"Pristine Gladiator" in the classifieds
 

I'm just curious if this is the same boat that was for sale in the Fort Meyers area a while ago. The story I got was that the boat was submerged and then redone. Its a beautiful boat however it still is what it is and that's a 14-year old boat that has 14-years of use, I presume 14-year old wiring and other buried components, etc. Can it possibly be worth the asking price of $149K? Seems like really tall coin to me regardless of the condition.

I saw that too and yes it's a beautiful boat but......

It’s for sale by cobra powerboats, it’s in Miami is that the same cobra that was involved with the engine building thread a while ago about used parts being used in a “new motor”?

RIGHT?

Yes its the same Cobra. Seems like this guy over-prices everything. They have a 2008 Nortech 36 that's been listed for at least 3 years. "Perfect" with new 900 Cobra motors @ $199K. Now its less money because it needs some touch-up. I guess not so perfect?

Some info here about it.
https://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/...adiator-3.html

1st owner of that Gladiator was the British guy Andrew and he traded to Fastboats on a NT 39V. A friend of a friend was the 2nd owner for about 3 months and he traded it back on a 36 NT cat. Somewhere along the way it went swimming in Texas but that had to be 8-10 years ago.

My favorite Cobra listing:
https://www.offshoreonly.com/classif...at-o71478.html

This thing has been for sale a solid 10 years with about a 10% price reduction yet those "fresh Cobra motors" are still under warranty!

This was Joe Cardaci's boat up until a month or two ago. I have seen it in person and it is FLAWLESS. I couldn't believe when Joe told me it was a 2004. From what I have seen from the listing broker on Facebook Marine Unlimited, they and even Joe were unaware of the sinking until someone brought it up on facebook and they did some research. It was fully rerigged/ re wired afterwards and it shows. I think Joe just redid the stereo, interior and a few other things.

Big deal it went for a dunk. It was fresh water and totally redone. It was long enough ago. If there was a problem it would have shown up by now.

Usually it is a big deal it went for a dunk, no? I've seen a little more history on it since the post but it still is a 14 year old boat. The price dropped by $5K today so its getting closer but it still seems real high.

Boat is gorgeous, we did a great job.

It looks like you did a really great job.

If that boat was not submerged, had no dubious history and was really pristine,$149K would be cheap. T/S Guns have appreciated significantly (provided it is an outstanding example)so why not the Gladiator? My buddy was recently offered $200K for his pristine 04 Gun. While Gladiators are not as user friendly, or as popular, fact is, they are much, much rarer than a Top Gun.

IMHO, most boat prices are driven more by demand than rarity whereas the automobile/collector car market is based on rarity and demand to drive up and maintain price

Boats appreciate now :poopoo::lolhit:

They are much much rarer than a Top Gun because Cigarette did not build them very long. I remember they were a very fast boat but got a reputation for spinning out during hard turns if you did not drive it properly. Don't know if that reputation was the result of poor step placement/design or people being unfamiliar with how to properly drive a stepped hull boat. This was towards the beginning of the whole stepped hull evolution in boats and there was a lot of trial and error.

That being said, if you want a hot rod boat for poker runs, the Gladiators are a great fit. They are just not a great fit for most general purpose boating due to no cabin. Also, if the boat did sink, but was completely redone to include all the electronics, that should not detract from the value. Structural damage can be repaired and everything else can be completely replaced. The boat would be like new at that point. You just need to know it was done right.

Whats the purpose of offering 200k for an 04 TG ?? ......I'd break his arm taking his money.

Edit: can I get his #

I know of a freshly gone through TS Gun with 6's that will take 200k for it right now! Shoot me the number so I can get my 10% cut off the top!!:eek: :D

With that said, I'm not trying to poo poo anyone's price or sale. Someone wants it, they'll pay. I don't understand why it's listed with Cobra however. :confused: Seems like a lot of drama surrounds that place.

if some one has a crap tone of money to burn and really loves your boat above and beyond any other out there. They may be willing to pay what ever gets that boat in to there hands even if it is not for sale. Even if it cost them way more then it is worth. Why you ask....because they can.

Not to mention, Im sure Cobra is getting a nice cut of that sale. Id rather deal with the owner directly....IF I was buying it of course! :7160:

Im not either ,but for 200k that Whippled 42x would be in my slip........:bunnydance::bunnydance:

That boat has been sitting awhile at that price. The 2005 red/yellow/black 42x w/525's in Destin was gone in less than 10 days (asking 139k). It was last owned in NY and it was very clean.

Not sure about "appreciated significantly" but you are 100% correct on your assessment. Tommy Gun made the statement here years ago, as the production slowed 2008+ the nice boats commanded a premium simply because there are less of them out there!

I think PM203's Gladiator had to have been one of the top 5 nicest examples out there (the redone lipship one and the 700 boat also make the list).

As far as the handling issues, I think it has the same bottom as a TS TG so maybe the sit down gives drivers an "over-confidence" as to the handling limit?

