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Buying my first boat. Need advice


lueleon

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So I’m looking to buy my first boat. Have had Jet Skis for years and feel my growing family would get more out of a boat now.

I have been looking at what is in my price range so 2012-2016 LSV or MXZ. Probably a 23 or 24’ model.  I’ve seen there are different engine sizes (350, 409, Corvette, Ford Raptor 6.7 and a Cadillac Super charged engine).

Any advice on what years were best? What to keep away from? I’ll be out on the water with the Wife, 2 daughters, and our Lab. 

Thanks in advance for the input. I want to make a informed and smart decision since I’ll be keeping this boat for years.

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I’d be looking for a 2015 - 2016 23 LSV

2015 a BIG year for Malibu. It was the year they introduced the new dash, which is still in use today. They also introduced the power wedge II in 2015 (bigger than the original and also has lift mode). This was also the year they introduced the G4 tower (optional). 2015 was also the last year of the GM powered Indmar motors, including the 6.2L LS3 (aka Monsoon 450, aka Corvette motor).  However, the base motor was the 350.  If you go this route I highly recommend finding one with at least the 6.0L upgrade (aka Monsoon 409).

2016 was a year of more changes, the biggest being the move to 6.2L Ford powered Indmar motors and “gear reduction” transmissions. The benefit was that you got a larger 6.2L displacement engine (aka Monsoon 409) as the base motor. The downside is they’re a little louder, especially if you get the torque prop. 2016 is also the year Malibu introduced the “frameless” windshield, still in use today. It’s also the year Malibu started making their own trailers. The other nice thing about 2016 is they introduced 5 year warranty on everything! So as long as you are only the second owner and pay to transfer the warranty, you will be covered for two more years. 

I owned BOTH of these boats and they were great!

3217AEB1-8D3F-407A-95A1-0FF90206B005.jpeg

4508BCB2-4C78-41F0-930C-AF8952DFB1E5.jpeg

  • Like 2
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2013 and newer will get you into surf gate models  which would be a deal breaker to not have one. 2015 had some issues with new touchscreens and also engine problems. 2016 was the first year with Malibu using the raptor engines which seemed to be proven and worked out well. 

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32 minutes ago, hethj7 said:

What 2015 engine problems?  I don’t recall that at all. 

Correct me if I am wrong but I was just reading stuff on Facebook about engine problems and touch screens issues. 

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Touch screens? Oh yeah...  talked to a dealer on the weekend and he indicated that there are so many issues...  Someone needs to build a generic interface then  an Ipad app.

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ahopkins22LSV
7 hours ago, Eagleboy99 said:

If 2016 was the first year of Raptor engines, I'd avoid them.  Like Dad used to say Never buy the first model year of anything".  :)

First year for Malibu but Indmar has been using the raptor platform for 2-3 years prior to that in other boats. That wouldn’t concern me at all. 

7 hours ago, Cole2001 said:

Correct me if I am wrong but I was just reading stuff on Facebook about engine problems and touch screens issues. 

 

6 hours ago, hunter77ah said:

Are you thinking of the 14 ls3?  15 was solid. 

@Cole2001 has to be true if posted on Facebook right? 2014 used the one off marine power ls3 which to my knowledge doesn’t have specific engine failures, but there was some talk on here about the power curve. Few people on here owned them. 2015 went back to Indmar for the LS3. 

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8 hours ago, Eagleboy99 said:

If 2016 was the first year of Raptor engines, I'd avoid them.  Like Dad used to say Never buy the first model year of anything".  :)

Plenty of examples of this power plant on the water and I don’t know of any systemic issues with it.  And as noted above, it was, and still is, used by other manufacturers as well.  

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8 hours ago, Eagleboy99 said:

Touch screens? Oh yeah...  talked to a dealer on the weekend and he indicated that there are so many issues...  Someone needs to build a generic interface then  an Ipad app.

What dealer are you talking to?   There was a bad batch of screens going into the early 2016 year, but I have not heard of anything near quantifiable of “so many issues” on the new screens.   Now, it is known that delamination tends to occur with the earlier MTC screens, but those weren’t used in 2015.  

 

To the OP, there are very few things I would say to just keep away from in the years you listed.  You already got some solid advice on which year Surfgate came out, the “concerns” over the 2014 Marine Power Corvette motor, and the first year of the new helm design (2015).  2014-2017 is the same hull design on the LSV.   2014 just had a 1 year helm design.  No noted issues with it, but is was only used that year.   

I may be biased as I owned one but the 2016 changes with the new tranny ratio and Ford motor was solid.  

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10 hours ago, Eagleboy99 said:

If 2016 was the first year of Raptor engines, I'd avoid them.  Like Dad used to say Never buy the first model year of anything".  :)

Unfair. And frankly, bad advice. Couldn't disagree more. 

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My '16 had the questionable batch of the mini-screen (main brain) on the right side. If you're looking at a '16 and the touch screens work, you're fine. Either it wasn't part of the bad batch, or it's been replaced already. 

Zero complaints out of my Monsoon 409 either. Nothing but torque upon torque. Regarding the "too loud" comments: it may be a touch louder, but sounding bada$$ is sometimes a bit louder. 

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2016's a good year for the LSV.  If you can swing a '17LSV, then it'll be quieter because Malibu did a better job insulating the motor box that year.  Both years get you the 5 year warranty which there should be 2-3 years left.  It'll cost you some to transfer it though.

