www.iFourWinns.com

In a little over a week my wife and I take possession of our 2001 328 Vista. We have been sailboaters most of our lives (on other people's boats) but decided to go with a power boat. This is our first boat. My question to the community is this; looking back on when you bought your first boat, what do you know now that you wish you knew then?

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2001 - 328 Vista - Sans Sails

Two things:
My mom used to say,"if you go to a restaurant and don't get what you want because of the price, then just eat at home instead"... boating is expensive, so just be aware of that and know it is going to be costly and bite the bullet for necessary supplies, maintenance and gas. This leads to number 2, which is, use the darn boat...... the season is short, the costs are high, so use the boat and enjoy it. Sitting in the driveway or empty in the slip (except marina parties) is a waste of your boat and family fun. Purposely go to the boat and get out on the water... you can't enjoy the experience if you don't get the experience!

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Ernie Follis
It'll Do II
Four Winns 348 (2005)

How much work it is to maintain sterndrives and why outboards are better even though they cost more up front! And you've got two of them unless its got straight inboards or V-drives.
And, the fact that most boat companies are too cheap to install closed cooling on inboard engines which were designed to be that way from the start. A foolish 'economy'. Open cooling is less efficient, because its not pressurized, it takes a lot longer to winterize and causes a lot of corrosion. Even in fresh water, cast iron engines, exhaust manifolds and exhaust risers rust.

PS I took a look at one of these on line. I for sure hope that yours has a remote oil filter for each engine because if not that's a cruel joke on the part of FW to make some one have to hang upside down to change a !@#$% oil filter! Getting at the center spark plugs between the engines looks do-able but tough, and if its not closed cooled, lots a luck getting at the drain plugs on either side of the block.

So perhaps a more general statement would be "I wish I knew that most boat companies could not care less how difficult and expensive their product is to service, which they could have avoided if they weren't so dern CHEAP!!"

A closed cooling system plus a remote oil filter would have eliminated most of the maintenance headaches and added about 1500 to the price of each engine. Not much on a boat that was as expensive as that new. But they'd rather put the 1500 into fancy wood paneling and seats etc.

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2001/Fo ... OuZrNQrJkg

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2001/Fo ... OuZrNQrJkg

If you are not a do it yourselfer then it may all be academic, but this is a very expensive craft to maintain, compounded by design decisions not made in the owner's best interest. So when you get the bill for 2 tune ups, 2 oil changes, 2 engine winterization, 2 outdrive service, just pay it and enjoy the boat. But it ain't gonna be cheap, or reasonable...

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

How is it going so far? You've already received advice on cost and usage. I'll just add boating here is time intensive hooby. Spend as much time on the boat as you can.

Come to Bouvier Bridge marina (Fair Haven) and we'll chat. Look for the 3C's & D.

BTW, my answer to your question is I wish I would have bought a bigger boat!

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2006 348 Vista
"some days you're the bug and some days you're the windshield"