CONTINUOUSWAVE

Boston Whaler has a new 13-footer, the 130 SUPER SPORT 2019. The MSRP is $15,322 for the base boat and standard 40-Hp engine. With a few options the price increases to $18,736.

From what I can tell, those prices do not include a trailer. Dealer prep is also not included.

Adding a trailer would likely cost about $1,200. We are looking at a $20,000 13-foot boat.

2019 130 and 160 SuperSport chrome rubrail. YUK. Must be the Bayliner influence.

I can't wrap my head around the idea of a $20K 13' Whaler, but I'm out of touch with the new boat market, not just Whaler.

I'm sure they are great boats, but the lines do not appeal to me like the classic sport models. I think it was a mistake they stopped making the 13, 15 and 15 sport models from the 70s-80s. Still seems to be a demand for them otherwise Metan Marine wouldn't be filling that gap.

D-

I believe a galvanized trailer is standard equipment on the 130. The price looks high but I'm sure the 130 can be bought with a discount. Local popularity and age of inventory will help or hurt with a discount. When compared to a nice 1980 Super Sport 13 with a recent four stroke engine repower the perspective may shift. The 1980 model year 13 would probably sell for about $6000+ with a nice trailer.

When an almost 40 year old model can quickly sell for a third of the price of a new model that should take some of the sting out of the new model price. What other boat brand holds it's value like Boston Whaler? I wonder what the price is for a 1980 Ford Mustang.

DT—from my armchair position as advisor to Boston Whaler, I might also suggest to them that a re-run of the classic 15-foot hull might be a reasonably good seller, as long as the price was not $23,000 (i.e., in proportion to the 13-footer).

On the other hand, any re-issue of a classic hull would be competing against all the much cheaper used hulls on the market.

I think new Boston Whaler boats have never been inexpensive. Back in the 1960’s a new 13-footer cost about as much as four-years of college tuition. Using that same metric, this 13-footer is less expensive than the 1960 model.

My father bought my brother and I a 1989 13' Sport in the fall of 1988. Boat, 40 hp johnson, galvanized trailer and bow chock option for $8,000. Adjusted for inflation, this comes to around $17,000 in 2018 numbers.

You could argue the classic model was built with higher-quality materials, but I see the new model has a stainless rub rail insert that is nice.

Just noticed the stainless steel insert rubrail is an option on the new 2019 130 and 160 SuperSport models ($692 and $737). It looks awful - screws showing and all. Looks like an old Bayliner. What were they thinking? The standard rubrail is better and stock at no charge.

I recently priced a 2018 150 SUPER SPORT as there are no 2019 models being produced with the introduction of the 160 SUPER SPORT. I believe Boston Whaler are also dropping the 170 SUPER SPORT.

The 2018 SUPER SPORT is a package deal, boat, motor, trailer. Don't need a trailer? Great! Sell it, give it away, take it to the dump. They don't sell a 2018 without it. Now maybe some dealers will knock off a little and sell it themselves. MarineMax, is not one of those dealers.

The 150 SUPER SPORT can still be built online, and it can still be purchased for about $22,000, so I'm not real sure where the $28,000 for a 130 is coming from. When using the build-it yourself on the Boston Whaler website, getting the price to be above $22, 000 is difficult [without] selecting almost every option. $30,000? I guess if you put radar and 24/7 drone coverage.

frontier wrote:Just noticed the stainless steel insert rubrail is an option on the new 2019 130 and 160 SuperSport models ($692 and $737). It looks awful - screws showing and all. Looks like an old Bayliner. What were they thinking? The standard rubrail is better and stock at no charge.

I don't know if you have seen it person but in my opinion it looks fantastic.

I found interesting how many seating options there are and all are dealer installed. After finishing your build and going to the summary page, there is a notice that "Dealer installed options may require additional freight and installation charges." The stainless steel steering wheel is also a dealer installed option.

Boston Whaler looks to be trying to standardize production while giving the dealer a chance to increase profits.

Another interesting specification: the dry weight of 695-lbs, over double the weight of the 320-lbs 1998 model.

Regarding the standardization of production, and the potential of bringing back the classic models, folks should remember that Whalers are currently made for one reason, and one reason only: to maximize profit off Mercury motors.

The Merc lineup stacks up poorly against the classics (no 70 or 100, 40s are pretty heavy) so I would not expect 13s, 15s, or Montauks to be coming back anytime soon.

frontier wrote:Just noticed the stainless steel insert rubrail is an option on the new 2019 130 and 160 SuperSport models ($692 and $737). It looks awful - screws showing and all. Looks like an old Bayliner. What were they thinking? The standard rubrail is better and stock at no charge.

I'm curious why the standard rub rail is "better."

I'm generally not a fan of the polished chrome look, but function aside (I'm talking purely aesthetics, which are subjective), I find the stock rub rails look cheap, while the stainless ones add a hint of quality and really "finish" the look of the boat I'm talking specifically about a Montauk here, not the SuperSport. I love the exposed screw heads; it says "screwed in" and not "glued on."

Stainless steel rub rails sacrifice function for esthetics. If you are a boat operator who has never had the experience of stopping with the aid of a structure such as a piling you would probably never dent a steel rub rail insert. If you are a boater like me a highly functional rub rail is a necessity. I have forty years of boating experience yet I continue to encounter wakes, currents, wind and waves that seem determined to interfere with my boat operations around docks and launch ramps.

What is truly disconcerting is the new 130 SuperSport is totally underpowered. Look at the specs.

The classic 13 Sport, built from 1972-1993 had a dry weight of 320 lbs. and a maximum horsepower rating of 40 hp. (cf: http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/specifications.html#hulls9-17).

The 2019 130 SuperSport has a dry weight (no engine) of 695 lbs and a maximum horsepower rating of......40 hp. (cf: https://www.bostonwhaler.com/family-overview/super-sport-boat-models/130-super-sport-2019/)

Unfortunately, this is not the only model suffering from this predicament.

Phil T,
You’re correct.
However, when you compare the two boats, the 2019 130 SS rides SO much better than the old classic 13, and still does over 32 mph with 40 hp.

Phil,

The situation may be less dire than it first appears. The 40 HP engines available between 1972 and 1993 were rated differently than are the newer engines. I believe engines were rated for HP measured at the flywheel in the past but are now rated at the propeller shaft. However, the weight of the latest generation engines may more than offset any advantage gained by HP measurement at the propeller shaft.

I believe that to determine how badly under powered the new 130 Sport may be compared to the old Sport 13 a performance comparison is necessary.

Jefecinco wrote:Phil,

The situation may be less dire than it first appears. The 40 HP engines available between 1972 and 1993 were rated differently than are the newer engines. I believe engines were rated for HP measured at the flywheel in the past but are now rated at the propeller shaft. However, the weight of the latest generation engines may more than offset any advantage gained by HP measurement at the propeller shaft.

I believe that to determine how badly under powered the new 130 Sport may be compared to the old Sport 13 a performance comparison is necessary.

I believe outboards were prop rated by mid 80s. Not every mfg made the change at the same time. The other thing to factor in is the older 2 strokes were lighter and also had superior torque down low where getting a loaded boat onto plane is important.

Just my $0.02

D-

Jefecinco wrote:Stainless steel rub rails sacrifice function for esthetics.

Agreed, can't argue with you there, except to say stainless steel rub rails enhance aesthetics at the expense of function :) I'll deploy fenders at launch and load to try to minimize unexpected rail-to-stationary-object interfacing.