Need advice - Looking at a 2013 limited with 90hrs

[Oeser12]

Hey Jet Boaters
So never ended up getting the 08' 232 limited last year, just could never meet up with the owner around the holidays and then he pulled the listing. Some things happen for a reason!

So, I am back on the hunt for a used Yamaha for the family and looked at a 2013 Limited 242 yesterday with 90hrs for 35k. Besides a cleaning it is in pretty good shape. It's a fresh water only boat.

Being new to this and feeling like a "fish out of water", if I could ask for some guidance I would be immensely grateful... here are my questions:
1. One of the throttles had to be a bit forward (ever so slightly) to be at the same RPM's. Is this a sign of throttle cables needing replacement?
2. Should I be concerned by the very low hours for this year?
3. Didn't get a chance to really see if it could reach top speed of~50 as there were 3 adults and 4 kids in it for the test drive though I did get up to 38 but the owners son said he had it in the low 40's. Is it really important to verify this?
4. I have honestly been looking for a Limited S and I can't seem to find anywhere the difference between a Limited vs Limited S besides the obvious tower. What else is different or can you point me to a site?
5. Lastly, is there anything else I should be concerned or ask the seller about?
Thanks so much!

 

[Ronnie]

The limited should have a longer Bimini top but otherwise should be the same as a limited s.

 

[Oeser12]

Thanks Ronnie!
Would the low hours be any concern and/or the throttle position? It's always a gamble with used but don't want to drop 35k (or so) then have the start spending more money...though maybe I should expect it with toys like these being it's my first go around.

 

[biffdotorg]

1. One of the throttles had to be a bit forward (ever so slightly) to be at the same RPM's. Is this a sign of throttle cables needing replacement?
No Concern, very common on all Yamaha models. We use a thottle sync from Jetboat pilot and just twist the sticks slightly to sync up

2. Should I be concerned by the very low hours for this year?
If they can show they have done annual maintenance and oil changes, it sounds like the perfect amount of hours to prove it's not a lemon

3. Didn't get a chance to really see if it could reach top speed of~50 as there were 3 adults and 4 kids in it for the test drive though I did get up to 38 but the owners son said he had it in the low 40's. Is it really important to verify this?
45-50mph with a half dozen folks is common, but you may cruise in the 30's most of the time anyway. Less noise and way better fuel economy

4. I have honestly been looking for a Limited S and I can't seem to find anywhere the difference between a Limited vs Limited S besides the obvious tower. What else is different or can you point me to a site?
Ronnie is correct, as the only real difference is the S has a tower, thus tower mounted Bimini. Unlike the early tower boats, had the same hull mounted bimini as the non tower boats. But in the 240 class, the tower boats had a smaller tower mounted bimini.

5. Check oil condition, clean out plugs, and flip every switch, lights, horn etc. Check over the trailer, as about bearing maintenance etc. Test the brakes and brake lockout. Tire condition is important, but easy to fix (at a cost of course)

This is a great year and solid boat. Glad to see prices dropping back to a sane level. Good luck.

 

[Oeser12]

Thanks biffdotorg. This is very helpful and much appreciated! Sounds like I have no concerns except I don't believe there are any maintenance records and I did notice there was a bit of rust on one of the oil filters. Worst case I would give it an oil change and new plugs, although an oil filter with small amounts of rust on it makes me think it hasn't been changed recently.

 

[biffdotorg]

Was this a saltwater boat? As the oil filters are on such a low point of the engine bay, that any saltwater in the bilge could splash on that part and rust those filters. Mine was that way when I picked it up too, and it had been in salt water.

Not sure how fast that happens, but salt does crazy stuff. If it was only fresh water, then yes, that boat is in need of a fluid change. It's not engine life threatening. I know I will get flamed with this statement, but many powersports engines change their oil every 50-100 hours. So other than the fact it's 10 years old, the number of hours would not have expended the useful life of the oil rather than number of years sitting. Even sitting, that boat should have had an oil and filter change every other year at the least.

I would bet the plugs will look good when you pull them as well. Swap those out in the spring after the first tank of gas. On that note, did you pull the gas cap and sniff the fuel filler? Curious about the condition of the fuel. These engines are very forgiving, but performance, if you doubted it, may go up once some fresh gas is run through the engine. It would be good to ask if it was stabilized on a regular basis. As this one sat more than it ran each season.

 

[Cambo]

something to check is that the spark plugs all come out easy as the boat sits the plugs can rust and gaul up when trying to remove them they snap and that's an expensive repair. If one is stuck do not force it with a ratchet it helps break the plug use an impact wrench. I learned this from looking at a boat for my brother the owner recommended to use the impact wrench on a stuck plug . It was a very powerful model impact wrench and it only started to move and come loose on the highest setting.

