1998 180 br

8

83ray

New Member
Jul 17, 2009
22
louisiana
Boat Info
monaco 200
Engines
5.7 omc
Well my 1986 searay monaco is dead....rip. Any way I am looking at buying a 1998 180 with a 4 cyl in it. boat is very clean and its $5000 I have a few questions I always have alot of friends with me when I go boating. Well I was wondering is 5000 to much, what problem areas should I look for? Its a 3.0 can that pull skiers and what is the top speed of the boat with lets say 5 and a quarter people in it yes I have a little one on board. How reliable are these boats
?
 
I have a '99 with the same setup. It seems these boats are pretty reliable. I can pull a wakeboarder with 6 people on board pretty easily, and with all 7 people on board I max out around 30mph. With 2 people on board it will get up to a little over 35mph. The one thing I would recommend is picking up a high-five prop since it helps a ton with the hole shot....the amount of time it takes to plane out while fully loaded down is my only complaint, and it sounds like the new prop will fix that problem.

I picked my boat up at the beginning of the summer from a friend for $5000. There are a few others around here that are listed for $7-7500, and others on boat trader show the same, so you could base your price on that and deduct based on how clean the interior/exterior are.
 
The boat looks brand new I am going on a test drive today so hopefully all goes well. The only thing that bothers me is its a two owner boat the current owner did all the service work him self so very little records and no records from the first owner.
 
No service records is the norm, I've found. The boat is likely to be reliable; my cousin owns a '97 and has no issues (but she bought from a local guy and takes it to the mechanic who has serviced it from the day he bought it - new - so she has no uncertainties). Top speed w. a load of people is likely to be in the 30's or maybe 40.
 
Was the boat used in fresh or saltwater or both? Does it come with a 1998 trailer? Any idea how many engine hours it has on it?
 
FWIW, my friend paid $5,500 this summer for a 1999 18 foot Chaparral BR with the same engine as the boat you're considering. It was also freshwater only but it had no hour meter so no telling how many engine hours although the current owner claimed it had recently been rebuilt. His vinyl however is pretty torn up.

Also, FWIW I've been very happy with my 2000 Sea Ray. I've spend $350-400 at MarineMax for repairs since I bought it a year ago--I paid just over 8. MarineMax claimed they put $2,000 in parts & labor into the boat to get it ready for me last year. It appears to be built like a tank and all my vinyl is still in good shape, if only a bit discolored in a few spots. I do have a wood barrier separating the passenger area from the batteries which has some rot but you really can't see it as it is covered with carpet. You might want to check that area on yours too.

My point is that your deal in comparison sounds reasonable to me given that the engine functions to your satisfaction.
 
I have an 01 180 Bow Rider. I han hit 39 mph (GPS) with one person on board. 33 to 35 with the five to 6 person load you are talking about. Assuming none of your people are huge :) BTW....my speedometer on my boat is about three MPH slow so I wouldn't stake your opinion based on what the speedo says.

Regarding pulling, I regularly pull wakeboarders, skiers, kneeboard and a very large two person tube. I don't have any problem pulling anything except the tube and even that pulls fine, I am just wide open throttle most of the time. I have a high five 19P prop and the biggest help is getting the largest person or a couple of people to sit up front when pulling. Biggest factor in getting a good holeshot.
 
Well I test drove it today after work. What a nice little boat, a little slow but handled nice. The water was very choppy but for an 18 footer it took it very well so if all goes well I guess I am getting another sea ray!!!!!!!
 
I highly recomend the high five prop also. I run the 23p on mine.

Good luck and post some pics when you get a chance.
 
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