www.iFourWinns.com

Second season with a new 2008 H180 with the Volvo 3 litres engine. I have to say that it's a good looking entry level boat perfect for a family of four. Top speed when 4 aboard is around 40. Alone in the boat on flat water you can hit 45-48 at WOT 5000 RPM, not for to long. The boat does not get out of the water easily when 6 aboard. One of the adults should sit all the way at the front or else you might not even get to plane! Tried the 4 blade prop. Good to plane faster but at WOT top speed drops to 35, good for
water sports.

I'm somewhat disapointed overall because of the numerous trips to the dealer that were necessary. Oh yeah, get the extended warranty, for around 1000 $, 3 visits at the dealer and you're in your money. Change of subject. A friend with the exact same boat but 2007 had a algae in the water intake causing a overheat in 2-3 minutes. Smoke everywhere, melted wires, around 1200$ to fix.
Not on warranty. Be aware and check your temp. These cast engines don't like heat to much. This friend also had major issues (Much worse than mine). They had to replace the entire engine last year. His boat is yellow....

My boat had hydraulic problems, both power steering and trim . 3 dealer visits for that. Broken seat slider mechanism. Broken bench brackets. Broken bracket bolt( starter) in engine block. Loose screws all the time.

I understand that boats are not like cars and need more maintenance and care but compared to boaters I know, we seem to be having alot of problems.

Summers are short here in Montreal, so when you loose a few weekends of boating, it's not cool.

This engine is very noisy compared to the 4.3 l. Probably a good idea to get that one. Fuel injected rather than carburated.
I had read on the web and was told by alot of people that the Volvo engine/ outdrive combo was slightly superior to the Merc.
Not so sure anymore.

If you want a GPS for it, I found that the Garmin 276C is a good fit to the right of the console. Easy to instal and wire yourself.

Hope this helped someone.

Maybe I should wait until my second season, but I just can't help myself...

So far the only problem I've had is the boat stalled since the day I picked it up. It took me forever to get the dealer to stop telling me I had to warm it up more before their mechanic finally fixed the problem with a simple carb adjustment. Since then it's been problem free and I've been very happy.

This is our second 3.0, but we rarely have more than 4 people on the boat. Usually it's just me and my wife. If we had any intention of having more than that on a regular basis there's no way I would have gotten the 3.0. (or a 180 for that matter)

I will say though that a few weeks ago we had 4 adults in the boat and pulled a 5th on a tube and didn't have any problem getting up on plane. All in all it's a pretty impressive little motor, but it has it's limitations and it's place.

With all that said it sounds like you've had more than your share of problems. Sounds like your dealer should prep his boats better because none of those problems should have happened and they're definitely not the norm for a FourWinns boat.

Hope things go better for you for the rest of the summer. (right up until hockey season )

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2010 H190 4.3VP
Tow Vehicle:
2007 F150
Previous boats:
2009 H180 3.0VP
1996 Horizon QX 3.0VP

We have had ours for around 8 months now and apart from a few loose screws that needed a twist of a screwdriver it has been great it now has around 50 hours on it

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Ardy
Adelaide South Australia
Red H180 3.0 Merc

I might have been a little harsh on my review cause I still like my 180. Just blowing steam.

Also it's true that the dealer has alot to do with the prep so not necessarily a FourWinns problem.

Cheers to all.

This is my third season with my 180 and the only complaint i have with mine is the loose screws and bolts all the time . It seems like thats all i do. But i am pretty happy with the performance of the engine. With 4 adults and 2 toddlers onboard it pulls my brother( 6ft 2 about230lbs) up on skis fine. Sorry you and your friend have had so much trouble i hope it gets better

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2006 Horizon 180 3.0 Volvo SOLD
2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Coming to the end of my first season on the water as well..... learned a lot of lessons and enjoyed my boat for the 2/3rds of the summer I had it.

So far I have been impressed by the little engine that could, though it's not the 4.3L I wanted. That's not to take anything away from what I have as it was the best boat I could purchase with the money I have. Overall I think I made the right decision purchasing the 3.0L as it honestly has done everything I have asked of it very well. Due to my accident this summer I would be hard pressed to have 20 hours on it but have had no engine problems or complaints. With just me in the boat I have had it up to 41mph WOT on a slightly choppy day. With 4 adults and 3 kids in the boat it obviously becomes very sluggish in the water but still did the job I was asking of it. It makes the typical sounds that a 3.0L should make and performs as it should and not like a 5.0L. I have the much lower fuel bill this summer to prove it.

Regrets..... Besides the accident, none of the boat. I wish I would have purchased a bimini top for this summer for the wife and baby and will be investigating the cost of one for next summer. The extended swim platform would have been nice but I didn't really miss having one. The wakeboard tower would have been super sexy but a waste of money for the tubing we did. I'm going to try and enjoy the last little bit of summer we have before having to take the boat out and try and figure out what to do with it over the winter.

Jeff

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2009 H180 3.0 Volvo Penta