 

[Scottintexas]

38mph seems low, were you going into the wind ??

while he'll probably be hesitant to let you pull spark plugs ( wouldn't want someone touching my engine) you may ask who did the maintenance, if he did he should be able to easily pull the plugs, if a shop did it maybe you can call the shop with the boat vin or his name and verify work done,

I would also crawl underneath while the boat is on the trailer and look through the intake grate at the impellers, you can even stick you phone up there and take a picture, if you're only getting 38mph and the impellers are all chewed up, that's going to be a replacement sooner than later,

 

[biffdotorg]

38mph seems low, were you going into the wind ??

I don't think that's all it would go, I think, from what I read, that's all they did.

To the OP, is that all it had? If so, that's low and there is an issue. That boat should hit high 40's without issue.

"3. Didn't get a chance to really see if it could reach top speed of~50 as there were 3 adults and 4 kids in it for the test drive though I did get up to 38 but the owners son said he had it in the low 40's. Is it really important to verify this? "

 

[Cambo]

if I was selling my boat for 35k and they gave me a deposit for $1000.00. I would swap the plugs for them immediately if they requested and do a compression test as they were there checking out the boat, to prove the boat is in good working order. It’s a simple task and would take about 30 minutes.

 

[The Canuck]

When we bought our 2015 AR210 2 years ago, it was listed as having only 36 hours. I figured that was a typo, but it wasn't. The original owner put a total of 6 hours on it due to some health scares that stopped them from using the boat. The 2nd owner when he bought it, did have the dealership do a complete "heath check" on the boat as part of the deal. Compression test, visual inspection, etc. I think this is maybe how he was able to get the extended warranty from Yamaha. So the low hours doesn't necessarily mean a bad thing.

I think I agree with @Cambo in that if you are serious about it, I would give a $1,000 deposit and ask that you can have a dealership do a compression test (at your expense). If the seller isn't willing to allow you to do that, then move on. Something isn't right or they are hiding something.

Not sure how the speed is calculated on that boat. GPS vs. paddlewheel. Ours is a paddlewheel, and with the replacement of our transducer just recently, I have gained an extra 7 mph. Not sure if the old transducer was a little gummed up or why it showed a slightly slower speed, but I am now cruising more in the 42 mph range than the 34-35 range before. And this is having had the dealership confirm everything was running correctly. I guess what I am getting at is the engines maybe in perfect condition, but the speedo could be a little off if you are trying to confirm the max speed of the boat. Also, how gummed up is the underside of the boat. The build-up can slow a boat down.

Best of luck!

 

[BigAbe75]

Don’t worry about the throttle sync, the manual cables will never sync perfectly. If it bothers you, add Ridesteady control for gps speed control and throttle syncing.

 

[Oeser12]

I don't think that's all it would go, I think, from what I read, that's all they did.

To the OP, is that all it had? If so, that's low and there is an issue. That boat should hit high 40's without issue.

"3. Didn't get a chance to really see if it could reach top speed of~50 as there were 3 adults and 4 kids in it for the test drive though I did get up to 38 but the owners son said he had it in the low 40's. Is it really important to verify this? "

That's correct that's all I felt comfortable going with a boat full of kids (literally was the first time I have been at a helm)

I don't think that's all it would go, I think, from what I read, that's all they did.

To the OP, is that all it had? If so, that's low and there is an issue. That boat should hit high 40's without issue.

"3. Didn't get a chance to really see if it could reach top speed of~50 as there were 3 adults and 4 kids in it for the test drive though I did get up to 38 but the owners son said he had it in the low 40's. Is it really important to verify this? "

That's correct biffdotorg!

That's correct that's all I felt comfortable going with a boat full of kids (literally was the first time I have been at a helm).

I don't think that's all it would go, I think, from what I read, that's all they did.

To the OP, is that all it had? If so, that's low and there is an issue. That boat should hit high 40's without issue.

"3. Didn't get a chance to really see if it could reach top speed of~50 as there were 3 adults and 4 kids in it for the test drive though I did get up to 38 but the owners son said he had it in the low 40's. Is it really important to verify this? "

That's correct biffdotorg.

That's correct that's all I felt comfortable going with a boat full of kids (literally was the first time I have been at a helm). I am a complete newbie. There was more in the throttle.

