boat shortage???

[Weaklink]

so I have been thinking of trading in my 17 21vlx for something a little bigger. Went to my dealer and they only had 1 tow boat in stock-a 21' axis. They said they can't get boats...

[qbeam]

Please don't take this the wrong way, but have you been living under a rock for the last year?

[Weaklink]

In a manner of speaking, its probably been over a year since I've been on the forum. Then I see posts about people getting new boats....

[ndahlberg12]

Ordered in December, took delivery 5 days ago. Shortage is an understatement. 

[qbeam]

23 minutes ago, Weaklink said:

In a manner of speaking, its probably been over a year since I've been on the forum. Then I see posts about people getting new boats....

Keep your boat if you want to be on the water this year. Your only real option is to get lucky on finding a used boat or order a 22 (if possible) or a 23 model year. 

[vaporbluebu]

45 minutes ago, Weaklink said:

In a manner of speaking, its probably been over a year since I've been on the forum. Then I see posts about people getting new boats....

Quick recap of the last 18 months:

Last year Covid sent everyone outside driving up the demand for anything outdoor related including boats. That demand only increased this year and manufacturers have had difficulty sourcing materials to build new ones. That has led to a market with huge demand and very little supply. The good news is your 2017 is probably worth more than you paid for it new. The bad news is if you do sell it finding a boat to replace it with will be extremely difficult and extremely expensive.

[NWBU]

If you're serious about getting another boat for next summer, I'd suggest you put $ down with your dealer now. Like this week if possible, and definitely before July is over. Then stay in touch to make sure they will keep on that timeline.

You'd be surprised how many boats dealers typically sell to summer walk-ins, and many of those are signing up on the waiting list for next year, once they get over the shock of not being able to get a boat this summer. Dealers are going to really struggle to build much stock inventory again this year.

[23LSVOwner]

17 hours ago, Weaklink said:

so I have been thinking of trading in my 17 21vlx for something a little bigger. Went to my dealer and they only had 1 tow boat in stock-a 21' axis. They said they can't get boats...

 

[dcarl]

16 hours ago, NWBU said:

If you're serious about getting another boat for next summer, I'd suggest you put $ down with your dealer now. Like this week if possible, and definitely before July is over. Then stay in touch to make sure they will keep on that timeline.

You'd be surprised how many boats dealers typically sell to summer walk-ins, and many of those are signing up on the waiting list for next year, once they get over the shock of not being able to get a boat this summer. Dealers are going to really struggle to build much stock inventory again this year.

A buddy of mine just ordered a new Axis yesterday and it won't be done until March or April.

Edited July 7, 2021 by dcarl

[Weaklink]

Thanks for the replies-all good info. I'm not close to a big volume dealer and so I wasn't sure if it was an issue of boats going to larger markets. I'm about 3 hours from Dallas, TX and they seem to have some boats-at least on paper. I can't even get service at my dealer-they are having trouble finding and keeping employees. I'd definitely like to get into a new boat before the warranty runs out-seems like I need to get something fixed every season.