2007 RLXi

[SGY]

I was lucky enough to go to Orlando over the weekend for some business/fun. While there, I sauntered over to Drew Ross' place just outside of Disney for some sets in warm water. Drew has one of the first 2007 RLXi's out of the Tennessee plant. I skied three sets behind Drew's boat and three more behind Steve Carlson's promo 2007 RLXi. Mucho thanks to Drew and Steve for showing me a great time. Top notch guys that represent Malibu very well. (If anyone is looking for some instruction, I highly recommend Drew. Fantastic guy and a blast to be around--as is Steve.)

Some thoughts...

Slalom wake: I'm pretty lame in the course--still struggling at 15 off/34mph. I only skied at 15 off starting at 28mph running through 34mph. Honestly, I didn't think there was a noticeable difference between the new RLXi and the RLXi's I regularly ski behind here in Denver--2003, 2005, and 2006 RLXi. I suppose an argument could be made that the new wake is better, but I don't see it and did not feel it. Remember, I'm limited to 15 off. My buddy skied at 22 off and said the wake was very similar to his 2005 RLXi. I watched Steve Carlson ski at 36 mph from 28 off to 38 off. The wake looks non-existent at those speeds and line lenghts. Drew Ross told me he thinks the wake is better at 36 mph. Wouldn't surprise me based upon what I saw. Regardless, I don't agree with the marketing hype that the wake is 30% better. Reminds me of when CC came out with the TSC2 hull. They claimed a 25% improvement over the TSC1 hull/wake. I think we can all agree that the wakes behind those two boats are virtually identical. Sum: At least from my perspective, there's not a net gain here. We'll have to wait for a skier that can start out at 15 off and at least get through 32 off. Edwin and skisix, you game for a trip down to Florida?

Pull: I enjoyed skiing behind this boat. Very consistent and soft pull--which I like. I had plenty of time at the ball and didn't feel as though I was getting pulled over at the waste. Things felt nice and slow while skiing with Drew Ross. And, you have to expect his boat was dialed in. By the way, did I say that Drew really likes the new boat? Same with Steve Carlson.

Driving impressions. I didn't get to drive Drew Ross' boat. But riding with him was a real pleasure. At each end of the lake, when setting the skier, he would induce "oversteer" or a bat turn with the boat. When I drove Steve's boat, I understood why. This boat is very agile and athletic. With a flip of the wrist, you could bring or slide the back end around. Every time Drew did that he would grin and say "can't do that in a Nautique". I was only able to drive the boat for one set, and pulled my buddy--the probable buyer of Steve's boat. He's like me, a 15 off skier and doesn't put alot of load on the boat. I had no problems keeping the boat nice and straight--even at the end of the day when we were having some wind. The new bu feels very responsive, nimble and light. Feels like it rides more on top of the water than the previous RLXi. Everyone I spoke to that drove the boat had the same comment. No one was complaining--including a rated tournament driver who is also a long time MC promo guy who really liked the way the boat drove. When Steve Carlson skied, his wife drove and she had no problems driving a straight line even at 35 and 38 off.

The hole shot is fine--at least at sea level. In fact, my friend about pulled my arms out when he pulled me--driving the new bu for the first time. The boat gets up to speed and settles down well before the the 55 meter gates--at 34 and 36 mph. Even at Drew's place which has a short set up, the new Response had no problems getting up to speed and settling down nicely. Everyone was scratching their heads at how the new boat didn't pass all the AWSA acceleration tests with flying colors.

Looks: No problem with how the new boat looks IMHO. But that's very subjective. One of Steve's buddies was there with his 2006 RLXi. I must say, both boats sitting in the water next to each other is a site. The nod, though, has to go to the previous model Bu. That's just one dang sexy boat.

Interior design: Superb. Makes my 196 look very very pedestrian. I have to say that I agree with Drew, bu's designers are very creative and innovative. My only suggestion would be for Bu to integrate the throttle control box behind the gunwale like CC and MC do. The Morse box looks cheap and sticks out like a sore thumb in such a innovative looking boat interior.

Fit and Finish: No complaints here. Carpet and vinyl and gelcoat are top notch. Boat was very comfy to set in--even with four adults and three small kids and all the gear.

