Bought a 2004 Baja that supposedly had 40 hours on both engines. Come to find out after some research, he had changed the motors out from another boat. The engines actually have about 80 hours. Do I have any legal recourse?? Or, is it just my dumb a$$ for not checking them before purchase? Regardless, what a piece of sh#t!!!!

Thanks ahead of time for your input.

80 hours is still nothing for an '04. Yes you should have checked them yourselves. If he false advertised them I suppose you could take him to court. What would your end result be? How much is 40 hours worth? Would you want to return the boat? Is it worth your time and fustration?

Marylandmark,

He switched the motors so that he would have HO's in this boat verses the 496 mags, which is a good thing but keep in mind that I paid for the HO's vs. mags.

I guess I have learned my lesson. I will move on and enjoy the boat. Thanks for the feedback.

Check your sales contract and see what was posted for the engines. If the contract specified the HO engines, then absolutely you've got recourse. You've also got a fraud case.

Your sentence is confusing. Who has what? You have the HO's?

And your purchase agreement should list the engine serial numbers as well as complete descriptions of what they are, in addition to the vessel HIN.

Sorry, let me try this again. Seller bought a 2003 Baja 342 with 496 HO's and 1x drives. Seller also bought a 2004 Baja 302 with 496 mags. Seller also ordered a 2007 Baja 405. Seller wanted one boat as a "toy" that would go fast. Seller decided to pull HO's out of the 342 and put them in 302 so he would have his "go fast" Baja. Seller put 496 mags into the 342 and sold it.

So, buyer (me) bought the 302 with 496 HO's and 1x drives and an hour meter that read 40 hrs. Reality is that I bought non-factory installed engines and drives with 80 hrs.

The serial #'s are correct on the bill of sale just the difference of 40 hrs. The only other possible issue is that I technically have 2003 engines since his 342 was an '03.

Ahh, okay. Now I follow.

So you paid for HO's and got HO's. The only difference being 40 hours. It's definitely a little deceptive, but the reality of it is that 80 hours is barely out of break-in. I wouldn't worry about too much.

The old saying around here is buyer beware.

Marylandmark,

After hearing your story, I feel much better! Thanks for the input. I'm filling the cooler even as I type!