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Thinking of Buying a 2019 23 LSV - Pros and Cons?


cmargosi

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Hi there.  Looking for some advice from this group.  I have two young kids who (along with dad) have caught the surf bug.  We are buying our first boat to be used on Lake Geneva in Wisconsin.  The lake is calm in the morning and evening but gets choppy in the afternoon.  Obviously, afternoons we'd likely be using the boat to motor over to a spot to anchor for the kids to play on a floating dock.  While we know that a surf boat won't handle the chop as well as a stern drive, we don't want to sacrifice the wavemaking ability, so we are willing to compromise the ride in the chop.  Our in and out marina limits size to 25 feet 6 inches with Swim Platform.

Having looked at almost every brand, surfed most and compared, we believe the 23 LSV is the best fit for our family and budget. 

Here's my thought process so far:

In an ideal world, I'd buy a G23, but that's just too expensive.  The GS22 doesn't have much freeboard and lacks storage to be practical to use for motoring out and anchoring, relaxing, etc.

The Supra SL450 is a nice boat, but the wave seems inferior to the Malibu and Nautique.  The only boat the local dealer has also has an all black interior, and while Supra boasts a "Cool Vinyl", that still scares the sh*t outta me.  The Supra seems like a very good value, but I'm not gonna take the chance on a black interior....

The Mastercrafts are nice, but the local dealer sells many many boats and flat out doesn't deal.  So you end up paying about the same as a 23LSV for a boat that seems a lot more basic to me.

So, that brings me to the Malibu.  Seems to be the goldilocks boat.  Great wake, nice storage, beautiful interior (haven't seen the fit and finish problems some talk about).  

However, the guy in the local board shop absolutely panned the Malibu.  Said there have been motor problems and they can't get a supplier, boats are shoddily built and will creak in the waves.  He trashed it.  Now, Lake Geneva is full of locals who protect the other local businesses, so this guy could be trying to steer me away to get his buddy business.

So, I came here.  Anyone out there with a 18 or 19 LSV?  Likes / Dislikes?  Quality Control?  After reading my thought process, do you think I'm headed the right way?  Any help is appreciated!!!

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Best resale, 5 year warranty gets rid of quality control, buy the Malibu! Unless you’re dealer is far away.

Edited by surfdude
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My guess you dealer is not liking that there is now a Malibu dealer down on the other side of the lake by the Abby.  Bought my Malibu from the same dealer and they have been great to work with.  I had my 2014 23 LSV (little older than you are looking at) on Gevena Lake a few years ago on a choppy day and it handled it fine.

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I’ve been happy with the recent 23 LSV’s, but I’m going to be biased because of a great dealer and 3 good Malibu’s so far.

Anyone talking about engine or supplier issues doesn’t actually know Malibu well enough to give any decent feedback. Yeah the Raptors (2016-2018) are loud and thirsty but they’re used in other brands too. They’re a good engine overall.

Malibu is finishing up their switch to internally marinized GM based engines, and bridged the gap in their supplier contract with PCM engines for a few months, which was a nice step up from the Raptors IMO, and already used in the Axis line for years. Their own engines have been rolled out through their models during the rest of the 2019 production with good results.

Some of the G4 towers creak but that’s a known and easy dealer warranty fix. That tower was replaced by the power GX in 2019 anyway.

QC is a challenge for the whole industry right now with how many everyone is cranking out, and labor shortages. My only real frustration here has been with interior gel scuffs, which are covered under warranty.

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I am on my 4th Malibu in nine years and I just love them. We have a 2019 25 lsv and it is the boss on our lake. It is the best looking, inside and out, and the wave is superior to any boat out there. I have had a few problems, but my dealer takes care of them immediately. The new M6Di is insane. We have had up to 15 people in the boat, full ballast and 550lbs of extra weight and the motor doesn't hesitate at all. I love my boat and just can't spend enough time on it. I think you will love a 23 lsv and all of your friends will enjoy their time on it. It is a very practical boat and great for any family. 

