looking at 1998 Saltare ....please help

[vvfdfirefighter]

Alright guys, I currently own a 1987 Supra Marauder. Essentially it's the exact as the Sunsport, only it's closed bow and has the beast option. Chevy 454 with a 650 CFM Holly Carb. I've got a weak spot in the floor behind the driver's seat and the interior, although looks amazing from 10 feet away, is cracking at the seams. All original besides starter and a new Carb 2 years ago. She's leaning a bit in the water to the starboard side So I'm assuming the foam is saturated below the floor and she's just not popping out of the water like she used to or should...I love this boat, has a great wake and sounds amazing. A few spider cracks here and there. Usual areas, around the exhaust ports and one on the water line just imprint of the drivers window. Contemplated sending her to TN to get totally reworked, however I really wish it was an open bow.

Which leads me to my journey, BTW if and when I buy a new one the Marauder will be for sale!! Drove a few hours yesterday to look at a 1998 supra Saltare, beautiful boat from the OUTSIDE. Mirror finish, little to no scratches on the Hull. One gouge behind the fuel fill, looks like they nicked a dock while filling during wakes. It's got a brand new trans, upgraded from stock, new prop, prop shaft, trans oil cooler and all new hoses. Boasts the Chevy 350 with FUEL INJECTION. NADA says 330 hp, which is what my current 454 is rated as. Now I know these boats have composite stringers and the bottom of the seat cushions are composite as well. The interior is shot, and I mean shot. It's going to need all new vinyl due to not having a cover. Test drove the boat and she purrs, holeshot is very quick compared to my 454. NADA books the average retail of the boat for 19,000. This boat is priced fairly under that.

I'll need to add a tower, complete vinyl job, fix a couple gouges in the gunwhale, and it has a pretty bent tracking fin underneath as well, get a custom cover made, new gasket on the water pump since it's leaking, and other small misc items. I think the wake is a bit flatter than my Marauder and that saddens me a bit but I'm sure a little weight would help. The trailer, yeah it's practically mint condition!

So my questions are:

- What would a custom cover cost?
- What would a complete, vinyl job cost on average?
- What are some towers and costs?
- Can this boat produce a good wake for wakeboarding, comparable to a sunsport or launch?
- What type or can I still get a perfect pass for this boat?
- Are the seat bases (not cushions ) wood or composite?
- What are any known common problems with this boat?
- what's it going to cost for all these upgrades.....
- Finally what is it worth or hold out till I find a decent launch for 17-18G That needs less work ? I just lost out on a 99 launch for 15G and it was very nice!

Thanks for your insight all! I've got to figure out fast, I told the guy I'd get back to him in a couple days.

[jasun]

I got a cover for my salt made at a local guy for 500. I have hear people say they have paid 900-1200. I did not use Sunbrella acrylic fabric, but the guy said I should get 5 to 7 years out of the vinyl cover i got.
Same guy quoted me 130 per cusion (not seat). I know people have said it is between 2400-4000 depending on your options for all new interior.

As far as towers, you can get your $800 monster tower or spend 3K on other models. I peronally like this one and it is right at 1000.

IIRC, everything on these is composite, except maybe the dog house base??

I would say you are looking between 5500 and 6500 for everything... just my opinion.

Someone on here once said that every boat is $12K boat whether you know it or not.... You could pay 8 for the boat and put another 6 into it or spend 16 on one that is ready to go, if you can find it...

As far as the wakes go, I love mine. I know people who ballast up their Salts and surf behind them. There are a lot of Salt owners on here who will chime in..

[vvfdfirefighter]

Jasus,

Thanks for your input. I was figuring it would need about 4000 to get it back in shape. Guess it may be worth being 8000 under book price. BTW, I checked under all the seats, except for in the play pen, what's under those cushions?

What are you referring to as the dog house?

[whammond]

Is this the same '98 saltare I posted in the classifieds?

http://fredericksburg.craigslist.org...906110482.html

If so, Haugy had a good point that needs to be looked into (Why those specific parts were replaced essentially)
"Check out it's underbelly. New tranny, new prop shaft, new prop and only 416hrs. Sounds like someone hit something hard."

[Jetlink]

Is this the same '98 saltare I posted in the classifieds?

http://fredericksburg.craigslist.org...906110482.html

If so, Haugy had a good point that needs to be looked into (Why those specific parts were replaced essentially)
"Check out it's underbelly. New tranny, new prop shaft, new prop and only 416hrs. Sounds like someone hit something hard."

