posted 09-04-2007 11:30 AM ET (US)        

I am looking for more information on this boat; the good, bad and ugly. Does anyone have this set up?

posted 09-04-2007 10:00 PM ET (US)            

It's very beamy, and very stable. The hull provides a very dry ride. Also, it can also be a very fast hull with the right power (i.e. a 150 2 stroke).

Mine has a "transom notch" which is a cut out in the bottom of the hull at the transom (the drain plug is offset about 1 foot in from the transom). I think this design was phased out sometime around 1999, so yours may or may not have it. This transom notch exacerbated the tendency of this boat to be a bit stern heavy. However, even without the notch, I understand that the boats are a bit stern heavy. Trim tabs are a very valuable addition to these boats.

The "bad" of these hulls is that (due partly to their stern heavy nature), they have a tendency to "pound" in choppy conditions. With trim tabs, you can get the bow down lower to cut more into the chop, which reduces the pounding. Also, how you operate the boat in choppy conditions can make a big difference in the quality of the ride. Having the jack plate gives you another way to adjust the ride by raising or lowering the motor to suit conditions. So that's a good thing. However, the jack plate sets the motor a little further back, and also adds weight to the stern.

One "design flaw" that these boats have is that the fuel tanks are not well vented, and can be difficult to fill. If you try to fill the tank, you can get a lot of "burping" back out of the tank, which can be a mess and a real nuisance. I use a paper towel or rag and wrap it around the fuel nozzle to plug the gap between the nozzle and the fuel fill. This forces the air out of the tank through the inadequate vent, and makes it possible to fill the tank without the back flow problems.

posted 09-05-2007 02:53 AM ET (US)            

Like Lars, I would say the boat is a little stern heavy. I don;t have trim tabs on it, but have contemplated a Doel Fin as a cheaper fix to get it up on plane faster.

You'll find when loading it really helps to make sure your weight is balanced, as the stern will really dig in until you get it under power on plane. So get those extra passengers up front whenever possible. That said, if you and a buddy go fishing, you won't even notice the stern dig.

My biggest complaint is probably the drain plug. I HATE that little sucker cause I don;t want to let the boat sit on the trailer filling with water from rain. So I pull the plug all the time, but it is a nuisance. On my first old whaler, I never even bothered eith having the thru floor drain plugs in. Needless to say, I am not a big fan of the whole bilge area design.

posted 09-05-2007 01:42 PM ET (US)         

Tabs also allow me to go much lower speeds - tractor gear, as another member wrote - when I am pulling the kids in for tubing. The seating and deck-size are great for having family and friends on the boat.

posted 09-08-2007 10:00 AM ET (US)            

Reference the fuel vent issue.

I have a 99 16 Dauntless. When new the boat had the integrated fuel fill/vent arrangement. Filling was a bit of a PITA but the main problem for me was that after filling the vent would "burp" for weeks thus spilling fuel onto the small horizontal surace where the fill is located. The fuel would then flow down into the motor well where it would puddle and eventually evaporate.

This was not acceptable and it went back to the dealer where some attempts to correct the issue "the easy way" failed. I gave the dealer two failed attempts before telling him to FIX the problem. This resulted in the installation of a new non-integeated fuel fill and a distant vent on the side of the hull. Result: no more fuel fill or burping problems. I believe the fix was a Whaler approved modification.