How many Formula`s have you owned ?
09-29-2006 | 11:12 AM
#51
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Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 8,217
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From: St-Hyacinthe, quebec, canada
Re: How many Formula`s have you owned ?
Originally Posted by DoTheMath
Two for me:
1989 - 242 LS - loved it so much ordered another.
1999 - 271 w/ a Lingenfelter 540 - hated it so much, it will be my last Formula.
1989 - 242 LS - loved it so much ordered another.
1999 - 271 w/ a Lingenfelter 540 - hated it so much, it will be my last Formula.
09-29-2006 | 12:24 PM
#52
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 1,803
Likes: 2
From: Ma. / Lake Winni., NH
Re: How many Formula`s have you owned ?
Negative - engine was awesome! Ran strong and never skipped a beat. The boat (and factory) was the issue... I'll give you a few of the low-lights:
* Took a year to get the boat (I'd expect that from a small builder, not Formula), always had "delays" and it was not because of the motor.
* They left the 1.65 Bravo on it, so I had to run a HUGE prop and resulted in a ton of prop-tourque / boat lean / tab input to correct, (obviously). Tried to get them to change it to a 1.50 or even taller gears, and explained why, but no go - (they thought I was crazy).
* Imron paint job was very sloppy, lots of over spray, poorly taped-off lines, etc.
* Both bolsters were mounted in the boat crooked, figure that one out!?
* A couple of the coaming panels in the cabin fell off / down and one of the doors came off, and I boat on a lake - hello!?
* Transom gel looked like it was hit with 200 grit sand paper, all flat and scratched - out of the shrink wrap no-less.
* Was told it would have the silent thunder platform on it, arrived without it and was told after, "oh, sorry - we just couldn't get it to fit". (got tossed off the lake 3 weeks later for cranking a 102db pass, and had a nice fine to pay with it.) It sounded sooooooo nice, but no to the MP's.!
* Boat had a bad time with chine walking, (and it wasn't operator error) as I knew what I was doing and I had people with even more experience than me try it, same result.
There was more, but you get the point - trying to deal with the factory was a nightmare and I ended up having to talk to Scott personally. Once I did, things started to come around, they finally took the boat back (bye bye boating season that year
) put mufflers on it to get it to pass, and never fixed the rest of the punch-list I had. So, all-in-all, to be fair - if I had gone "out of the box" who knows what would have happened. I loved my 242LS (and I was only 21 when I got that, brand new!), I thought I'd be all set going back to them for a second boat... not so much. Yeah, lots of people have had great luck (obviously) but I just can't go back in good faith and risk possibly going through all that BS again.
* Took a year to get the boat (I'd expect that from a small builder, not Formula), always had "delays" and it was not because of the motor.
* They left the 1.65 Bravo on it, so I had to run a HUGE prop and resulted in a ton of prop-tourque / boat lean / tab input to correct, (obviously). Tried to get them to change it to a 1.50 or even taller gears, and explained why, but no go - (they thought I was crazy).
* Imron paint job was very sloppy, lots of over spray, poorly taped-off lines, etc.
* Both bolsters were mounted in the boat crooked, figure that one out!?
* A couple of the coaming panels in the cabin fell off / down and one of the doors came off, and I boat on a lake - hello!?
* Transom gel looked like it was hit with 200 grit sand paper, all flat and scratched - out of the shrink wrap no-less.
* Was told it would have the silent thunder platform on it, arrived without it and was told after, "oh, sorry - we just couldn't get it to fit". (got tossed off the lake 3 weeks later for cranking a 102db pass, and had a nice fine to pay with it.) It sounded sooooooo nice, but no to the MP's.!
* Boat had a bad time with chine walking, (and it wasn't operator error) as I knew what I was doing and I had people with even more experience than me try it, same result.
There was more, but you get the point - trying to deal with the factory was a nightmare and I ended up having to talk to Scott personally. Once I did, things started to come around, they finally took the boat back (bye bye boating season that year
) put mufflers on it to get it to pass, and never fixed the rest of the punch-list I had. So, all-in-all, to be fair - if I had gone "out of the box" who knows what would have happened. I loved my 242LS (and I was only 21 when I got that, brand new!), I thought I'd be all set going back to them for a second boat... not so much. Yeah, lots of people have had great luck (obviously) but I just can't go back in good faith and risk possibly going through all that BS again.
09-29-2006 | 03:01 PM
#53
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Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 356
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From: Lake of the Ozarks MO
Re: How many Formula`s have you owned ?
Originally Posted by DoTheMath
Negative - engine was awesome! Ran strong and never skipped a beat. The boat (and factory) was the issue... I'll give you a few of the low-lights:
* Took a year to get the boat (I'd expect that from a small builder, not Formula), always had "delays" and it was not because of the motor.
