Went from a single to twins. I will not have another single engine boat. Picked up a 28zx twin 350 mag. Will top out at 72. Couldn't be happier.

Only reason I'm not wanting to go bigger because I've got twins in my 25'7 boat. Go bigger [ 29 Baja] with the twins. When those 454's die ,you could repower with smaller strokers with equal power and less weight resulting better fuel economy. .My buddy had a 1998 29 OL and it handled the rough in the ocean very well. One caution with the Baja OL's is the balsa core hull ,so you have to have a survey on the hull and stringers. Don't ask why, just spend the money on the survey.

get the 29 you will appreciate the extra couple of feet when it gets rough!

X2.

I've met people who've looked at the purchase price and concluded that they can make that monthly payment. Then they figure out how much they are spending just on fuel, and all they do is float all day.

Only you know your budget.

In my case, the kids have really gotten into "tubing," and it sucks the gas right out of the tank. I'm not getting rid of the boat, though. I'm just gonna buy an 18' open bow "beater" with a V-6. I had one in a Sea-Ray and we could tube for a weekend with that thing.

Very true on this part and I would highly suggest paying cash and saving if you can. For me its like the smaller boat first is a stepping stone. Bought that one cash, now I'll save up 15k or so and then sell the old boat and have 35-40k to get the next step up and in the mean time enjoy what I have. No payments makes a big difference, just pay for fuel and maint and your not making payments while she sits in the winter. Instead you can think about upgrades!

Baja is an excellent boat! I have had two of them. One thing you need to remember however, Baja is now out of business and some of the parts are getting really hard to find and they are getting really expensive because there are not a lot of parts around---unless XT has them. I also would vote for the twins--We liked the 30OL a lot better than our 275 although as others have said, the maintance is twice as much on twins.
Jay

+1. Need to be able to pay 10% of purchase price toward repairs annually for a boat in above average condition. A bad year can be as much as 15%. If you can swing that plus have room for gas, insurance, and storage I say go for the twin engine boat.

Single engine is great too, really depends on your boating conditions. I see the poster is in Chicago so I'd go with a bigger twin engine boat if you can afford it. You'll get more use out of it because it will handle rough water better.

Is this your first boat overall? Do you have boating experience?

If the answer is no to both of those questions get something smaller and resellable that you can learn with. Even if it is a one season deal you will get over the hump quickly with something like an 18 Donzi or 23 Baja outlaw (if you like Baja).

I have been boating my whole life and there is a LOT to learn if you haven't been there, done that yet.

From trailers (maintenance, trailering tactics, tow vehicle) to drive maintenance, engine maintenance, taking care of everything, storage, etc. there is just a lot to think about.

+1, A first time buyer will keep their boat for 2 years on average before realizing what they really want. Good to buy something you can sell and don't need to pour a lot of money into.

I'll play devil's advocate here. Not knowing much about your boating experience and the boats in question....here goes:

1) You will be able to maintain the single much easier than the twin. On your budget, you have twice as much $/engine that you will want to sink into the engine/drive every year.

2) Working on twin BBC's can be a real pain in the a**.....well, it is a pain in the a**. You can't walk around the engines and you wind up laying on top of them to get to the transom. Single engine in an 8' wide boat will be a LOT easier to get around. Think of it this way...on your pre-launch inspections of the boat, you should look around for leaks and swelled/damaged hoses, etc. With a single, you will actually see much more of that then with twins.

3) Learning to maneuver with twins is like learning how to play guitar on an electric. It's easier, but you will learn to handle a boat better if you can figure out how to dock/handle with a single. Then when you move up to twins, you'll have one more "tool" to use at the dock. If you learn on twins, then get stuck with a single one day, you won't be as nimble.

4) Sure, 4' of boat makes a difference, but practicing good boaters judgement in terms of where and when you launch and in what kind of conditions makes a bigger difference. Loks of people out safely plying the lakes and bays and sounds in 16, 18', 20', etc boats, knowledge is better than 4'.

5) The 2007 is 6 years newer, more than 50% newer. Every little hose, fitting, electrical crimp, etc, is 6 years newer than the 2001. Both boats having similar maintenance, you should see less failures in the newer boat. Resale will be better too.

Randy