www.iFourWinns.com

I'm on the quest to buy a boat, nothing has come up in 2 months. There is a 2004 Monterey 228 SIC that I could probably get for 10k without trailer. The owner is hurting, and the boat is too.

When I went to go see it, this is what I learned about it:
-Wooden engine hatch/sunpad wood is rotted
-Wiring to bow light/horn broken
-Water leak at cabin door (rubber) but it was stored indoors. Zero cabin water damage. It's actually quite nice.
-Vinyl not perfect, but no rips or serious fading
-Water pump for shower/wet bar not working
-All speakers sound like crap
-Boat did 48mph (5.0gxi SX) but has exhaust OR head gasket leak. Noticeable exhaust leak sound. Didn't overheat ran 175* perfectly at WOT for 3 minutes.
-Gauges all have water vapor in them, most don't work. All need to be sent in.
-It did shift very smooth, smoother shifting then my 2000 H180 with SX.
-Ill fitting west marine bimini top, needs a better one
-No covers
-No trailer
-No decals on hull

It did look otherwise stock and no african engineering. It screams salvage boat. There was a big flood in the area 2 years ago.


Could i fix this to be mint in my 18k budget if I get it for 10k? A trailer will be $1500-2000 so that leaves me my own labor and $6000 to fix this up to factory specs. If I can it would be a 22-25k boat.

If the compression of the engine is good and the drive is good, would you?

_________________
1981 Columbia 8.7
2015 Yamaha FZR - 87mph - sold
2006 Yamaha GP1300R - sold
2003 Chaparral 215 SSI - sold
2009 Stingray 195CS - sold
2000 Four Winns H180 - sold
1976 O'day Daysailer II - sold
Rick's Four Winns H180 Mods/Upgrade Thread

The thing I always look at first is hull condition and freedom from rot and other fiberglass issues. Then look at the mechanical. I'd want to verify what is that exhaust noise, is it a bad exhaust rubber hose, Y pipe, or engine problem. I would not be against doing cosmetic repairs, but if the boat had a colored gelcoat hull, forget it, in my experience they never come back for long and look like crap. White only and no tape on graphics either. So get more diagnostics and report back.

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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

Cosmetically the hull is glossy. It only has 146 hours and stored indoors on a rack it's whole life, it's just the red headed stepchild that nobody wanted to love. I'll ask if he'll humor 10k and if so.. I'll pay the marina it's at to survey it. It's almost worth doing because if it needs no real mechanical work, with $6000 I can transform that thing into a mini yacht that will make Cobalt Boats jealous. To be honest I don't even need a trailer, I can motor it 90 miles down the river to the marina where I'm going to keep it racked.

_________________
1981 Columbia 8.7
2015 Yamaha FZR - 87mph - sold
2006 Yamaha GP1300R - sold
2003 Chaparral 215 SSI - sold
2009 Stingray 195CS - sold
2000 Four Winns H180 - sold
1976 O'day Daysailer II - sold
Rick's Four Winns H180 Mods/Upgrade Thread

ric,
Are these pictures of the boat outdated then ?

http://www.powerboatlistings.com/view/15675

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One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

That's pretty close to how it looks, and that river is brackish so it's a salty it's whole life. The engine cover isn't up because the hinges are ripped out of the rotted wood. If you lay on there you'll fall through. The tach doesn't work, it idles and shows crazy readings. It's all little things that need attention. From a 20ft view it looks beautiful. In 5 minutes I had him down to 15k with the bad trailer. I'm pretty sure waving 10k in his face without the scrap iron will pick it up.

