Advice for purchasing a 2008 Supra 21V with 560hrs

[Norm02]

Hi Everyone,

I’m about to pull the trigger on a 2008 Launch 21V and I’ve got a few questions. The boat is being sold at a Supra dealer and the previous owner traded it in on a new Supra.

The boat is a very clean 2008 model with roughly 560hrs on it. The previous owner did his own service work on the boat and changed out “all of the fluids, spark plugs, and impeller” this spring. The boat has the Indmar Assault 325 in it and the previous owner used Royal Purple motor oil.

Cosmetically the boat is 9/10 on the outside but some of the interior cushions are cracked. They aren’t bad enough to need immediate attention so I’ll probably wait until the offseason to have them recovered.

I feel good about the deal that’s being offered and the dealer that’s selling the boat has a great reputation. That being said, I do have some questions and I’ve listed them below. Any feedback would be GREATLY appreciated and I will certainly contribute to this forum assuming I move forward with this boat.

Questions:
-Are there known issues with this year and model Supra.
-Are there any known issues with this model motor
-Is 560 well maintained hours too many for this boat
-Is there a large service due at 600hrs

[Mr717]

10 years old and 560 hours doesn't sound too bad to me. And if you really trust the dealer your dealing with (that's always a gamble, lol. But they may be more willing to stand behind what their selling than a private seller), Supra dealer I would hope is going to shoot you pretty straight. Cause their looking for repeat customers. I just bought a 2014 Launch 242 with 28hours. I've had an issue almost every time I went out. All ways something electronic. Manageable, just annoying. If there were any issues with the boat your looking at, id assume they have all been thru. If you can, take it out for a good shakedown run before buying. Run it thru it's paces, wide open, set up all the ballast, tilt it left, tilt it right, loading and unloading on trailer, emptying the ballast, check ALL electronics, check the oil before the test drive and after, see how it does with a load, preferably take a skier/ surfer with you and actually pull them. Most dealers won't have an issue with any of this. The Inmar is a great set up. Check your steering and make sure it's smooth. 10 years and it's about time for a new cable. See if there is any oil loss after the test (very doubtful). Look for any oil leaks.

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[Zim]

I wouldn't be concerned. That's low hours for a 10 year old boat.

2008 still has sprinkler valve ballast (I think). Not a bad thing, they just fill slower, and you might need to replace some of the valves if they're stuck open. This is something I'd test on your water test.

Other than that, there's really not any major issues with them. The 325 is a tried and true motor used in many boats under different names. I've got ~800 hours on mine and it's been great. Given the condition of the exterior, I'd expect that the owner took care of the internals as well. The person I bought mine from was the opposite, the boat was trashed and dirty on the outside, and I had no idea what to expect when spring came around, but she fired up and runs like a champ... even with what was likely less than stellar maintenance history.

If it drives well on your water test, without vibrations and no obvious issues, I wouldn't hesitate at all. Congrats on the purchase!

[White Chedda]

The 2008 Supra's definitely have the old ballast system, if you plan on wake surfing you might want to check out Wake Makers ballast upgrade kit.

I have an '08 22ssv with about 300 hours and my starter went and my alternator is super weak. Not that big of deal but, still causes down time. Maybe check and see if those have been changed out?

Hope that helps,

[Tonyvie]

Sorry if this is an old post, but thought I’d add my input. I have a 2008 21v with the 340 engine and just over 570 hrs. We’ll be trading it in soon but I’m really struggling with it because it’s such a great boat. We’ve had it for 5 years it’s been a fantastic boat. Here’s my short list of complaints:
1. 2008 was the last year for the sprinkler system ballast. Mine has proven reliable but filling all three bags at once feels really slow, especially if you upgrade to larger bags. The design of the system doesn’t allow trapped air to escape so plan to burp your bags from time to time. The bags fill best when the boat is moving forward. As mentioned above, wakemakers has an upgrade kit available which I would do to mine if I were going to keep it. Don’t consider this a deal breaker, but if you could find a 2009 or newer for similar money, consider it.
2. The swivel board racks fail - by that I mean they will swivel by themselves underway. I did some research and found that these board racks were recalled and a safety pin which is required to be screwed in was added. Not a big deal, but kind of a pita.
3. My Kenwood head unit remote controls stop working, but if I unplug and plug them back in, they work again.

Pretty minor complaints about a 10 year old boat. Other than what’s listed above, the boat has performed perfectly. I would recommend it!


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