400hr boat as a first boat??

[Miitch]

Hey everyone! I’ve been lurking the shadows of this site for the last 2 or so years and have decided it’s time to pull the trigger and purchase a boat! Or maybe not?

I have found a really good deal on a 2010 Sea Doo Challenger 210 close to my area, however, the boat has 400 hours... owner has all maintenance records, super chargers were rebuilt as scheduled and most recently at the 400hr mark. Is there anything I should be concerned about?

This is the first boat in my name ever! I grew up boating with my father so some of this is familiar grounds. What do you guys think about 400 hours being a first boat? I plan to keep it for a few years and obviously use the hell out of it before I get something newer.

I know this is a mostly Yamaha based form, but anything helps! Got the owner down to $20,000 CAD ($14,000 USD). Any other listings would be appreciated as well!! Just trying to stay around the 15k - 20k (USD) range as I plan to buy with cash and avoid any loans.

Thanks in advance!! This is a great community and I’m excited to finally be apart of it!!

 

[Nexus]

Have you tried taking it to a Sea-Doo dealer? They should be able to do a diagnostic on it and give you a report. That would be my first step. I had little problems with my (first boat) 2004 Speedster when I bought it in 2017. Aside from ingesting something which caused a gasket(?) to come loose, the only real problem I had was a sensor that lets the engine know the boat has flipped over conk out on me and would limit the RPMs to about 2200. Why you would have such a sensor on a boat is beyond me but I'm guessing it was a throwback from PWCs.

 

[the MfM]

That’s a great looking boat for $14k. I wouldnt be afraid of the hours. Looks like it was very well taken care of.


Supercharger maintenance was the known problem. Supposedly the new rebuild kits are designed to last longer.

 

[Nexus]

Supercharger maintenance was the known problem. Supposedly the new rebuild kits are designed to last longer.

That's a good point. I deliberately chose the non-supercharged version for that very reason (the new rotax SC engines claim to be zero maintenanc. Something to consider for sure.

 

[tdonoughue]

Did you do a compression test on it? At 400 hours, not necessarily a red flag for me, but you are buying a 'higher mileage' boat. I think the suggestion of the dealer (to check the computer, etc.) is a good one, but I would also do a compression test and a sea trial to make sure everything is okey dokey.

 

[Miitch]

I appreciate all the tips and pointers!! As my luck would have it, someone beat me to the purchase.. back to square 1 I guess.

I will keep all of these in mind as I continue my search. I had never thought about asking for a compression test, I will have to keep that one handy. Definitely will do a dealer/third party inspection along with a sea trail before I put any money down on anything.

 

[Olsonn20]

I purchased a 99 speedster SK about 10 years ago, definitely get the PPI done. I had one done and never had a single issue with that boat in the 5 years I owned it.