The Raptor engine is very nice and I've had no problems from it at all other than the noise being louder than I like.  The right prop takes care of some of that and you get used to the rest.  Just turn up the music.

Don't be afraid of a '15.  The motor is great, proven, quieter than the raptor.  Lots of breakout improvements that year as well.

As for the touch screen issues in 2016.  If you find a '16 and the touch screen is responsive to all the 'buttons' in 2019, then you should have a fine unit.  It wasn't a small batch of bad ones.  I went through 5 in the first two years.  My dealer was awesome.  The last one seems to have done the trick. No issues at all.  The main issue was with the quality control to tolerance of the 'glass'.  Touch screens rely very heavily on tuning and calibration to a standard.  Get too much laminate, too much glue, incorrect termination of the panel, etc and the computer starts misinterpreting touches or reading phantom touches.  There was also a couple rare issues with screen failure and communicating with the stereo black box.  The point though is that all of those show up pretty quickly.  On a boat with a few years under its rub-rail and no problems you'll be good.

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2 hours ago, hethj7 said:

What dealer are you talking to?   There was a bad batch of screens going into the early 2016 year, but I have not heard of anything near quantifiable of “so many issues” on the new screens.   Now, it is known that delamination tends to occur with the earlier MTC screens, but those weren’t used in 2015.  

...

Do a search on the number of issues with screens.  And at a replacement cost of a couple thousand (Bakes), I'd at least factor in eventual replacement to my offer.

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Hmmm, I see them now.  Sounds like maybe the first gen 2015 screens had issues as well.   I assume at this point screens that are working are presumed good as folks had issues right out of the box.  

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Morning all, thank you for all the advice. I will definitely be looking at 2015/2016 models since they are still in my price range. Other decision I need to make is it I really want the pickle fork bowl of the MXZ or still to the traditional bow of the LSV. Space upfront seems more roomy with the MXZ and I like the look.

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1 hour ago, lueleon said:

Morning all, thank you for all the advice. I will definitely be looking at 2015/2016 models since they are still in my price range. Other decision I need to make is it I really want the pickle fork bowl of the MXZ or still to the traditional bow of the LSV. Space upfront seems more roomy with the MXZ and I like the look.

To increase the bow space on the MXZ they take away from the cabin space. So the LSV may have less bow space but has more cabin space. To make your decision even more difficult Malibu makes the MXZ in 22 and 24ft length and LSV in 23 and 25ft (at least the years you're looking at)  The LSV is a more popular boat so you'll have more to choose from.   I'd suggest going to a dealer and compare for yourself.

 

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5 hours ago, lueleon said:

Morning all, thank you for all the advice. I will definitely be looking at 2015/2016 models since they are still in my price range. Other decision I need to make is it I really want the pickle fork bowl of the MXZ or still to the traditional bow of the LSV. Space upfront seems more roomy with the MXZ and I like the look.

The majority of the folks on TMC prefer the traditional bow so they will steer you to the LSV.  I personally love the look and bow room in the MXZ, if you like that then go that route.  You only lose a few inches of cabin space and if you go with the 24 it won't matter as it is the best of both worlds. Cabin space is similar to the LSV with a roomier bow.

Edited by Chappy
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  • 5 weeks later...

Okay, so 2 months back when I began my search I noticed there were more boats for sale and since summer is now here most of what I had my eye on has been sold. I’m limited by my bank who will be financing purchase to a boat titled in California. So this is the vessel I have narrowed my purchase to:

 

https://www.tillysmarine.com/Pre-Owned-Inventory-2016-Malibu-Boats-Boat-23-LSV-Ventura-7098184

 

Any thoughts? Additional advice? Don’t feel like I’m making a hasty purchase since I’ve been going back and forth with dealership for about a month now. After initial walk through of vessel I am doing a demo with it on the Lake this weekend. If all goes well I guess I’ll have her home that same day.

Edited by lueleon
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39 minutes ago, lueleon said:

Okay, so 2 months back when I began my search I noticed there were more boats for sale and since summer is not here most of what I had my eye on has been sold. I’m limited by my bank who will be financing purchase to a boat titled in California. So this is the vessel I have narrowed my purchase to:

 

https://www.tillysmarine.com/Pre-Owned-Inventory-2016-Malibu-Boats-Boat-23-LSV-Ventura-7098184

 

Any thoughts? Additional advice? Don’t feel I’m making a hasty purchase since I’ve been going back and forth with dealership for about a month now. After initial walk through of vessel I am doing a demo with out on the Lake this weekend. If all goes well I guess I’ll have her home that same day.

Go for it.

 

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3 hours ago, lueleon said:

Okay, so 2 months back when I began my search I noticed there were more boats for sale and since summer is now here most of what I had my eye on has been sold. I’m limited by my bank who will be financing purchase to a boat titled in California. So this is the vessel I have narrowed my purchase to:

 

https://www.tillysmarine.com/Pre-Owned-Inventory-2016-Malibu-Boats-Boat-23-LSV-Ventura-7098184

 

Any thoughts? Additional advice? Don’t feel like I’m making a hasty purchase since I’ve been going back and forth with dealership for about a month now. After initial walk through of vessel I am doing a demo with it on the Lake this weekend. If all goes well I guess I’ll have her home that same day.

I like that boat!

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low hours nice condition. the colors are pretty but red and black fade and require a lot of wipe down maintenance to look good in hot California/AZ weather. 

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