Noise: Steve's boat had all the sound dampening stuff. Very quiet--Nautique like but with a throaty yet more refined growl from the engine exhaust.

Windshield. I'll be honest. I thought the windshield sucked. It looks and feels cheap. Heck, Drew didn't even had a mirror as Malibu hasn't given him one yet. I couldn't get to the bottom of why--whether they had to make a special mirror or were just backordered. Steve's boat had one. The windshield feels like it will break if put any pressure on it at all. Not solidly mounted like skisix's windshield or other Bu's I've been in. The glass also feels like its a lighter gauge. Hopefully, Malibu will get this sorted out.

That's about all I can think of. It's getting late and I'm still on eastern time. I'll post more tomorrow if I think of anything else. Overall, I could see myself owning one of the new bu's. But at the same time, I wouldn't flinch at owning at pre-07 either.

Edited November 15, 2006 by SGY

[2 ThumbsUp]

Great write-up, especially from a CC guy! Thanks for sharing.

[doughickey]

Great info. Well organized, and very clear. Thanks for doing this.

Question:

Based on your experience, iIf you had a choice to buy 2 "virtually" identically equipped NEW RLXi's.... one was a 2006 (with a slightly lower price tag because it's a year old ...... or a 2007 with it's new features) which would you purchase?

[skisix@38]

Good write up, thanks to the Nautique guy for giving us some good info on the new Bu.

Some questions though. Did the boat surge a little or did it run up to baseline and settle in quickly with now overshoot? What PP version were they running?

[SGY]

Thanks guys.

Doug, tough question. All things being equal (with a slight price increase) and if I could make sure the cat equipped motor would work well at Denver elevation, I'd buy the newer boat. Just thinking dollars and cents in terms of buying a newer year boat for slightly more money. I also think the looks of the new bu will grow on me. Also, I really liked how nimble the new boat felt--there's a fun factor there that isn't present in my boat or other bu's. Finally, the green side of me likes a boat that is enviromentally friendly.

I think they must've made some improvements with the tbw. I thought the tbw on the new RLXi was smooth and responsive. I didn't notice any real "dead spots" unlike other tbw boats I've driven. There was no surge and the boat settled down very nicely--almost unnoticeable. I tried driving the boat both ways--pulling back on the throttle to settle it down and letting the computer do it. Both times, the boat responded appropriately. And, the set up was at Steve Carlson's lake was fairly short.

Good news, no alligators or snakes. I was looking--especially at Steve's lake, which is public.

Edited November 15, 2006 by SGY

[obski]

Thanks for the write up.

Glad to hear that the throttle by wire is getting perfected. Not really a big deal with wakeboarding when the overshoot occurs, but more important when running the course.

[mrothwell]

So, both these boats had the Monsoon with cat in them?

How's the interior space of the new boat verses the '06? Any perceptible difference?

Thanks for the write-up

[skicrave]

At each end of the lake, when setting the skier, he would induce "oversteer" or a bat turn with the boat.

Sounds like somebody likes to play with cars too, I love the driving reference!

Thanks for the unbiased review, it's great to see people that can be subjective about the performance of a boat.

[SGY]

So, both these boats had the Monsoon with cat in them?

How's the interior space of the new boat verses the '06? Any perceptible difference?

Thanks for the write-up

Yup. Both had the Monsoon with cats.

Steve Carlson commented that he thought there was more room. I'll have to verify, but it seems as though the gunwales are thinner on top--perhaps given a bit more interior room. We had a full boat for part of the time on Sunday--three small kids, a car seat, four adults, 6 slalom skiis, jackets, ropes, etc. It was crowded but liveable.

Skicrave, cars were my first love--recently overtaken by ski boats. I really enjoyed how the new bu handled.

[VinRLX]

Ditto on the thanks, SGY. I'm especially happy to hear that you liked how it handled. I love the sports car (I won't define sports car in this thread, Justin would be all over me ) feel of my RLX and would be disappointed with anything noticeably less responsive.

[HRemington]

now about that new windshield, can we have some open and frank discussion...

...now that I think about it, maybe TR would be happy with this one...if he couldn't see through it, he could just break it off.

