DRock

iTrader: (1)

First of all I want to thank all those who have helped me along the painful process of buying a boat...

I finally took her for a sea trial and need advice from you guys on some issues I found and whether I should pull the trigger...

-1989 242SS - 1995 454ci - only 180 HOURS on motor!
-compression test: #1=140 #2=135 #3=140 #4=135 #5=135 #6=135 #7=140 #8=125
-lead down test: #1=3% #2=9% #3=8% #4=8% #5=3% #6=8% #7=5% #8=9%
-Pressure Test Outdrive - Good
-New Gas Tank
- Took a little bit to plane up, but the boat has sat for 3 years in heated storage so the Carb I assume needs a good cleaning, once she planed up it ran good. no knocking, etc.
- When we were cruising at a slow speed, I noticed what seemed to be exhaust gathering in both port and starboard corners of the engine bay... NOT near the exhaust outlets from risers... am I stupid enough to not realize this could have been the normal exhaust creeping back into the engine bay with the bench up?? is it possible for exhaust to leak in elsewhere other then the outlets????
- The swim platform has quite a bit of spider cracking underneath that lead to a good 2 inch long crack about a 1/8 inch wide... Should this be a concern or just patch it up and forget about it?
- The boat was VERY well maintained by a local marine center that did everything. tons of receipts for work done, he never did any work himself
- price is $8K FIRM - what do you guys think??? should I go for it? (I am looking for this model specifically so my options are scarce)

Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated, Thanks in advance!

mittens

with low hours like that, and from what you say a good hull, and only 8k seams like sould work fine.

aquaforce

Most of what you have posted looks like a worthy purchase. As an old boat with old equipment the condition of mechanical integrity will only be known with operating time to observe stability. The price leaves plenty of room for lurkers to be dealt with but your info looks good to go on with a successful trial.

Was the bench up while running the engine underway or was the boat stationary in the water. If the boat was moving the "station wagon" effect would be much increased. Also the rubber foam seal around the swim platform has to seal the exhaust in the silent thunder system. With these old boats it is common for the seal to dry, crack, smash out and not hold exhaust. Removing the platform to reseal can be expected. The foam rubber is readily available weather at a marine outlet or even Lowes and Home Depot. If this seal is not holding the exhaust would be coming up from the top between the platform and transom. With the bench up that exhaust would come right around the hinge and into the engine bay.

All that cracking on the platform is from impact or stressing. Rack storage lifting causes this a lot or improper docking and t will do it. When it is removed for the seals the platform can be repaired at a fiberglass shop then reinstall. Whatever hit or stressed the platform may well have provoked the seal to smash and fail.
Sometimes a fast easy way to tell if there is an issue with any part of the platform sealing or the cracks as a problem is just push up at the rear, center of the platform as hard as you can. If it moves it needs to come off for this work.
Also when sealing or repair is done the platform should be installed tightly and rigid for all its functional purposes.


This is mostly a product specific item. You don't find this on other boats because "silent thunder" is a Formula thing. Many don't know how it works or understand how to maintenance it so slipping under the radar on an old Formula is not a surprise.

Sounds like the price and boat are good.


Oh, the compression and leakage don't appear to be an issue. Yes there is some question as to the 125 but with single digit leakage, if it is accurate, the explanation might only come from more run time or a tear down which doesn't appear to be warranted at all.

tpenfield

Hello DRock:

The engine numbers look fine . . .

Having a new gas tank is a good thing. I am currently having a new one made for my 242SS . . .

The exhaust collecting IN THE ENGINE BAY thing is troublesome. The stress cracking, etc on the swim platform would indicate some rot or other deterioration in the swim platform. So, $8K is an OK price, assuming that you will have to do some repair work/rebuild of the swim platform.

Under no circumstances, should exhaust fumes be present inside the engine bay. So, it could be a leak in the exhaust tubes . . or maybe you need to take a closer look at the transom. Either way, it is something that should be further investigated and then the appropriate corrective action taken.
It is hard to say how that could factor into the purchase price, but if entailed some more work, then you could rationalize maybe $7K "as is", so long as everything else is good.

Take a look at my web page, if you want to see more of the ' in's and out's ' of the 242SS . . .
http://home.comcast.net/~tpenfield/W...Boat_Page.html

fossil fuel

Jump up and down on the drives when its on the trailer. If the transom flexes....run away

aquaforce

If you don't want to do any transom work then yea run. If your set on a boat with a soft transom then $4K-$5K comes off the top of the price for the replacement work.

DRock

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for all the responses guys... I think I will pursue with this boat, the positives outweigh the negatives at the right price... and the new gas tank was deal breaker for me...

- This is where is gets trickier, the marina advised that they replaced the exhaust outlets a few years back and you can tell because the swim platform is caulked along the boat. And because the exhaust gathering in the engine bay (while under way at a slow speed and the hatch up) was perfect symmetrical in both top corners of the bay I doubted transom rot, not to mention the whole transom back plate was replaced along with the bellows etc. before it was stored away for a few years. The marina noted no rot. I am hoping it was the "station wagon" effect, the water was cold so steam was there.. The only other thing I can imagine is if the bolts that hold the platform up weren't sealed and are letting exhaust in??

- Another question for your guys.. I had quicksliver controls on my last Formula so not accustomed to the kiekhaefer.. the gear shift control is substantially stiffer then the throttle, is this normal? It went into and out of gear fine it just required some effort, is this a matter of lubrication or signs of a bad cable?

Thanks!

aquaforce

The gear lever would have more effort than the throttle normally. If it is too much one way to check it is take the cable loose at the drive to feel if there is any binding /drag in the cable. With it loose shift the drive manually to see if it is not too tight. If these are OK then it is normal. If not it should be kind of obvious where the prob is.

tpenfield

The shifter does take a bit of effort, but the kiekhaefer controls are way better/cooler than the standard Quicksilver versions. Probably worth 50% of the boat $$$$.

You can lube the cables, just to be sure, but they will be a bit more stiff.

Cashed Out

I'm not sure what the overall condition of the boat is, what it comes with, or if it has a trailer, but that is a hell of a deal if you ask me since I just paid a lot more than that for a 88 242 LS with trailer.