 

[Oeser12]

something to check is that the spark plugs all come out easy as the boat sits the plugs can rust and gaul up when trying to remove them they snap and that's an expensive repair. If one is stuck do not force it with a ratchet it helps break the plug use an impact wrench. I learned this from looking at a boat for my brother the owner recommended to use the impact wrench on a stuck plug . It was a very powerful model impact wrench and it only started to move and come loose on the highest setting.

Thanks Cambo. Yes, I need to schedule another time (without the whole family) to dig a little deeper into some of these things to be certain all is good... Which may require a deposit as others have mentioned. They were away this week so hopefully I can schedule a time next week.

 

[biffdotorg]

That's correct that's all I felt comfortable going with a boat full of kids (literally was the first time I have been at a helm). I am a complete newbie. There was more in the throttle.

This is so common, most are not comfortable running these much above 40-45 unless in ideal conditions. It makes me laugh when others complain that they want a faster 24-25' boat. The hulls were not designed for 60+mph.

30-35mph cruising is great anyway, as all the 18' prop boats come up on you thinking they want to race, and you just hammer down, knowing you have plenty of throttle left to walk away from a majority of them.

You are going to love it!

 

[Oeser12]

Hey guys, while I am close to finalizing this boat... which could be this weekend after another visit to check it out. In the meantime I have kept my eyes open and found a 2013 limited s for 32k with 79hrs on it listed yesterday. Everything sounds good but here's the kicker, he said he thinks the wear ring(s) may need to be replaced. It's making a noise to suggest that but the boat still gets up to 48-50mph with a few people. He said he did run a tow rope through it by accident. Is this a big deal and would it damage anything else? I am more interested this boat since it has the tower. Going to check it out Sunday unless this is a big red flag. Thanks

 

[Ronnie]

A lot of people think the engines sound funny / that the wear rings and / or impelllers need to be replaced after hearing what it sounds like when the boat is on the trailer but if it’s not cavitating while accelerating and still hitting 50 mph plus I think it’s fine. Pas for sucking up a tow rope we all do it eventually most of the time it does not cause any damage to anything g but our prides. Still I would take a look at through the intake grate of each motor to see if everything is ok (e.g. you should not see any cracks in the plastic that mount between the shaft and the hull). If the tow line did any serious damage water may be leaking in to the hill from that point. Again, seatrial/test drive is in order.

 

[Fishwater2002]

I just bought my boat this summer under the same circumstances, sounded bad but when I got it home & took it apart to inspect there was absolutely no issues, just sounded worse than the other side. I’d go for it if all checks out well in the water.

 

[adrianp89]

Hey guys, while I am close to finalizing this boat... which could be this weekend after another visit to check it out. In the meantime I have kept my eyes open and found a 2013 limited s for 32k with 79hrs on it listed yesterday. Everything sounds good but here's the kicker, he said he thinks the wear ring(s) may need to be replaced. It's making a noise to suggest that but the boat still gets up to 48-50mph with a few people. He said he did run a tow rope through it by accident. Is this a big deal and would it damage anything else? I am more interested this boat since it has the tower. Going to check it out Sunday unless this is a big red flag. Thanks

Second guy sounds like a honest guy.

 

[Oeser12]

A lot of people think the engines sound funny / that the wear rings and / or impelllers need to be replaced after hearing what it sounds like when the boat is on the trailer but if it’s not cavitating while accelerating and still hitting 50 mph plus I think it’s fine. Pas for sucking up a tow rope we all do it eventually most of the time it does not cause any damage to anything g but our prides. Still I would take a look at through the intake grate of each motor to see if everything is ok (e.g. you should not see any cracks in the plastic that mount between the shaft and the hull). If the tow line did any serious damage water may be leaking in to the hill from that point. Again, seatrial/test drive is in order.

A lot of people think the engines sound funny / that the wear rings and / or impelllers need to be replaced after hearing what it sounds like when the boat is on the trailer but if it’s not cavitating while accelerating and still hitting 50 mph plus I think it’s fine. Pas for sucking up a tow rope we all do it eventually most of the time it does not cause any damage to anything g but our prides. Still I would take a look at through the intake grate of each motor to see if everything is ok (e.g. you should not see any cracks in the plastic that mount between the shaft and the hull). If the tow line did any serious damage water may be leaking in to the hill from that point. Again, seatrial/test drive is in order.

Thanks again Ronnie for the insights. I will be sure to look good inside the intake grate for damage or cracks. I tried to get a local dealer to take a look at it for me but they are booked until November with winterizing. Sounds like if there is an issue (besides water coming in which would be turn and run) that is likely minor, the local shop said wear rings are about $450 but he said if it's the propeller then it could be over a thousand (this is near Albany, NY). PS I'm sure when I get one I will have my own dumb moments, haha.