[Malibudude]

Ditto on the thanks, SGY. I'm especially happy to hear that you liked how it handled. I love the sports car (I won't define sports car in this thread, Justin would be all over me ) feel of my RLX and would be disappointed with anything noticeably less responsive.

No way could I do that to a fellow planker...

Great insightful review, yet just another example how the crew can discuss other boats will objectiveness.

[M3Fan]

My only suggestion would be for Bu to integrate the throttle control box behind the gunwale like CC and MC do. The Morse box looks cheap and sticks out like a sore thumb in such a innovative looking boat interior.

This has bothered me for years about the bu boats. I think it looks awful.

[skisix@38]

My only suggestion would be for Bu to integrate the throttle control box behind the gunwale like CC and MC do. The Morse box looks cheap and sticks out like a sore thumb in such a innovative looking boat interior.

This has bothered me for years about the bu boats. I think it looks awful.

I heard Malibu put that in there on purpose to give Nautique something to gripe about

[lxirod]

i like it

[billb]

Over the summer, I went out with a friend to his club's lake. Their club has its own boat, a Nautique. I had a heck of a time trying to get comfortable with the throttle lever. I never did find anything to rest my forearm or elbow on so that just my hand moved to operate the throttle. It was the equivalent to operating the pedals in your car without resting your heel on the floorboard. I didn't like it, but I just figured that it was my lack of familiarity that caused me to not like it. I like the throttle design/setup on my boat and the other Malibus that I've driven. I don't spend much time in non-Malibus.

[edwin]

Thanks for the great write up SGY.

[SunriseH2OSkier]

Yes, excellent write-up! Glad to see it hasn't lost anything in the flat wake department, and I'd be interested to drive it to see how different it feels from my '03. I've never really thought my '03 was anything less than top notch in that area, so if it really feels more responsive, that's pretty impressive.

Unfortunately, I still cannot get past the gel patterns. I think 88Skier called it an orca, I think of a tri-hull. I need to play around with iSpec some more. The w/s isn't as objectionable to me as it was initially, but I still like the lines of mine better. And the problems they are having with it is still bothersome.

SGY - were the two boats equipped with the toe-munchers (ss rails) in the gunnels? I still think that is the dumbest thing I've ever seen. If I was getting one, it would be ordered without them. Much prefer the netting.

[Eficht]

The boat et al.

The boat is interesting enough. Let me try to answer a few things owning on '05 RLXi and always coveting the looks of SGY's 196. To me the 196 is a great looking boat compared to the RLXi. You either like the 'Benz or the BMW. Both good cars, just different looks. Also, by the way, it is funny when you pull into the ski lakes and the 196's outnumber the RLXi's literally 10-1. But then you see more Ford Trucks in one state and Chevy trucks in the other.

The boat is a change. Right now there seem to be a lot of issues on the power curve. Apparently Indmar says the curves are all the same and it's Malibu's problem. Malibu is blaming Indmar. When you put the CC on the motor, something in the curve better change. The concern I have is not so much sea level operation by operation at altitude.

The 07 to me felt like it had more room overall from the dash to the locker. With the nets on the sides gone, it changes how you store things on the side. It's a cleaner look when it's clean, but add anything to store behind the rails and the look becomes that of a used boat, not a new one on the showroom.

There is certainly more freeboard to the boat, and the bow does not dip like the 06 and prior. However, the vents are right up there and could imagine that the water could get down the vent and into your heater. I had that problem on my 05 when I washed it, but never when the bow went under because the vents were under the dash. At any rate, water in the vent led to replaced heater (warranty handled it).

Driving was fine. I didn't notice the side bars on the window. Again, it will always be a source of conversation because it's different. It seems a bit skiddish to me but i need to spend more time to get used to it.

SGY says the wake is comparable in look to his 196. I thought it looked huge compared to both. We took some videos from 30,32,34 and 36. You can definitely see the ski ride down into the wake, then up and down the wake and up to flat. My sense is that Malibu has long had a bit of a dip in the wake relative to the 196 and a wider table. SGY likes all the bubbles because he says it's a softer wake because the bubbles are air. I think it looks like you're skiing into a wall of foam when you're in the boat. When you ski it, it's up to you to decide. If you're used to it, then you are. Look, the wake had the record for a while. Then the MC had it. The boats are all skiable (SP?) and whether or not you think its better, the same or less attractive, they are all good.

