Mobile Boat Show Musings
Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 6:32 pm
Made my annual trip to the Mobile Boat Show. A few observations:
Big is in. Most of the manufacturers brought their big boats, 25 to 40-feet long or longer, and there were a lot of them. One had five 400-HP Mercury engines on the transom, and it was a center console.
Boats are expensive. These boats, even from manufacturers I’ve never heard of, cost a lot more than most automobiles. It seems some people don’t mind a fifteen-year note.
People are buying, not looking. The place was packed. Every dealer I spoke with said they were selling a bunch of boats. The Whaler dealer I spoke with said they sold sixteen boats in less than a day and a half.
Boston Whaler has a strong lineup. They had both Supersports, the 170 (my favorite) and 190 Montauk and some larger boats. My focus is on the 20-foot-and-under Whaler so I asked the dealer if they are still making the 170 Dauntless. He said all he knows is that they sold their last one last year and do not plan on bringing any more in because the 170 Montauk is such a complete boat now that it’s bigger and has a lower price point than the Dauntless.
Outboard engines are getting bigger. the Yamaha 425-HP is huge. They also now offer Yamaha in black. Suzuki had a bigger presence than it did at previous shows. I did not see one Evinrude E-TEC.
Big is in. Most of the manufacturers brought their big boats, 25 to 40-feet long or longer, and there were a lot of them. One had five 400-HP Mercury engines on the transom, and it was a center console.
Boats are expensive. These boats, even from manufacturers I’ve never heard of, cost a lot more than most automobiles. It seems some people don’t mind a fifteen-year note.
People are buying, not looking. The place was packed. Every dealer I spoke with said they were selling a bunch of boats. The Whaler dealer I spoke with said they sold sixteen boats in less than a day and a half.
Boston Whaler has a strong lineup. They had both Supersports, the 170 (my favorite) and 190 Montauk and some larger boats. My focus is on the 20-foot-and-under Whaler so I asked the dealer if they are still making the 170 Dauntless. He said all he knows is that they sold their last one last year and do not plan on bringing any more in because the 170 Montauk is such a complete boat now that it’s bigger and has a lower price point than the Dauntless.
Outboard engines are getting bigger. the Yamaha 425-HP is huge. They also now offer Yamaha in black. Suzuki had a bigger presence than it did at previous shows. I did not see one Evinrude E-TEC.