New Lime Green LSV

[teamerickson]

I can't seem to focus but I believe that is a chicken sandwich...

And yes, I am hungry now.

Or is it the cod?

[IXFE]

This thread needs some more fuel!

So I was at AWS yesterday to drop off a few sacks I had borrowed (that's another story), and I saw the new '15 VLX. I gotta say... in person it was gorgeous!

I snapped a bunch of close up pics of some unique changes for 2015. I did everything but snap a pic showing the entire boat; they already have 4 Exile Surf 9's on the tower. Here's an earlier pic from before the tower speakers went on...

Let's start with the tower... I didn't mind the all black G3 as much as I thought I would... in fact, I kind of liked it on this boat. It's clear what Malibu is going for... less chrome, more of a murdered look. It started in 2014 with the glove box door, the pylon, and the throttle. Then in 2014.5 they darkened the handles. This year they removed chrome from the tower, the dash trim, the racks, and the exterior logos. I'm a guy who likes chrome, but I really liked how the trim on this boat all flows together.

Here's a before vs. after on the wakesetter logo. The new outline is like a black chrome.

Here are the racks... not the same as the salt series racks the offer today... these are darker and match the pylon handles, glove box, etc.

[IXFE]

The steering wheel is NICE! It's actually wrapped in vinyl, as opposed to being molded rubber. The stitching is real and the trim matches the rest of the brushed, darker gray look.

While we're taking about the helm, check this out...

Looks like a strange door. I wonder where it leads...

Open it up to reveal a deep, water tight compartment with a padded interior and a USB port! Great use of space here!

[boardjnky4]

Looks sick, I love all the changes. Can't wait to get in one of these new boats.

[IXFE]

The bimini has some nice updates too... there are two mesh zipper pockets on the underside. I suppose you could stash phones or wallets on there... or ropes! Seriously, they are that big.

Then there's the surfboard straps up top (not pockets).

[Pnwrider]

Nice review, but I noticed you didn't comment on grab handle despite the photo (sticker or...)

Edited August 9, 2014 by Pnwrider

[JoeA]

Nice PICs and write up.

Edited August 9, 2014 by JoeA

[IXFE]

What's this little door in the walkthru...?

Bam... batter switch!

Here's how it looks on the backside. Notice the carpeted box on the right.

Edited August 9, 2014 by IXFE

[IXFE]

Nice review, but I noticed you didn't comment on grab handle despite the photo (sticker or...)

Ahem... The approved TMC naming convention is "appliqué"

And I did notice the 2015 has two new ones in the walkthru (pictured above). Take that, Cory!

[thtrog]

Nice shots, is that the CS Slider or GL hinged bimini?

[IXFE]

Nice shots, is that the CS Slider or GL hinged bimini?

It was the standard CS slider.

Like you, I'm a BIG fan of the GL bimini. But they are so rare I don't think we're gonna know of they have these same improvements until somebody custom orders one.

[IXFE]

Here's something else I noticed... there are really nice embroidered Malibu logos stitched into the bow area, above the cup holders.

[IXFE]

Here's the new logo carpet. I assume this is still an upgrade. It felt pretty soft and thick compared to my LSV (plain carpet).

But the part that's cool is the carpet is "embossed" with little "M" logos. I'm not sure how well this shows up in pics, but it's cool in person. There are a bunch of them.

[IXFE]

Batteries moved under the observer seat, same as the '14 LSV.

transmission is Indmar 1.5 -to- 1 ratio. This boat has the 350hp base engine

Edited August 9, 2014 by IXFE

[tjklein]

I can't wait to get rid of the carpet I'm my boat. It's great until it gets wet and then....yuck. And being a boat it tends to get wet fairly often.

Looks cool though! Thanks for posting the pics.

Edited August 9, 2014 by tjklein

[IXFE]

The cooler seat is interesting. It's obviously shorter than the LSV. They also shrunk the corner seat. Here's a comparison with my LSV for reference (VLX pics are first)...

Both pics taken with my back up against the pop-up back rest.

So this begs the question... how did they fit that big Igloo cooler in there? Answer... they shrunk that too!

[IXFE]

Decadence mat in the storage space under the coffin seat. My LSV is rubber down there.

[wakesetter8796]

Looks nice! I like the new carpet and deckadence.

[oldjeep]

Nice, except for the hundred extra logos. It says Malibu on the outside, that is plenty

[IXFE]

Nice, except for the hundred extra logos. It says Malibu on the outside, that is plenty

They are pretty subtle... besides, logo carpet is optional. As for me... I'm going decadence if/when I get a new one.

I've finally given up on carpet.

[JoeA]

Can anybody tell me why Malibu puts carpet just below the seats vertically covering up some fine fiberglass? My MXZ is all fiberglass there and I prefer that over gray carpet. There must be a reason.

[Fman]

Here's something else I noticed... there are really nice embroidered Malibu logos stitched into the bow area, above the cup holders.

The boat overall looks very nice, I am not sure I like the embroidered backing piece behind cupholders. I think people's finger nails and hands are going to nick, scratch and damage this piece quickly. And the white logo will get dirty quickly and be difficult to keep clean. They went from a really nice lighted wakesetter logo to a plain white embroidered piece. Just seems like another cost cutting measure, or maybe it is supposed to look better???? I think I prefer the look of the nice lighted wakesetter piece.

Does the boat feel bigger inside than a 2014 vlx? Do you know the dry weight? From the pics it does no appear to be much bigger. I'm still trying to figure out where the extra 6" in length went and 2" wider beam. Also does it feel deeper than the 14's? More storage? I'm not seeing much more freeboard than a '14 from the pics, not as noticeable as the new lsv.

[thtrog]

From what I read the embroidered logo is in the bow, not the lighted one in the main cabin.

[thtrog]

Can anybody tell me why Malibu puts carpet just below the seats vertically covering up some fine fiberglass? My MXZ is all fiberglass there and I prefer that over gray carpet. There must be a reason.

It's not a 2-piece fiberglass build like the MXZ, the carpet covers the seat bases.

[JoeA]

It's not a 2-piece fiberglass build like the MXZ, the carpet covers the seat bases.

Ok, that makes sense. Is the MXZ the only two piece design that Malibu makes?