Edited by bbattiste247
  • Like 2
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If you like another brand, Malibu is like the New England Patriots.  Easy to hate on, but you secretly wish your team/brand was that dominant.

Don't listen to the guy at the board shop.  You'll love the 23 LSV.

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just picked up a 19' 23 LSV two weeks ago.  We are loving it!  We came from a 16' 22 VLX  so I may be a bit biased, but I will say that overall you can't go wrong with a Malibu!  On our 16'  we had zero issues and enjoyed three great seasons surfing.  With the 19' we just got through the break in period and have surfed twice.  Wave was great!  Plus, as @bbattiste247 said the new motors are a huge plus from the past versions.  We have the M5Di and it's whisper quiet and has no issues under full load!  The new vinyl is great as well as the new fold down swim platform.  Are there fit and finish issues, yes but where don't you...if one is honest.  For the price you get a lot of boat!  

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We have 35 hours on our 19' 23 LSV and are loving it.  Granted it was an upgrade from a 10 year old Nautique so just about any new boat would be an improvement.  She is certainly thirsty when fully loaded, and I have had a couple fit/finish issues such as scuffing on the interior which were annoying given how much they cost.  I agree with @ctvandy23 on the fold down step, super cool feature (I didn't get it, now regret it).  Having just spent time behind a Centurion Ri217 I can say that the surf wave on that boat is maybe a little bigger/more push but for all around use Malibu wins.  

All that said, your on a Malibu forum, so you will be hard pressed to find many folks who arent going to love the boat they have.  

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@Mattyb, yes those scuff marks!  That's really my only issue...i said to my dealer, do they not care about banging around the inside gel when finishing the interior?  Our gel on the inside is black which we love, but damn there must be 20+ marks on the gel that I 'm not happy with.  Considering that these boats are north of 100k they should not come all marked up!

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6 minutes ago, ctvandy23 said:

@Mattyb, yes those scuff marks!  That's really my only issue...i said to my dealer, do they not care about banging around the inside gel when finishing the interior?  Our gel on the inside is black which we love, but damn there must be 20+ marks on the gel that I 'm not happy with.  Considering that these boats are north of 100k they should not come all marked up!

Same with my new 23LSV.  I was there when we unwrapped it from the factory and I was surprised how many scuff marks.. mostly little (a few big) and it was clear they just "didn't care" as my 11 year old 23LSV I just sold has fewer marks on the gel.  With that said.. dealer is going to take are of everything in the off season and at the end of the day they don't impact the fun we have with the new boat.  And the flip down swim step is worth every penny.. I have small kids and they just love it for swimming off the boat.

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Gregtay,

The boat we are looking at is very similar to yours in color.  A little less blue.

I really think it's the right choice for us, but need to hear from owners that the boats have been relatively trouble free.

 

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45 hours on my '18 23 LSV.  Been pretty flawless so far other than some bubbling in the dash vinyl which I'll do late in the warranty period so any other vinyl issues that crop up over the years can get done at the same time.

The only sort of negative is that the boat wants some PnP and front ballast to really dial in the wave of you have a light crew but that's no big deal to me.

This is my second Malibu (came from a 13 VTX) and a good friend has a 13 VLX that I've been riding for years.  The cosmetic issues come up now and again but our mechanical issues have been limited and overall performance has been great.

Given the options you are looking at, the LSV seems like your best bet... Though nautique has some strengths against the Malibu.  

All in all, I'd buy it again if given the option to go back in time.

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The boat we are looking at has the Monsoon 410 60L Cat.  Does that mean it's one of the PCM Interim Engines?  Is there any reason to believe I should be concerned about resale of the boat, if so?

Edited by cmargosi
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5 minutes ago, cmargosi said:

The boat we are looking at has the Monsoon 410 60L Cat.  Does that mean it's one of the PCM Interim Engines?  Is there any reason to believe I should be concerned about resale of the boat, if so?

