Winnipesaukee Forum - View Single Post - What to look for in a used boat--HELP!!!

hazelnut · 05-10-2007, 10:24 AM

Personally I would not rely on JD Power to influence my purchases on anything.

All you need to do is climb on board various boats it aint rocket science. Certain boats have cheaper gages, switches, buttons. Check out the stitch count/quality of the fabrics and upholstery. Check out the layout, latches, controls. Open up the hatches check out the hull...

If it looks cheap and it feels cheap chances are the build quality will be reflected.

I was fortunate to go to the Boat show and I spent considerable amount of time on several manufacturers boats. To avoid a war here I will only say that a top rated manufacturer as rated by JD Power was severely lacking in many if not ALL of the above mentioned categories. Certain manufacturers have decided to rest on their laurels as a name brand boat while some lesser known newer manufacturers (Bryant, Monterey) have crept up on them and surpassed them. Don't take my word, go see for yourself, check out the new models. I would caution against using JD Power to influence your decision.

05-10-2007, 10:24 AM	#46
hazelnut Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 1,348 Blog Entries: 3 Thanks: 508 Thanked 462 Times in 162 Posts	JD Power? Personally I would not rely on JD Power to influence my purchases on anything. All you need to do is climb on board various boats it aint rocket science. Certain boats have cheaper gages, switches, buttons. Check out the stitch count/quality of the fabrics and upholstery. Check out the layout, latches, controls. Open up the hatches check out the hull... If it looks cheap and it feels cheap chances are the build quality will be reflected. I was fortunate to go to the Boat show and I spent considerable amount of time on several manufacturers boats. To avoid a war here I will only say that a top rated manufacturer as rated by JD Power was severely lacking in many if not ALL of the above mentioned categories. Certain manufacturers have decided to rest on their laurels as a name brand boat while some lesser known newer manufacturers (Bryant, Monterey) have crept up on them and surpassed them. Don't take my word, go see for yourself, check out the new models. I would caution against using JD Power to influence your decision.