www.iFourWinns.com

Hello, I posted most of this in the banter section - maybe that was the wrong place?

I've pretty much decided to buy a Four Winns H180LE after ruling out spending my money on a new car or a swimming pool. I chose the Four Winns over the Bayliner as the H180LE has a better chance of fitting in my garage!

I have not yet bought the boat, so if anyone has any suggestions or experience they wouldn't mind sharing I would be most grateful.

One question I did have, was should I wait for the Melbourne boat show in July? Are boats generally cheaper at boat shows?

Thanks

JB

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2010 Crownline 180BR
3.0 litre Mercruiser
Onyx black Narrow hull and middle deck band
Bimini/Targa, Bow and Cockpit canvas
2000kg tandem Dunbier trailer

Tow vehicle - Nissan Pathfinder Ti

Welcome commander, I will always advise attending a boat show. Sometimes you can get a better price, but mainly you can compare similar models all at the same time. The H180 will probably be your clear choice, when considering price, build quality and features for your money.

I do like the Whittley Clearwater 1800, but max engine size is limited to the 135hp. 3.0L. While a great little motor, the 4.3L V6 would be preferred.

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

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

Mmm thanks Captain.

I like the look of that Whittley. Although I reckon both that and the H180LE will be fitted with the same engine - they come with Mercruiser 3L as standard here, and both come from the same dealer.

When I next drop in to the dealer to see how much more money off they are going to give me, I'll ask about that too.

Thanks

JB

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2010 Crownline 180BR
3.0 litre Mercruiser
Onyx black Narrow hull and middle deck band
Bimini/Targa, Bow and Cockpit canvas
2000kg tandem Dunbier trailer

Tow vehicle - Nissan Pathfinder Ti

Uh, I don't see any boats in that picture.

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Mike
2005 Four Winns 230/240
VP 5.7GXi/DP
1998 F-150 XLT
Boat Pic

and the equipment it comes with seems adequate.

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-Rob.


Current boat: 2011 Yamaha AR210
Previous boat: 1998 Horizon RX 4.3GL SX

Gidday James
Firstly welcome to the forum. When I was looking at boats to buy 2 years ago I looked at the Whitley, The bayliner175 the Maxum 180, the glastron175 and of course the H180. I realise that we are a little biased here but the build quality on the Four Winns seemed to be just better all round. As I understand the whitley doesn't have the choice of the V6 engine while the Four Winns does ( add around 5k to the price). Having owned our H180 for about 15 months and 110 engine hours later am still really happy with it. We opted for the 3.0 Mercruiser and have found that it suits our needs for skiing and boarding to be quite adequate. The boat handles very well and slices chop nicely. My main gripes are ski locker needs to be bigger to accomadate a full size ski, the filler for fuel is on the wrong side for my convienience, and the 3.0 litre engine has a tendancy to run on after you switch it off if you run regular unleaded in it ( this is all but non existant if you run premium in it).
The boat show is a good idea, because you get the chance to physically compare all the boats under the one roof and quite possibly get a few extras thrown in, because they are there for one purpose and that is to sell boats. I also know that retailers of boats still want your buisiness even after the boat show has ended. Something else to consider is buy it just before the end of the fianancial year, as it gives you a bit more leverage on the deal
Hope this helps.

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Ardy
Adelaide South Australia
Red H180 3.0 Merc

Hi mate, thanks very much for that. I've only looked at the Bayliner bowrider and the Four Winns H180LE so far, the Bayliner defo won't fit in my garage without an expensive trailer mod so that's not really an option. The 180LE will fit in my garage with 5cm to spare - luckily the dealer has offered to bring one round to test this out.

The price I've been offered on the 180LE package is AU$32,995 on an 09 hull or $33,451 on a 10 hull, this includes all safety gear for 5 people, bimini, tonneaus, 12 months rego. I'm also going to try and get a deal on a fish finder and VHF radio, plus a tow rope, donut, full tank of fuel and free first service - do you reckon I'll get that lot thrown in?