I am betting it is that same boat, especially if it has at least one bent tracking fin like the OP mentioned.

[haugy]

Bent tracking fin, on top of that driveline being replaced? Yep, WHAMMO.

Find out what he hit, and what he had done. Also see if he has the receipts. The cat is out of the bag so he shouldn't lie to you, much. But get under there with a good flashlight and look for cracks and variations in color that might show fiberglass repair. Check the strut and rudder for play.

We always say it, but with this boat. DO A LAKE TEST. DO NOT BUY WITHOUT ONE. If the seller won't let you lake test it, run away like the predator was on your ass.

First off, forget NADA. (No offense when I say this) But that is the worst thing to compare to when buying a boat. The boats value is what the market will bear. I've had NADA say my old Mariah was worth $5,000. When I sold it for three times that. I've had NADA tell the OP of my boat it was worth $8500, when the whole thing needs a full blown resto.

The boat is worth what the market value is. Take other boats of that age and type and CONDITION and compare. That's the kicker, condition. So many people harp on the hours. My Saltare has just over 250 hours on it. I had to pretty much rebuild the engine to get it to fire. When my Mariah sold it had almost 800 hours and would fire up instantly. My engine in my Jeep is from a 1989 Comp, and fires on the first bump, and you can bet it hasn't lived the "babied" life. But the overall condition of the boat is what counts.

I would bet this boat has had major repairs. Was it due to stupidity or bad luck? The tears on the seat probably means the guy doesn't take as good of care as it as it shows. It just happens to clean up well. Give me 5 days with any of your boats and I can make them look amazing. The only thing that would show would be defects or damage. So while it's shiny, that's easy to do.

Find out more about it's history, but right off the bat there is no way this boat is worth over $10,000 IMO. I'd get more details then leverage that against his price. Lake test it, and then you decide if it's worth the number you worked out. Me? I'd say $9000 would be about in the right area for that boat.

[vvfdfirefighter]

Owner stated, they rarely used the boat but maybe 5 times in the past few years. The interior is wrecked because the boat has had NO cover on it, besides a blue tarp they said. We all know how those tarps are.

For the running gear, the story was; They noticed the transmission slipping. Replaced the clutches in it and it didn't help. When they went to supra the OEM tranny was NLA and they had to upgrade to a newer style. Which, from what I understood meant the shaft had to be replaced as well. The rudder seems to be in good shape, I did jerk on it a few times and didn't feel any slack in it. I should have climed all the way under the boat and inspected the attachment of the tracking fin. Guess that would of told a lot but it was hot and it slipped my mind. I did lake test this boat. Had it out for about an hour. Didn't seem to be taking on any water. However the bilge was not empty prior to launching the boat. We previously ran the boat in his driveway and water from the hose was in the bilge. Due to inserting the hose into the trans cooler and letting the boat idle. I didn't notice hardly any scratches on the hull. Course if she hit something hard that might be because she was redone, too.

On the lake she tracks nice. A lot better than my maurader, which likes to torque steer with the throttle. This one didn't seem to do so. She did pop right out of the holeshot quite quick and planed out at around 45MPH. I did notice while driving straight, the steering wheel was upside down (supra logo) This engine has 330 HP which is the same HP for my 1987 454. So to me, i'm not losing HP from my boat to this one...although 395 would be nice, but my boat drinks fuel like its going out of style. I'm hoping the fuel injection helps that out.

When I went for a test ride, Owner suggested that I launch, drive and unlaunch the boat. Said he didn't have experience with inboards. Considering he backed the trailer down the ramp with a dock on its right side I agreed. We all know inboards torque steer in reverse. Had him reposition the trailer to the other side of the ramp, Side with the dock on the left and away we went. she idled smooth, but i did notice a diference in the shifter from mine. It doesn't click once when going into forward like mine when the transmission engages. so initially i pushed the shifter forward to feel the click but ended up giving it a little more than i expected and gave it a little too much. Sure different shifter i'm sure.

But I thank you all for the comments. Looks like I'll have to make another trip up there and look at her. I'll try to post all the pictures I have of it tomorrow or even tonight if i can get around to it. I'm not sold on the boat, i've still got my eyes open for others but I do like the Fuel injection, 23' open bow.

[jasun]

What are you referring to as the dog house?

The engine Cover.

[vvfdfirefighter]

The engine Cover.

No the engine cover is also Composite....same as on mine in the 87

[jasun]

No the engine cover is also Composite....same as on mine in the 87

I mean the base the dog house sits on. Not the dog house itself