SURVEY...YES or NO

billnpat

billnpat

New Member
Nov 15, 2009
3,610
Lindenhurst N.Y.
Boat Info
Twin-Zeus-Cummins QSC 600 (T-574 hp - 420 kW) Zeus Propulsion includes Helm joystick, Onan 21.5Kw di
Engines
Twin-Zeus-Cummins QSC 600 (T-574 hp - 420 kW) Zeus Propulsion includes Helm joystick, Skyhook® Stati
Should you consider having a survey done on a new boat from a dealer?

why? Maybe you would want to know the problems before they happen?

Could be getting a major lemon headache:huh:
 
I bought several new boats... didn't have a survey on any of them. I guess you have to trust your dealer, which I did. When something did come up, it was fixed under warranty.

My answer - NO
 
Unfortunately, yes. I've heard of horror stories that damn near cost an owner a brand spanking new boat and his family when a shaft coupling let go in tricky waters because the bolts were not even tightened, let alone torqued or tied. It's a sad state of affairs. I would not take delivery without one and would not finalize payment until the punch list was complete.

In your neck of the woods, I would not hesitate to call Al Prisco.
 
I would say yes. It's a boat. You're probably going to do a sea trial/test drive anyway. When it comes to a new purchase, what's another $700, $800 or $900?

Just my$0.02.

Good luck!
 
For me it depends upon the complexity of the boat and the newness of the model. And, you should be up front and tell the salesman that you intend to have the boat surveyed before you close.

Why? Really? I want to know the problems before I own the boat where I have leverage with the dealer and manufacturer to make the needed repairs before I write the big check. Once you are committed, you are then dealing with a warranty punch list and depending upon your dealer, you may wait a year or longer to get everything fixed. If the salesman, the sales manager and the general manager are all prevented from collecting the commission from your sale because there are defects on the boat, you can rest assured that they are substantially more motivated if you haven't closed the sale yet.
 
fwebster said:
For me it depends upon the complexity of the boat and the newness of the model. And, you should be up front and tell the salesman that you intend to have the boat surveyed before you close.

Why? Really? I want to know the problems before I own the boat where I have leverage with the dealer and manufacturer to make the needed repairs before I write the big check. Once you are committed, you are then dealing with a warranty punch list and depending upon your dealer, you may wait a year or longer to get everything fixed. If the salesman, the sales manager and the general manager are all prevented from collecting the commission from your sale because there are defects on the boat, you can rest assured that they are substantially more motivated if you haven't closed the sale yet.
Click to expand...

Very good......thanks all......i found john Lowe in Northport.....good reputation

http://www.marinesurveyor.com/lowe/
 
As if Frank's post was not enough.....

Not only would I have it surveyed but I would search out & pay extra for one that has experience with the exact boat in question, or at least experience with all of the systems on the boat.

Imagine having a surveyor look down at the Axius stick & saying " Hmm, I'll bet this is pretty cool".
 
Yes. Getting a survey establishes a baseline. Then in the future you have a comparison. Of course it depends on how expensive the boat is. If it is anything over $100K definitely do it. Would you buy a house without having a engineer look at it and make an appraisal? And has been said, even new boats sometimes have problems. Most will be covered by the warranty, but you are getting a headstart by resolving them during the buying process rather than finding out while you are out on the water with family and friends.
 
So, nobody has asked what you might be looking at???? I agree that it can't hurt to have a survey since the cost is minimal compared to the boat cost. Nice to have issues handled before you take possession.
 
Hi billnpat,

I don't have an answer to your question, but I just noticed where you live. I lived in Lindenhurst when I was a young child. I believe our address was 80 Grove Street.

I have few memories of the town, as I was very young, and haven't been back in ages. But I do remember it was a beautiful, quiet place, and we were just a few blocks from the water.

Good luck with the new boat. What are you looking to buy?
 
Ike said:
Yes. Getting a survey establishes a baseline. Then in the future you have a comparison. Of course it depends on how expensive the boat is. If it is anything over $100K definitely do it. Would you buy a house without having a engineer look at it and make an appraisal? And has been said, even new boats sometimes have problems. Most will be covered by the warranty, but you are getting a headstart by resolving them during the buying process rather than finding out while you are out on the water with family and friends.
Click to expand...



Sure. if I bought a new house with a warranty then I wouldn't get a report. A used house? report.

topic asked about new boat. they have warranties, don't they?
 
For a new Sea Ray, No, having bought a new boat, everything I raised from minor detail on up was covered under warranty for the first year, no questions. Only thing I had to do was bring the boat over to their yard for repair or else I would have had to pay them to come to me.

dave
 
New boat........ No.
New house that we bought last year..... No. but I did watch it be built from the ground up and was onsite at least every couple of days, but more because I enjoy watching the construction process. We vetted the builder before construction began, so I wasn't too worried about building issues.


I've said it before and I'll say it again......... Pick your dealer, then pick your boat. With the right dealer, even unexpected issues will be taken care of.
 
I would get a survey on a new boat or home, depending on what dealer your purchasing it from I would have a meeting with your salesman & the dealers sales, service & corporate store manager before writing the contract to explain why a survey is being done. This would eliminate any bad feelings they might have about having a survey done on their new product giving you and them a good foundation for any warranty work in the future. It would also give you a sense of what their attitude is before a sale, you may not want to deal with them. From what I've read on here & other forums even Sea Ray has some poor customer service after the sale in some areas.

Like stated before a survey won't find all issues but it will find any poor workmanship especially mechanical, if the boat fails inspection you've saved yourself possible years of grief for a small price. If something like a coupling shaft bolts were loose how confident would you be with your purchase?

I would trust our local dealer they took care of some problems with a used as-is boat that most dealers wouldn't have without any hassle the last problem the manager stated it's all about building relationships for the future. If their attitude was anything other than that I would walk away.
 
Not sure for a new boat but definitely for a used boat. A friend found a great deal on a used mid 90's formula SS, recently repowered at Marinemax. Boat looks great, clean and seems like a good deal at 13k. Buys the boat, later the first summer his bench seat backs collapse. Wood framing all rotted. Cost him about $1000. Later that season blows a freezout plug. Rotted through the center. Odd because the engine looks brand new. Fast forward end of second season. notices an oil leak. After searching discovers a rotted oil pan. Drops it at the yard this past spring to replace it and the starter which is rusty because engine will be out. Finds out 1/2 of his inner transom bracket laying in the bilge. OK need to replace that. Long story short, this all leads to soft coring in the transom. Dry, scrape and epoxy ($$), need new outer transom assembly ($$$), uh oh engine coupler about to fail too ($$). Previous owner rigged a bypass for the trim limit switch and did a botch job. New engine wiring harness ($), wrong prop, off by 400 - 600 rpms, new prop ($$). In the end his total bill was about $7,600. His great deal 13K 25' formula now cost him $22,000. Not such a good deal. Most of these issues would have come up in a survey. He sure wished he had one done. On the bright sided, hey it's almost a new boat.
 
Thanks Bob and Sue.............My thoughts exactly.....
 
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