I was impressed with the acceleration with all the people in the boat. If we had any more in the boat, we'd look like we qualified for low income housing tax credits. It's a nice boat. My first impression was not the best. At the end of 4 days with it, I liked it. As with all things, people need to make up their own mind. BMW took a lot of heat on their I system that controls all of the functions in the car. It may or may not be for everyone. All I need is a 196 with the interior finish of the RLXi and a snap off fiberglass bow so I can put the kids in the front when I am not skiing. Now that I've wasted 1/2 day of production on this, I need to get back to making a living.

[SGY]

Yes, excellent write-up! Glad to see it hasn't lost anything in the flat wake department, and I'd be interested to drive it to see how different it feels from my '03. I've never really thought my '03 was anything less than top notch in that area, so if it really feels more responsive, that's pretty impressive.

Unfortunately, I still cannot get past the gel patterns. I think 88Skier called it an orca, I think of a tri-hull. I need to play around with iSpec some more. The w/s isn't as objectionable to me as it was initially, but I still like the lines of mine better. And the problems they are having with it is still bothersome.

SGY - were the two boats equipped with the toe-munchers (ss rails) in the gunnels? I still think that is the dumbest thing I've ever seen. If I was getting one, it would be ordered without them. Much prefer the netting.

I think the gel patterns and such will grow on you. Nice boat all the way around. The boat did have the ss rails.

[SGY]

SGY says the wake is comparable in look to his 196. I thought it looked huge compared to both. We took some videos from 30,32,34 and 36. You can definitely see the ski ride down into the wake, then up and down the wake and up to flat. My sense is that Malibu has long had a bit of a dip in the wake relative to the 196 and a wider table. SGY likes all the bubbles because he says it's a softer wake because the bubbles are air. I think it looks like you're skiing into a wall of foam when you're in the boat. When you ski it, it's up to you to decide. If you're used to it, then you are. Look, the wake had the record for a while. Then the MC had it. The boats are all skiable (SP?) and whether or not you think its better, the same or less attractive, they are all good.

I agree that the wake looks similar to the 196 wake. I think the wake on both bu's is very comparable to the wake on my 196. I have some pics of the 2007 wake at 30mph. I'll see if I can post them tomorrow.

The foam/bubble/air thing comes directly from Andy Mapple. We're like close personal friends, only different.

[SunriseH2OSkier]

The foam/bubble/air thing comes directly from Andy Mapple. We're like close personal friends, only different.

[onamission]

There is certainly more freeboard to the boat, and the bow does not dip like the 06 and prior. However, the vents are right up there and could imagine that the water could get down the vent and into your heater. I had that problem on my 05 when I washed it, but never when the bow went under because the vents were under the dash. At any rate, water in the vent led to replaced heater (warranty handled it).

How are the vents in the front of the bow or under the windshield (depending on the year) connected to the heater? Don't the vents connect to hoses that run down to the engine compartment for air?

[SunriseH2OSkier]

I was wondering the same thing, but I'm guessing with the vents under the w/s from '03-06, water didn't just go down the intake hose, it probably also went into the dash area and on top of the heater. Not sure how the hoses would route from the new bow vents, but I wouldn't expect it to be as likely to affect the dash area.

[VinRLX]

Unfortunately, I still cannot get past the gel patterns. I think 88Skier called it an orca, I think of a tri-hull. I need to play around with iSpec some more.

Trihull, exactly. I've played with ispec some. If the hull main and deck accent are the same color, it helps to create that look. Add in hull base and deck accent two being the same as each other and you get a double-whammy effect.

Jerry, try using one color for hull main, deck accents one and two. Do what you will with the rest. This seems to lessen the tri-hull effect. Or, hull base, hull main, deck accent, deck base as one color and do what you will with the others.

I think the way they have broken up the lines of the boat, you have less choices regarding color scheme. That is, if you're a conservative slalom skier. I think the red/black/gray RLXi on the Malibu site is kinda cool--it's grown on me--but I wouldn't own it. My wife wouldn't let me.