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95 or 97 sunsetter lx with tower and wedge?


DOJOLOACH2

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18 minutes ago, Eagleboy99 said:

Very little diff from the two, but the Reponse wake will be slight;y better, esp. at lower speeds.  At 36/28 off almost no diff at all.

Alright, only trouble is the guy only has 2 hours on it, only 1.5 on the lake. Says he is still breaking the motor in per the manual so I obviously wouldn't be able to water test it. 

Would a boat mechanic be able to do a full inspection with this known? The work was done by the man and his son so noone certified.. Not rocket science either but still

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Guy blows an engine then replaces it himself?  Can you say red flag?  BTW, read the break-in proc - you could still test it easily.  My guess is he won't let you even if you follow the schedule.

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33 minutes ago, Eagleboy99 said:

Guy blows an engine then replaces it himself?  Can you say red flag?  BTW, read the break-in proc - you could still test it easily.  My guess is he won't let you even if you follow the schedule.

Why a red flag? I replaced the motor in my LX.. Many others on here have done the same.. Some have even rebuilt the motors themselves... 

 

@DOJOLOACH2.. If you can't water test it.. don't buy it.. I would still pull a compression test to determine health of engine before/after water testing it. 

Another sweet boat to look for is the LXi... 

I would opt for Tower already on boat. It will help with resale.. When I long line.. I like going on tower anyways.

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25 minutes ago, kerpluxal said:

Why a red flag? I replaced the motor in my LX.. Many others on here have done the same.. Some have even rebuilt the motors themselves... 

 

@DOJOLOACH2.. If you can't water test it.. don't buy it.. I would still pull a compression test to determine health of engine before/after water testing it. 

Another sweet boat to look for is the LXi... 

I would opt for Tower already on boat. It will help with resale.. When I long line.. I like going on tower anyways.

Yeah he bought it with cracked engine block and fixed it himself for the reason of selling and gaining a buck. Said the boat used to belong to a malibu rep. Those meebco engines are pretty cheap though! price wise  I mean.

He said no to a lake test drive but putting on a fake a lake he was ok with. You would think he would just finish the break in process himself to make it easier to sell.

Here is one with tower but 825 hrs. I wouldnt consider 825hrs as high, but starting to get up there that I bet it would be a con for resale

https://raleigh.craigslist.org/boa/d/louisburg-1997-malibu-echelon-lx/6914875370.html

 

All these people selling boats I want but none of them have current registration So frustrating!

Edited by DOJOLOACH2
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I'd question his break in process, usually that means varying throttle positions high and low so that the rings do not create a ridge on the cylinder wall while setting.  If he's just idling on a fake-a-lake, he's doing it wrong.  If he's giving it higher rpms on a fake-a-lake (800 to 2,000) he is starving his water impeller, a hose cannot deliver enough water for that.

That Echelon looks really nice, first time I've seen that color scheme.  Some thoughts:

  1. Looks like the driver's seat, spotters cushion and storage compartment cushions are missing.  Worth asking for a current pic of all of those if they are actually now in the boat
  2. Does it have a wedge?  For that price it should.  You can pull the wedge and tower off if you want (reduced weight), store it, and put it back on for resale (it will resell easier with that stuff on it)
  3. Maintenance records sound good, I bet it's been cared for 
  4. Price is a little high, should be around $12k max, maybe less with those hours.  Then again, now is the season, and I work with a guy that is looking and everything listed is gone within a couple of days.
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BTW, a fake-a-lake is OK, but you learn a LOT about a boat when putting it under a load (from idle to planing).  It can purr like a kitten at idle on a fake-a-lake but sputter/hesistate/bog/cut out under load.  I would not trust a fake-a-lake.

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25 minutes ago, Michigan boarder said:

BTW, a fake-a-lake is OK, but you learn a LOT about a boat when putting it under a load (from idle to planing).  It can purr like a kitten at idle on a fake-a-lake but sputter/hesistate/bog/cut out under load.  I would not trust a fake-a-lake.

Yup, and it's not just the motor.  I missed catching a bent strut when I bought my boat, and had attributed the slight vibration to the prop. 

So why can't you do a water test if he only has 1.5 hours on the lake?  And if he bought it to fix and flip, why does he care?  Surely he's not offering a warranty.

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2 hours ago, Michigan boarder said:

Where are you located?  I just stumbled across this Flightcraft with perfect pass, barefoot boom, in Holland, MI asking $8,900:

https://holland.craigslist.org/boa/d/holland-1994-malibu-ski-boat/6883155406.html

 

A bit too far for me, Im down in South Carolina.

The Echelon LX owner in this link will let me actually test drive it. https://raleigh.craigslist.org/boa/d/louisburg-1997-malibu-echelon-lx/6914875370.html

Right now I'm doing some research on here to see how it should perform when I test drive it, such as engine rpm at x speed. 

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21 hours ago, DOJOLOACH2 said:

Yeah he bought it with cracked engine block and fixed it himself for the reason of selling and gaining a buck. Said the boat used to belong to a malibu rep. Those meebco engines are pretty cheap though! price wise  I mean.

He said no to a lake test drive but putting on a fake a lake he was ok with. You would think he would just finish the break in process himself to make it easier to sell.

Here is one with tower but 825 hrs. I wouldnt consider 825hrs as high, but starting to get up there that I bet it would be a con for resale

https://raleigh.craigslist.org/boa/d/louisburg-1997-malibu-echelon-lx/6914875370.html

 

All these people selling boats I want but none of them have current registration So frustrating!

Good luck hunting... I would not buy anything without water testing.. just my 0.02. I would not be scared of hours either if boat was maintained.. I have 1100 on my 2010 lol.

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Well I bought the LX echelon!

A few projects to do on this thing like refinish the team platform but I'm happy, boat ran great

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