* They left the 1.65 Bravo on it, so I had to run a HUGE prop and resulted in a ton of prop-tourque / boat lean / tab input to correct, (obviously). Tried to get them to change it to a 1.50 or even taller gears, and explained why, but no go - (they thought I was crazy).
* Imron paint job was very sloppy, lots of over spray, poorly taped-off lines, etc.
* Both bolsters were mounted in the boat crooked, figure that one out!?
* A couple of the coaming panels in the cabin fell off / down and one of the doors came off, and I boat on a lake - hello!?
* Transom gel looked like it was hit with 200 grit sand paper, all flat and scratched - out of the shrink wrap no-less.
* Was told it would have the silent thunder platform on it, arrived without it and was told after, "oh, sorry - we just couldn't get it to fit". (got tossed off the lake 3 weeks later for cranking a 102db pass, and had a nice fine to pay with it.) It sounded sooooooo nice, but no to the MP's.!
* Boat had a bad time with chine walking, (and it wasn't operator error) as I knew what I was doing and I had people with even more experience than me try it, same result.
There was more, but you get the point - trying to deal with the factory was a nightmare and I ended up having to talk to Scott personally. Once I did, things started to come around, they finally took the boat back (bye bye boating season that year ) put mufflers on it to get it to pass, and never fixed the rest of the punch-list I had. So, all-in-all, to be fair - if I had gone "out of the box" who knows what would have happened. I loved my 242LS (and I was only 21 when I got that, brand new!), I thought I'd be all set going back to them for a second boat... not so much. Yeah, lots of people have had great luck (obviously) but I just can't go back in good faith and risk possibly going through all that BS again.
* Took a year to get the boat (I'd expect that from a small builder, not Formula), always had "delays" and it was not because of the motor.
* They left the 1.65 Bravo on it, so I had to run a HUGE prop and resulted in a ton of prop-tourque / boat lean / tab input to correct, (obviously). Tried to get them to change it to a 1.50 or even taller gears, and explained why, but no go - (they thought I was crazy).
* Imron paint job was very sloppy, lots of over spray, poorly taped-off lines, etc.
* Both bolsters were mounted in the boat crooked, figure that one out!?
* A couple of the coaming panels in the cabin fell off / down and one of the doors came off, and I boat on a lake - hello!?
* Transom gel looked like it was hit with 200 grit sand paper, all flat and scratched - out of the shrink wrap no-less.
* Was told it would have the silent thunder platform on it, arrived without it and was told after, "oh, sorry - we just couldn't get it to fit". (got tossed off the lake 3 weeks later for cranking a 102db pass, and had a nice fine to pay with it.) It sounded sooooooo nice, but no to the MP's.!
* Boat had a bad time with chine walking, (and it wasn't operator error) as I knew what I was doing and I had people with even more experience than me try it, same result.
There was more, but you get the point - trying to deal with the factory was a nightmare and I ended up having to talk to Scott personally. Once I did, things started to come around, they finally took the boat back (bye bye boating season that year
) put mufflers on it to get it to pass, and never fixed the rest of the punch-list I had. So, all-in-all, to be fair - if I had gone "out of the box" who knows what would have happened. I loved my 242LS (and I was only 21 when I got that, brand new!), I thought I'd be all set going back to them for a second boat... not so much. Yeah, lots of people have had great luck (obviously) but I just can't go back in good faith and risk possibly going through all that BS again.I can see several issues that would have not made it thru my prep guy without us hollering to Formula about them!!!
Last edited by selpel; 09-29-2006 at 03:03 PM.
09-29-2006 | 04:31 PM
#54
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 1,803
Likes: 2
From: Ma. / Lake Winni., NH
Re: How many Formula`s have you owned ?
Hehe, this is a true - direct quote, and I will never forget it. The owner of the Marina / dealership that I bought it from (still in business today), said to me as I was about to fire up the boat after just taking delivery (he was standing on the dock next to it), "you better stay away from the lake patrol with that, it will never pass!" referring to our db limit on the lake.
One of my other (big) gripes at the time was - why in the HELL would the dealer allow a boat to be (ordered), built, delivered, serviced, and used on the same lake - that wouldn't pass the noise restrictions!? Never mind the quality issues that it had... again, all leaving a bad taste in my mouth with Formula. Oh yeah, same dealer I bought the 242 from too.
One of my other (big) gripes at the time was - why in the HELL would the dealer allow a boat to be (ordered), built, delivered, serviced, and used on the same lake - that wouldn't pass the noise restrictions!? Never mind the quality issues that it had... again, all leaving a bad taste in my mouth with Formula. Oh yeah, same dealer I bought the 242 from too.