Oh, I know...I was agreeing with you brother. :cool:

I bought my Gladiator from another OSO member. He paid less for it a year ago. But he also had the pleasure of rebuilding the engines and drives. The Gladiator in this thread is really good looking. Colors and paint design are beautiful. If you are interested, and since it took a swim in the past, get a fantastic inspector, pay them extra to go over every inch, and if it checks out and the final price is right, go for it.

There were only 49 of the aquatic Ferraris ever made. Some do not exist anymore. If one has been repaired to pristine condition, the boat deserves an owner who is willing to do their homework, then embark on a wonderful phase in your life. These Gladiators are awesome!

Love this thread. because I just bought a GLADIATOR!... Wish I could chime in, (with info on ride, handling, etc.) but, I haven't even driven the boat yet... I did go for a sea trial in it... bought it and pulled both motors
SPRING WILL BE FUN !!!

$149k seems high ???

Not from the original price paid, but from what they were selling for 2-3 years ago.

Thanks Jupiter for the compliment. The first Gladiators did have the same hull. It was basically a cut down Top Gun. In late 02 0r 03, the hull was redesigned, and the steps moved. Every spin out that I know of has been due to driver error.

The step location of a Gladiator has always been different than a Top Gun, even on the first ones produced. It is always a possibility that there were some bottom modification done later on in production but I am not personally familiar with them if so

My wife will LOVE this post!!!! :D

This is a video of a gladiator turning tight, wide open power at around 55 seconds into the video. Haven't spun it out... yet.

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whats the status on your Gladiator, Tyson? Haven’t seen it in a while.
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The spin-out stories had me very nervous when I first bought mine. I drove it a few times to get acclimated, but waiting for my Tres Marine training before pressing limits. These boats are like guns. . . they don't spin out, the driver spins them out. Respect the boat and know your limits and you'll have no problems.

EXACTLY the case.
The boat and the driver "disagree" on water conditions and setup/steering/throttle settings & inputs. That ends up with the boat pivoting in a different point than originally anticipated, and then whoosh...
...you're in the drink. Such can be said about all mutli-step boats.

just a little razzing.. haha it just popped in my head.

I took Tres's class about 10 years ago and we took out his Gladiator on a small lake near his home in Florida. He was going through quick, evasive maneuver turns and told us (there were two other guys in the class) that he was making the stern slide and then correcting so we could feel the sensation of a twin step boat when the hull releases. I honestly couldn't even feel the boat slide but I was pretty damn stoked to be in a Gladiator with a professional driving so I didn't worry about it! Cool boats with a look that won't go out of style.

I was pretty concerned to when I got my T/S. Took Tres class and gave me alot more confidence. Do not regret taking it at all. He is a book of knowledge for sure.
DON'T trim drives In on hard turns:boat:.

During my Tres training (with Brad), I noticed the Stern starting to slip on my first try and quickly adjusted. Was reassuring to have a trained professional with me, yet, it was even more comforting to know one can sense when the slip is starting.

Will post YouTube videos and such of mine mine once I get to 10 posts! (vBulletin and Onternet Brands require it.)

There is a difference of opinion on this.
I was told that by everyone the first couple times I drove the gladiator, And the first day I drove it with the drives trimmed from pretty far out all the way down to neutral I was sliding the back end out. The first couple days I spun around so far that it submerged the back end to the point that there was 6" of water in the cockpit that came over from the back and the pad on the hatch got ripped up. It pretty much turned and spun like you would a yamaha/seadoo boat for fun. And even tho it was kind of fun drifting it like ken block in a hoonigan video it was on the edge of being upside down all the time so I decided to start driving it the way I had always driven a fast boat before by trimming the drives in basically as far as you could to turn. Never had another problem again. Every time I had someone in the boat and I would do something they would say the teacher said not to do what I was doing, but then I would turn the boat harder then they had ever felt a boat turn.

I dont remember if you ever rode with me in the gladiator but there are several people you know that you can ask about that.

One year at the LOTO shootout I had the Gladiator at dog days on Friday afternoon which is by the busiest spot on LOTO, I had a slip down at the end of the dock and was giving "carnival" rides in the Gladiator. I was taking everyone out and running the boat wide open up and down the lake passing everyone in the rough and turning it harder then anyone ever had felt in a boat and never had a problem, except from some fingernail marks in the seat where people were gripping it.

At the OSS race some of the super vee guys were telling us to make sure we slow down and turn wide so we dont spin it out in front of them and to watch out for them because they would be turning tighter inside of us. Well, that lasted about one corner then I was coming at the corner and right before the corner they would let off to slow down and I would leave the throttle wide open and trim the drives all the way in and pass them on the inside turning harder and faster then they would.

I would say everyone's boat is different and there is no way to truly teach someone how there boat should be driven without lots of practice in that exact boat. And every person drives a boat different and has differing opinions of how the boat should feel to them. Throw in the fact that most people in the middle of a hard turn might get scared and do something they should not do that would cause them a problem where they would have been fine but listened to what people told them instead of driving the way that feels right. So I would say to anyone that drives any boat. Take it out by yourself and drive it in different conditions and try different things till you see how it feels more comfortable to you and drive it that way, whether that is trimmed in or out doesn't really matter as long as it feels right to you.

Curious, was your Glad a side-by-side set up or staggered?