I suppose the prices at the Boat show won't be any higher and might even be a bit lower.....

JB

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2010 Crownline 180BR
3.0 litre Mercruiser
Onyx black Narrow hull and middle deck band
Bimini/Targa, Bow and Cockpit canvas
2000kg tandem Dunbier trailer

Tow vehicle - Nissan Pathfinder Ti

James you will do well if you can get that all thrown in, remember there isn't a lot of markup on the H180. The bayliner175 is actually narrower than the FW and generally not as well finished (IMHO). Something I consider important to have is an engine hour meter and a keel protection strip (especially if you beach your boat as it wears quickly if you dont have one.
Hope this helps
And heres mine

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Ardy
Adelaide South Australia
Red H180 3.0 Merc

Nice boat Ardy - don't think they are available in red now. Where was the pic taken?

JB

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2010 Crownline 180BR
3.0 litre Mercruiser
Onyx black Narrow hull and middle deck band
Bimini/Targa, Bow and Cockpit canvas
2000kg tandem Dunbier trailer

Tow vehicle - Nissan Pathfinder Ti

The pic was taken at our block at Morgan last year on the boats first outing

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Ardy
Adelaide South Australia
Red H180 3.0 Merc

G'Day JB, Melb boat show will probably get you the best price. These days you also have a couple of choices of supplier in Melbourne so you can play them off for the best price - JV Marine and Fleet Marine. When I bought mine, I had Fleet Marine match a quote I got from a Sydney dealer.

I have no regrets whatsoever about my H190 - pulls skiiers and tubes easily, goes like buggery, rides real nice even when the bay chops up, and hits 40 knots when the water is smooth. Have towed it thousands of km to places like Merimula, Batemans Bay, Bathurst, Gippsland Lakes etc and it fits in my garage! Even today when I look at other brands and models I would not change it which I think is a good sign..!

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

Alec, that's really useful info, I didn't know that there were two dealers as Fleet Marine isn't listed on Four Winns website.

Fleet Marine don't seem to be exhibiting at the boat show, so I'll have to get their best price beforehand and see what happens at the show.

Have you had experience with after-sales at either Fleet or JV?

Thanks

JB

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2010 Crownline 180BR
3.0 litre Mercruiser
Onyx black Narrow hull and middle deck band
Bimini/Targa, Bow and Cockpit canvas
2000kg tandem Dunbier trailer

Tow vehicle - Nissan Pathfinder Ti

Only Fleet Marine after sales experience - hmmm maybe FW have dropped them? No probs with any warranty issues. However, did find them a bit expensive on annual services. Stuck with them for the warranty period, now do everything myself and save heaps. Have not used JV Marine before other than buying odds and ends, but would have no hesitation in giving them a shot - well established and been around for years with a good service department. I will give them a shot next winter (5 years) as I will need the bellows replaced which I am not keen to do myself.

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

I think they must have done - I just rang Fleet Marine and was told they were not Four Winns dealers. Shame, as I'm back to just one dealership now. Ah well, I can always play them off against Bayliner or Rae Line....

JB

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2010 Crownline 180BR
3.0 litre Mercruiser
Onyx black Narrow hull and middle deck band
Bimini/Targa, Bow and Cockpit canvas
2000kg tandem Dunbier trailer

Tow vehicle - Nissan Pathfinder Ti

Get a 180. I love mine. FW did a good job maximizing the cabin space and the beam is very large for a 18ft boat. One potential down side to the 6cyl is you don't get rear seating which can be converted to a larger sun deck. This has come in real handy if we need more seating in the boat. Typically, its just the 4 of us so the seats stay up. I've had 7 adults on the boat and the 4cyl struggles to get on plane but runs fine at cruise speed.

GPH/MPG has been great too. My buddies 22ft Regal eats twice as much over the weekend.

Good luck.

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-2006 H180 VP3.0 SS 21p