09-29-2006 | 08:54 PM
#55
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Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 214
Likes: 0
From: Cincinnati, Ohio
Re: How many Formula`s have you owned ?
Originally Posted by selpel
Hey firstoffshore, did you trade down to the 2002 292? Could you tell the difference in the 312 and the double step 292?
10-10-2006 | 07:17 AM
#59
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Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
From: Decatur, Indiana
Re: How many Formula`s have you owned ?
Originally Posted by DoTheMath
Negative - engine was awesome! Ran strong and never skipped a beat. The boat (and factory) was the issue... I'll give you a few of the low-lights:
* Took a year to get the boat (I'd expect that from a small builder, not Formula), always had "delays" and it was not because of the motor.
* They left the 1.65 Bravo on it, so I had to run a HUGE prop and resulted in a ton of prop-tourque / boat lean / tab input to correct, (obviously). Tried to get them to change it to a 1.50 or even taller gears, and explained why, but no go - (they thought I was crazy).
* Imron paint job was very sloppy, lots of over spray, poorly taped-off lines, etc.
* Both bolsters were mounted in the boat crooked, figure that one out!?
* A couple of the coaming panels in the cabin fell off / down and one of the doors came off, and I boat on a lake - hello!?
* Transom gel looked like it was hit with 200 grit sand paper, all flat and scratched - out of the shrink wrap no-less.
* Was told it would have the silent thunder platform on it, arrived without it and was told after, "oh, sorry - we just couldn't get it to fit". (got tossed off the lake 3 weeks later for cranking a 102db pass, and had a nice fine to pay with it.) It sounded sooooooo nice, but no to the MP's.!
* Boat had a bad time with chine walking, (and it wasn't operator error) as I knew what I was doing and I had people with even more experience than me try it, same result.
There was more, but you get the point - trying to deal with the factory was a nightmare and I ended up having to talk to Scott personally. Once I did, things started to come around, they finally took the boat back (bye bye boating season that year ) put mufflers on it to get it to pass, and never fixed the rest of the punch-list I had. So, all-in-all, to be fair - if I had gone "out of the box" who knows what would have happened. I loved my 242LS (and I was only 21 when I got that, brand new!), I thought I'd be all set going back to them for a second boat... not so much. Yeah, lots of people have had great luck (obviously) but I just can't go back in good faith and risk possibly going through all that BS again.
* Took a year to get the boat (I'd expect that from a small builder, not Formula), always had "delays" and it was not because of the motor.
* They left the 1.65 Bravo on it, so I had to run a HUGE prop and resulted in a ton of prop-tourque / boat lean / tab input to correct, (obviously). Tried to get them to change it to a 1.50 or even taller gears, and explained why, but no go - (they thought I was crazy).
* Imron paint job was very sloppy, lots of over spray, poorly taped-off lines, etc.
* Both bolsters were mounted in the boat crooked, figure that one out!?
* A couple of the coaming panels in the cabin fell off / down and one of the doors came off, and I boat on a lake - hello!?
* Transom gel looked like it was hit with 200 grit sand paper, all flat and scratched - out of the shrink wrap no-less.
* Was told it would have the silent thunder platform on it, arrived without it and was told after, "oh, sorry - we just couldn't get it to fit". (got tossed off the lake 3 weeks later for cranking a 102db pass, and had a nice fine to pay with it.) It sounded sooooooo nice, but no to the MP's.!
* Boat had a bad time with chine walking, (and it wasn't operator error) as I knew what I was doing and I had people with even more experience than me try it, same result.
There was more, but you get the point - trying to deal with the factory was a nightmare and I ended up having to talk to Scott personally. Once I did, things started to come around, they finally took the boat back (bye bye boating season that year
) put mufflers on it to get it to pass, and never fixed the rest of the punch-list I had. So, all-in-all, to be fair - if I had gone "out of the box" who knows what would have happened. I loved my 242LS (and I was only 21 when I got that, brand new!), I thought I'd be all set going back to them for a second boat... not so much. Yeah, lots of people have had great luck (obviously) but I just can't go back in good faith and risk possibly going through all that BS again.Its sad to hear your story coming from the company I work for. Our product has done nothing but improve with quality and performance. I would hope you would deeply consider another boat from us. Our FAS3Techs are the best all around in quality, ride, finish, and performance. Whatever direction you go, best of luck to you in your boating adventures.
Sincerely,
Jeremy Porter
Brand Presence Manager
Formula Boats
Last edited by jPorter; 10-10-2006 at 07:45 AM. Reason: typo
Robert