_________________
1981 Columbia 8.7
2015 Yamaha FZR - 87mph - sold
2006 Yamaha GP1300R - sold
2003 Chaparral 215 SSI - sold
2009 Stingray 195CS - sold
2000 Four Winns H180 - sold
1976 O'day Daysailer II - sold
Rick's Four Winns H180 Mods/Upgrade Thread

If you buy it for 10k and fix it up you can boat til November then sell it. Sounds like a good business move. You can have a boat and make some money while getting the boat you want next year. It sounds like it's been a hassle for you thus far so I say go for it and by April next year you may have the boat of your dreams. Sounds like a no brainer to me, as long as all the work is cosmetic and not mechanical.

I would if 10K buys it, absolutly

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"Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes "

1996 238 Vista dlx "Casper's Toy Too"
2006 5.0GXI w/closed cooling, DP-sm 1.95 drive
Previous boat:
1998 Sundowner 205

That sounds like a boat that never had a loving owner. There could be a ton more stuff you'll find later. I wouldn't touch it.

_________________
07 Azure AZ200,
Previous boat,
95 278 Vista,
And a lot of others.

Ontario, Canada

All I care about is the hull, engine, sterndrive. If those are good everything else is a piece of cake. Same kind of restoration I did to my H180. Almost identical in condition when first purchased. I do all the work myself. This boat purchased for 10k I could have styled with A/C, LED TV, shorepower/gen hookup, bangin radio, plasteak floors, full LED lighting, new covers, and all cosmetics perfect for under 18k total investment. It's street value would be in the mid/upper 20's.

I'd almost rather do that then buy a flawless one for 18-20 with zero upgrades.

_________________
1981 Columbia 8.7
2015 Yamaha FZR - 87mph - sold
2006 Yamaha GP1300R - sold
2003 Chaparral 215 SSI - sold
2009 Stingray 195CS - sold
2000 Four Winns H180 - sold
1976 O'day Daysailer II - sold
Rick's Four Winns H180 Mods/Upgrade Thread

Knock yourself out then.

_________________
07 Azure AZ200,
Previous boat,
95 278 Vista,
And a lot of others.

Ontario, Canada

DANGER, RIC ROBINSON, DANGER (for those old enough, like me, to remember Lost in Space). I would be very wary of buying an 8 year old boat with only 146 hours on it. That equates to only 18 hours a year and based on the condition of that boat, I bet he hasn't put hardly any hours (or maintenance) on it in the last 2 to 3 years. Nothing can keep a motor in good shape other than running it. You are asking for major motor work and that has hardly been mentioned in this thread.

Go steal you one from some poor sap who bought new but their income has been decimated by the new government regulations. There will be a lot of deals like that popping up once obamacare kicks in. Doctors making $200k to $300k a year will soon only be making $75k to $100k. Just as they won't be able to give quality care to their boats, the same will apply to their patients.

_________________

Current Boat: 2000 Four Winns 298 Vista
Previous Boat: 2000 Carver 406MY

I know, I'm the one that preaches low hours on older boats is a major danger sign. BUT if the price is right....

I'd gladly pay top dollar for a 2004 boat with 500 hours if the owner took pride in his boat.

_________________
1981 Columbia 8.7
2015 Yamaha FZR - 87mph - sold
2006 Yamaha GP1300R - sold
2003 Chaparral 215 SSI - sold
2009 Stingray 195CS - sold
2000 Four Winns H180 - sold
1976 O'day Daysailer II - sold
Rick's Four Winns H180 Mods/Upgrade Thread

i would buy it. The best part is you can spend the money upgrading what you want, instead of buying a mint one and having no money for upgrading.

Ric, you are a tinkerer. Look at your list of mods. There is no perfect, turn key boat for you out there. You could go buy a new Cobalt and still want to do "your mods".

You could have a VERY blank canvas to work with here and make it as custom as YOU want it.

Show the guy 95 $100 bills and drive it home.

_________________
2001 Horizon 260 - 7.4 Volvo GSI DP

I guess I'll just wait for your post titled "I FINALLY bought a boat".

Yawn.

_________________
07 Azure AZ200,
Previous boat,
95 278 Vista,
And a lot of others.

Ontario, Canada