Yes, that is the PCM. No concerns.. that is a very solid motor. Some might say a 2019 with an M5/m6 is more of a concern since they were the first boats to get the new motors (I have a 2019 with the M6.. so I fall into that category.)

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22 minutes ago, cmargosi said:

The boat we are looking at has the Monsoon 410 60L Cat.  Does that mean it's one of the PCM Interim Engines?  Is there any reason to believe I should be concerned about resale of the boat, if so?

No concerns at all, it’s a very proven and reliable engine. I’ve got the same engine in my 23 LSV and would chose it every day over the Raptor 410 I had in my last LSV. It’s quieter, smoother and does the same job on lower RPMs.

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45 hours on my 19 LSV.  Love it!  Mine also has the PCM motor and I really like it.  Much quieter and still has plenty of power (I had an 18 LSV last year with the Raptor 6.2).  You will not be disappointed with the 19 LSV.

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On 7/8/2019 at 11:13 AM, gregtay said:

Same with my new 23LSV.  I was there when we unwrapped it from the factory and I was surprised how many scuff marks.. mostly little (a few big) and it was clear they just "didn't care" as my 11 year old 23LSV I just sold has fewer marks on the gel.  With that said.. dealer is going to take are of everything in the off season and at the end of the day they don't impact the fun we have with the new boat.  And the flip down swim step is worth every penny.. I have small kids and they just love it for swimming off the boat.

Good idea, I am going to talk with my dealer about dealing with the scuffs.

Can you convert over the flip down step after purchase?  Might be worth doing, our kids love swimming off the back as well.

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On 7/8/2019 at 1:43 PM, rsutton1223 said:

67 hours on ours so far and it has been flawless. Make sure the recall on the fuel pump o-ring has been done and you should be good to go.

I thought I had been out quite a bit this year, you have twice as many hours way to enjoy the lake!

  • Like 1
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On 7/8/2019 at 1:44 PM, cmargosi said:

Gregtay,

The boat we are looking at is very similar to yours in color.  A little less blue.

I really think it's the right choice for us, but need to hear from owners that the boats have been relatively trouble free.

 

My 2018 23lsv is the same boat as the 2019 minus a few changes.  The biggest being the new motors and the power wedge 3.  I’ll say my 2018 has been extremely reliable, never had an issue that has taken me off the water.  Biggest mechanical issue was a ballast pump failure, but I’m pretty sure the decontamination station on Tahoe messed it up.  All other issues have been cosmetic and the dealer took care of them.  I have not heard one mention of issues with the new Malibu engine, which is very surprising given this is the first year they have been in production. All in all, the 23lsv is a sick boat!  Super reliable, this’s an amazing wake, and is one of the best looking boats on the water. 

I also love the G23, but I’m just not willing to drop $160k+ on one.  For that kind of money is much rather get a 25lsv fully loaded, super charger, and a triple axel trailer. 

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1 minute ago, SCMike said:

My 2018 23lsv is the same boat as the 2019 minus a few changes.  The biggest being the new motors and the power wedge 3.  Ive got 90 hours on my 23 and will say it’s been extremely reliable, never had an issue that has taken me off the water.  Biggest mechanical issue was a ballast pump failure, but I’m pretty sure the decontamination station on Tahoe messed it up.  All other issues have been cosmetic and the dealer took care of them.  As for the 19s, I have not heard one mention of issues with the new Malibu engine, which is very surprising given this is the first year they have been in production. All in all, the 23lsv is a sick boat!  Super reliable, this’s an amazing wake, and is one of the best looking boats on the water. 

I also love the G23, but I’m just not willing to drop $160k+ on one.  For that kind of money is much rather get a 25lsv fully loaded, super charger, and a triple axel trailer. 

 

Edited by SCMike
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Oh, and my wife hates to swim in the lake (she's afraid of fish--go figure), so swim step = easy pump out head for wife.  LOL!

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