is completely valid).

Edited May 15, 2013 by wakeboarder3780

[shawndoggy]

ha ha 3780 have you ever crawled in the hatch of an early 2000's bu with above-the-floor tanks? Suitable only for pigmy mechanics.

[nyryan2001]

my goal after the 247 is to never have to touch the engine other than the basic services... if anyone on here is lighting candles at night praying to Posiden that my boats fails....

[shawndoggy]

But even winterizing you gotta crawl in there and get your hands a little dirty.

[Chattwake]

[wakeboarder3780]

ha ha 3780 have you ever crawled in the hatch of an early 2000's bu with above-the-floor tanks? Suitable only for pigmy mechanics.

No I was looking at an 05 LSV and stayed away specifically for that reason. I actually have never seen them in person - just heard about them. Obviously I didn't mean to say it was the worst design in history - I meant it was the worst design I have ever seen. I think it's sufficiently poorer the further we get in time. We should be learning from mistakes.

Edit: Chatt LMFAO. wow that is hilarious thats going to make the rest of the work day easy.

Edited May 15, 2013 by wakeboarder3780