New Malibu Owner Questions

[MLagger]

So I just bought a 2008 Wakesetter 21 VLX after having a 2003 Moomba Outback for the past 15 years. I'm very excited about it and have a few questions:

-Would this size boat be ok for my 4000lbs shore station lift that I used for the Moomba? I believe weight is approx. 3600lbs

-Any help/tips to get the boat into a garage with a door that is approximately 6'10"? It looks like it would be tight with the tower down

-We do all watersports and tubing, anyone have any experience with the wake for slalom skiing (approximately 33-35mph)

Would appreciate any feedback or things I should know, I'm very exciting about the Wakesetter!

Thanks

 

[INCOPPNITO]

I'm no help...just wanted to say congrats on the 'BU.  You'll never go back.  Welcome to the forum. 

[smileysteve]

The VLX from the Outback will really test the 4000lb lift. Remember that fuel also weighs 6.3lbs/gallon[edited from 8, thanks RyanB]. I don't think any professional would recommend the 4k these days, that said, you already have it, so it seems reasonable to keep using it until you can replace it.

Skiing behind my 2006 21 VRide is a little different than behind a 2007 Outback; not quite as tournament ready. If you have the diamond hull, that helps some. Most people agree that the bow needs a little more weight. The later Outbacks also had a wake plate that helped the rooster tail and ridges - I don't have a wedge, so I debate adding an attitude tab (affects the wake similarly to more bow weight). Beware that precision pro in rpm mode is not as good of a pull as perfect pass.

Congratulations on the new boat!

 

 

Edited January 10, 2019 by smileysteve
correction on gas weight thanks to ryan b

[REHinH20]

The height will vary by boat and trailer.  Best suggestion would be go lower the tower, and just start trying it.  Best case - fits, second best, you have to let some air out of the tires, lastly you can remove the tower.  Guess the question becomes how badly to you want it in the garage.  Had a boat that would fit if someone pushed the garage door up to it's max - wasn't the garage clearance, but the door wasn't completely hidden when up.

[RyanB]

Gasoline weight is 6.3 pounds per gallon, not 8. 

Often it isn’t a huge deal to raise a garage door,  no way I’d store outside if I didn’t absolutely have to  

Welcome to the forum. 

[abovewater]

I moved from an I/O to a 2012 Axis a22. Weight on that boat is also 3600lbs. Our 4000lbs lift broke 2 times the first summer. We are good friends with the owners of Porta-dock docks and lifts and they say the lift has 10 percent extra. That means it should have held 4400lbs. Even with limited stuff in our boat, I'm sure it was beyond that. Gas, batteries, random water, other stuff. I have a several pieces of advice. 1. check with your local lift people to see if there's something they can do to get the lift stronger. Sometimes that means replacing cables and housings and such. If it's a manual lift, the heavier you get, the harder you're going to need to work.

2. Make sure you tie your boat to the lift. Every time the lift broke, it was during the lifting process, which was good because I could get them to fix the lift, which they always did the next day. If the lift had dropped at some random time, and a wind came up, the boat could float out. We also had guides that kept the boat pretty well stabilized even when it was in the water.

3. Empty everything before you start lifting. No water left in ballast, no lead, no people.

We replaced our lift with a 6000lb, that was partially due to the breaking and partially due to purchasing a a24(4400lbs). Lifts can be very expensive, but we got a decent trade in value for ours, so it may not be as much as you think. Oh, and we had to wait a year to get the new boat because of the lift purchase. Kinda sad, but it's best to be financially smart.

One final note. The lift breaking for us was only ever an inconvenience. Once it happened right as a storm was moving through and we rushed to get the boat out of the water. Other than that, just a boat sitting in water overnight.

[panic]

The bad news is that you will need a new lift. Even if it does not beak, you will not have an easy time raising it and it will eventually give way and that will not be fun. The good news is that as boats have gotten heavier and heavier, there should be a lot of used lifts on the market. Lifts that were thought to have plenty of capacity 10 years ago (ie. 5000lbs) are no longer sufficient for many of the new wake boats. I just upgraded from a 5000lb lift to an 8000 lb lift in anticipation of getting a new boat either this or next season.