'96 Maristar 225 VRS: Considering buying.

[mdknapp]

Hi all.. I checked out a Maristar 225 VRS that is near our place a couple of days ago.. Here's a link to the listing:

http://portland.craigslist.org/clc/boa/3299112560.html

There are a few things that concern me about this boat and I wanted to get some opinions.

Ballast system: The current owner installed a wake makers ballast system that has an 800 lb ballast on either side of the engine and a 400 lb ballast under the floor. Each of these has an inlet in the bottom of the boat.. three 1" holes were drilled for these. Is this typical for ballast install? Two holes are located near the engine and one near the drain plug. The installation does look good but I'm thinking that if one of those inlets somehow fails, the boat sinks.

Tower: There are some stress cracks in the gelcoat around where the tower is connected.. A friend of mine took a pic of this I can post soon... Do you guys think it wasn't attached properly? Does the fiberglass need to be reinforced somehow?

Trailer: The CO said the surge brakes were locking up in reverse so he somehow disabled them by welding something.. This sounds like a bad plan to me..

What is the life expectancy of an LT-1 engine? It currently has ~515 hours on it.

The boat is in pretty great condition.. The vinyl is original and looks like it will probably start to tear around the seams soon... But otherwise everything is nice.

Anyway, I'm thinking about offering ~$11-12k, $16k seems high to me.. What do you think?

Thanks!
Mike

[ahhudgins]

The surge brakes help a LOT when stopping, and they will lock up if you are backing the trailer up an incline. There is a lock out device mounted on the tongue for reversing, but mine has never had one (I need to get one). My driveway has a slight incline and the brakes do drag when I back it up, but I would NEVER weld it so the surge brakes no longer work.

And I am towing a Maristar 200 with a F150 FWD.

[jmw]

The holes for ballast are the proper way to install a plumbed ballast system and it's how the factory installs. They are called thru-hulls and should be stainless, brass and some form of plastic. I would ensure he installed a ball shutoff valve on each but even if not that's an easy fix. The cracks may or may not be serious, spider web cracks in the gelcoat are only cosmetic and very common but if it's stress cracks through the fiberglass that would need to be reinforced and repaired. If the engine has been cared for and you take care of it 1500 to 2000 hours is very common. You hear people with 2500 hours on some of the older boats somewhat regularly... so you should have plenty of life left in that engine. The boat looks pretty clean but I always hunt for a steal, so look around your area for values but I think you're in the ball park @ $11 - $12k.

[u bet shes wet]

My budy just sold his 96 200vrs with 450 hours on it for $14500. I was in mint condition, but did not have ballast. I would say you are in the right price range at $11-$12000.

[carisch]

I own a '96 225. I have a nicer tower, and smaller engine, but my tower is top of the line. I also have 100 fewer hours on it. Always hard to say what these boats are worth, but I sure wouldn't sell mine for 11-12. I'd say a fair price is around 14k.

U bet, I don't think ballast vs no ballast is a big deal, but there is a pretty big difference between 200 and 225. If your buddy got 14k, then this is certainly worth more. Just my 2 cents.... Looks like a great boat.

[Traxx822]

I own a '96 225. I have a nicer tower, and smaller engine, but my tower is top of the line. I also have 100 fewer hours on it. Always hard to say what these boats are worth, but I sure wouldn't sell mine for 11-12. I'd say a fair price is around 14k.

U bet, I don't think ballast vs no ballast is a big deal, but there is a pretty big difference between 200 and 225. If your buddy got 14k, then this is certainly worth more. Just my 2 cents.... Looks like a great boat.

Yeah its a nice boat. 13-14 looks good for this boat. Added value for the ballast if it is something you want and its very clean looking. Lower value because of the cheaper tower and possible poor install causing the stress cracks and lack of premium stereo. A good buy if you ask me. Nice cover on it. You will be happy with the wake I promise.