Are people abandoning boating in today’s economic environment? No, people need that escape now more than ever. They are just being more realistic with their purchases. The boat purchaser today is looking for more value which can lead them to the pre-owned boat market. Where do you find a good pre-owned boat? Look in classified ads or at a marina that deals in used boats.
So how do you make sure you have value in a boat once you found one you like? Follow these suggestions to a more satisfying purchase.
When checking a boat over you want to inspect the boat and the motor. Starting with the boat:
- Walk around the exterior of the boat. You should be looking for chips, cracks in the hull. Check under the boat along the chimes. Look for signs of a rotten hull around the drain plug.
- Climb into the boat and walk around. Does the floor feel solid or is it soft and spongy. What condition is the vinyl on the seats, are they cracked and brittle? Look in the storage compartments and up under the side boards. Are these areas clean or is there small pieces of wood from rotten panels.
- Move to the console. Flip the switches. Does the bilge pump work, how about the blower? Do the interior lights work? The navigation lights? Try the horn, is it working? Turn the steering wheel, does the drive turn, is it stiff? (Some sterndrives have power steering which may feel stiff when the motor isn’t on.)
- Once you have checked out the boat it is time to turn to the motor. The very first check should be a spark and compression. The compression check determines the health of the internal engine while the spark determines the ignition system. After you determine the motor is healthy it is time to inspect the belts, (looking for worn, checked belts excessive belt dust) wiring, (broken, frayed, cracked insulation, corrosion on terminals) hoses.
- Next up is the drive. Check the gearlube – level, color, smell, foreign material. Put some weight on the drive and bounce it, does the transom flex any. If it does you may be looking at a rotten or rotting transom.
Once you have determined that the boat fits your needs and passes inspection it is time to determine the value. There are several guides one could use ABOS Marine Blue Book and NADA Guides.
One thing that I left out came to my attention today. A group of people purchased a boat together with out checking it out. They spent most of the summer with running issues which they tried to fix by throwing parts at it. Come to find out it had freeze damage and a bad cylinder. (A compression test would have found the problem in the beginning) .So when inspecting the motor (i/o or inboard) check the manifolds and the block for cracks. Check the oil for signs of water (a brownish milky look).