Anyone looking to buy a new boat?

You're a tough customer! I was all set to buy a Bayliner one time. I had already written the deposit check! The sales guy pissed me off so badly, I tore up the check, threw it at him and walked out!

I went across the bridge and bought a better boat and they matched my offer. That boat now resides in Nome Alaska!
 
Yeah, I've been known to drive salespeople crazy. :D

I remember that boat sales place. They seemed to stay busy.

Next door was a little office building that was setup for two offices. It was used by various businesses including an exterminator business, insurance and even a vacuum store! Tolliver's Mooring was a boat sales place that sold the "C-Yacht" line of houseboats that was there. Jim Moore and a guy with the last name of Tolliver (I forget his first name) ran the place.

Maybe Jim Moore was your salesman from the Bayliner dealer? (or Gary Jones; George "Crash" Lipsie; a guy names Steve, or Sherry Cameron?) Jim stumbled around the Island working at pretty much every boat dealer there until his reputation caught up with him and his business failed. He left the Island after that.

The last time I saw him was at the Pleasanton Boat Show. He was (trying to) sell Shamrock boats. As I was checking out a boat at the next booth, I heard some commotion going on. Apparently, Jim had too much to drink (not a surprise) and as he was trying to get up on to a boat to show it to some potential buyers, he lost his balance and fell to the floor. I never heard what happened to him, but I never saw him after that day.

In its later years, that building was used for Trader Dick's, a used boat stuff place. Dick was a nice guy. He lived aboard at the marina just behind the store.

It was last used as an office for Rec-800.

Ultimately, it and the boat sales lot were bull-dozed to make way for the new bridge.
 
Back in 1992 we had a price for a new boat at the Baltimore Boat Show. There was a dealer that was closer to home so we went there to get a price. The local dealer did not have that boat in stock and would have had to order one. They saw what the other dealer's price was. My check book was sitting on his desk. After we go thru the process of getting a quote he comes back and quotes us 15% more than the other dealer. They had an easy sell but blew it. That dealer called the manufacture and wanted the manufacture to prohibit the other dealer from selling us the boat since we were in 'their' territiory. The manufacture basically said they were not getting involved. They told the local dealer to make us a better offer or shut up. The local dealer could have made $5-10k by ordering a boat; but that was not enough for them considering it would take a couple of hours to do it. With that sort of business practice it wasn't long before they went under. They were basically a MSRP dealership and were unable to price compete with buyers who were in their backyard.
 
BAB----I bought my first boat from a guy named Steve at the place where Dana Yacht Sales is today. The place was taken over by a Redwood City dealer by the time I was ready to move up. Those guys eavesdropped on my conversations with my BF; ignored me and answered my questions to my BF; treated me as if I didn't exist. BUT it was my money; my decision; and my BF was instructed to stay out of the negotiations before we went there. He was a GREAT guy, but a terrible negotiator!!!! [:-bonc01]

I went across the bridge to Pacific Boat Center. Matt picked up right away that he was dealing with me, not my BF, and treated me complete respect. When I told him what I was willing to pay, he agreed to it and I signed the contract and used my Bayliner trade in as my deposit. I continued to deal with Matt for the 20+ yrs I owned that boat. He's a great guy and I hope he is still in business!
 
Yeah, if it was Carter's Marine at the time, it was probably Steve -----ski, (I don't recall his full last name, but it ended with "ski"). After Carter's was taken over by VIP Marine (Redwood City), Steve and most of the rest of the staff left. Steve started a mobile marine service business called "The Boat Doctor" and used the gimmick of wearing doctor scrubs in his advertisements. The last I heard, he was based out of Benicia.

I'm glad to hear that you had a good experience with Pacific Boat Center. Not too many people from Disco Bay had that same feeling. But hey, they were people from Disco Bay! [:-jump]

And kudos to you for taking the ship by the wheel and handling your own negotiations! Especially back then! [:-thumbu]
 
When I first owned a boat, I was rarity. I couldn't qualify for a boat loan because of my gender. People would stare, point or ignore me as I docked the boat. LOL

But it motivated me to be the best boat handler I could be, to prove that a woman is just as capable as a man! I loved boating and the Delta and spent most weekends enjoying the fruits of my labors!
 
Well, the time has come to put an end to the "fun" part of owning a boat. The purchase.

We'll be heading to SoCal to make a deal on one of four boats. The Hurricane SD 2600 I/O; the SeaRay 260 Sundeck; the Cobalt 242; and the Chaparral 244 Sundeck.

The Hurricane is the largest and roomiest of the four, but priced across the board lower than the other brands. The SeaRay 260 has the room of a 24' boat and their 240 is too small for what we want, so we have to go with the 260 if we want the S/R. The Cobalt is a somewhat roomy 24'er, but is priced higher than all of the others. Quite a bit higher. Their 262 is off the charts price-wise, so I won't even go there. The Chaparral 244 is a very roomy boat for a listed 24'er. Even with a LOA of 24'4", it has a huge swim platform and roomy cockpit.

It will take a balancing act to make a decision between the four boats. All four essentially have the same design. Two swivel chairs and an L-shaped lounge in the cockpit, with a walk-through transom to the platform. All four have comfortable bow seating area's. They all have an enclosed head in front of the passenger swivel chair, with an optional built in head unit. But for this size boat, I prefer just the standard porta-potty for logistical reasons. If someone wants to use the head, there usually is a marina that is close enough to just go to, rather than use the head, which would then require cleaning out and dumping. My usual response to someone that "wants" (not "needs") to use the head is that if they use it, they have to clean/empty it. That usually gets a response of, "I'll hold it until we get to the next marina". Of course, with my cruisers, I prefer the vacu-flush head and then pump them out at the yacht harbor at the end of our trips. All have a legally trailerable beam of 8'6". All will have 320HP Mercruiser power with the Bravo 3 outdrive and Capt's Call exhaust, dual batteries, trim tabs, full canvas, upgraded stereo's, snap-in carpet, docking lights, digital depth finders, transom (and bow, if offered) showers, bow filler cushions, etc... And they will all have the grey interior with blue gel coat exteriors. Of course, they also offer individual options that vary with the different MFG's.

It should be an interesting trip...
 
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