Too few hours?

[Aqualissa]

Newbie question -
Can a boat have too few hours? I am looking at a used 240 or 210 and found a 2007 with 22, yes, 22 hours on it. While some may be excited about low hours I kind of think maybe sitting there isn't good for an engine. Or should I already be in the car to look at this boat? Any opinions?

 

[brockhals]

that is some low hours, but it wouldn't scare me away. Hopefully it was ran for those couple of hours each year instead of ran for 2007-2008 and ben sitting since

 

[BlkGS]

A few thoughts... is this on the YDS? Or is it an hour meter? The meter could be wrong.

That said, low hours may just be a sign that they used the boat to go to the sand bar and chill.

I dont think I would really worry about it in general though.

 

[Aqualissa]

not sure if it's hour meter or YDS- I'll find out

 

[haknslash]

22 hours on a 11 year old boat? Did they also pump out all of the fuel every few years lol? Stabil is good for 2 years in a tank. You wouldn't even burn a tank of fuel a year with that few of hours. Even if all you did was hop to a sand bar for 11 years I would still think you would accumulate more than 22 hours. That's crazy low hours! I think that hour meter is bad and would verify with YDS before going further.

 

[Aqualissa]

I now have my contacts in- it is 33 hours, not 22! But still, that's wicked low...

 

[seanmclean]

That's crazy low hours!

Seriously. I've put 32 hours on my boat this season alone, and probably still another 20-30 more to go before I put it away.

 

[Matt Phillips]

33 hours is basically nothing on a boat that old. It's hardly even broken in.

If it's the YDS reading, then it's likely accurate and fine. With that much age and sitting around though, you'll need to be through with other things besides the engines...fuel lines may need repair/replacement, steering and throttle cables will likely be tight, and the trailer will need a through going-through of brakes and new tires....just to name a few things off the top of my head.

 

[bronze_10]

My boat is an 08... I bought it in 2015 with less than 40 hours on it. It was in an indoor storage rack since 2009 and hadnt been touched in years. At the end of last year I was at 190 hours and never missed a beat. As a matter of fact up until my recent ecu fiasco where I parked my boat under niagra falls while getting fuel I have never turned a wrench on my boat. So low hours alone isn't a deal killer. . Its been great for us. If more what the boat has been doing when not being used. Mine was stored indoors. If it had been left in the rain for those years then maybe not.

 

[Gym]

Make sure those are yds hours and that BOTH engines are relatively the same. It's possible one engine or ECU was changed.

 

[buckbuck]

^^What @Gym said.^^ The ECU change will reset the hours back to zero. Try to get the whole history before jumping.

 

[robert843]

^^What @Gym said.^^ The ECU change will reset the hours back to zero. Try to get the whole history before jumping.

Well dang I wonder if that would work on the newer boats as well $2k to reset the hours seems like a steal lol

 

[BlkGS]

Well dang I wonder if that would work on the newer boats as well $2k to reset the hours seems like a steal lol

You're not a Ferrari dealer by chance are you? Haha.

 

[boudin]

If it's clean, looks like 22 hours, and a test run pegs max RPMs, ~10k on a HO and ~8k on a non-HO, BUY IT! You have healthy motors. No need for a compression check.

The ECU uses a 16-bit number for hours... meaning the ECU won't record more than 655.35 total hours. However the RPM log will show hours at 2k intervals. (See attachment of a 1268 hr motor.)

How about some pics?

-Greg

 

[W3bexec]

Newbie question -
Can a boat have too few hours? I am looking at a used 240 or 210 and found a 2007 with 22, yes, 22 hours on it. While some may be excited about low hours I kind of think maybe sitting there isn't good for an engine. Or should I already be in the car to look at this boat? Any opinions?

Seriously?? I've had my boat for 2 months and have 28 hours on it. And we chill out in coves like crazy. Geez!!

 

[Gym]

Seriously?? I've had my boat for 2 months and have 28 hours on it. And we chill out in coves like crazy. Geez!!

Sounds like you have more hours on your stereo than on your motors @W3bexec.

 

[Aqualissa]

Update- Since it seemed like it was worth at least pursuing this to a bit further, I texted the dealer and had the following exchange
" Can you tell me what kind of condition the interior is in?"
" Fair- there's some sun damage to the cushions..."
" That sounds odd to me - how could you get sun damage on a boat that's rack stored and only has 30 hours on it?"
" It was left out uncovered for a few seasons"
It seems like I've had conversations like this for weeks- a boat looks good, but then the real truth comes out...
kind of depressing-
Also I have no idea what the real price of a boat should be vs what they are asking- I've looked at the NADA but don't know how much people stick to that...

 

[merlinjet]

Well, the old saying, "If it looks to good to be true..." definitely applies in preowned boat buying. NADA is good start but a lot sellers take liberties when judging the condition of their boat...very subjective. Fortunately, you have stumbled across this forum which may be one of your best resources to sort things out. Also, this is probably not the best time of the year to shop preowned boats IMO. The best boats will start to surface once the season is over and folks are putting their boats up for sale during the fall and winter looking to upgrade in the spring.

Don't get depressed. I know the process is frustrating but keep in mind, you're continually learning more about the market. Think about how much more you know now about prices than you did when you started. This is where the a lot of folks throw in the towel a buy new, but don't give in to that yet. Given the huge savings associated with buying a clean preowned boat, I'd keep looking through next spring. Hang in there, you'll find your boat...maybe even right here on this site Good Luck!

 

[boudin]

" It was left out uncovered for a few seasons"

This is entirely plausible. Every week I drive by two consignment lots here in Houston and wonder why those boats are sitting out in the hot sun and rain all day, every day without a cover. We're talking nice boats... expensive wakeboard boats.

-Greg

 

[Scottintexas]

07-09 boats have a history of problems with the silver diamond pattern accent leather getting sunburned, even my boat that is covered 90% of the time,

I wouldn't let that be the deal breaker but it would have me being a lot more cautious,