Looking at a 2006 185 Sport - Have questions...

First off, hello. New here and to Sea Ray, but not to boats, in general.

Next up, the boat. Pictures look great. I love the shape and it appears to be in great condition. Shiny, no signs of worn vinyl, very few bumps and bruises and what there is, is minor. Going to look at it in person this Saturday.

My 1st question is if these have any wood in the stringers, deck, transom...? Couldn't find any info on this, and an email to Sea Ray has gone unanswered.

My 2nd question, and this is where I'll likely lose a bunch of you and upset the rest - is if these particular boats came with the hull structure/support for either the 3.0 or 4.3 motors? If I'm not mistaken, all of the "Sport" models came with 4.3s, but the boat was also offered with a 3.0. It would make sense for Sea Ray to build 1 hull that could handle the mounting of both, as opposed to a different mold depending on what motor was chosen.

I ask because someone has replaced the 4.3 with a 3.0 in this boat. Why, I have no idea. Does it scare me? It probably should, but it doesn't. I don't necessarily need the extra power of the 4.3, although I wouldn't mind it, and if the boat was already setup to take a 3.0, then hopefully no hacking was done to get it in there.

Furthermore, it appears as the outdrive was not replaced, so it's currently geared wrong, but I happen to have a complete 3.0 out drive(long story), so I could swap it.

Anyway, really don't need the "stay away - run - don't even think about it" comments. I'm a rational individual and have been around the block a time or two. The asking price is already right and that's before I start negotiating the whole outdrive issue, which the seller didn't even know was an issue - which doesn't mean I am dead set on buying it. Saturday's inspection and water test will tell all.

Sorry for the lengthy post, and thanks for reading.

Looks like that model came standard with the 3.0. The 4.3 190 hp was an option. So your all good. Good luck and welcome to CSR!

I bought a new 2007 just as the model years were changing over, so I had initially looked at the 2006 and was pretty familiar with it at the time. There was no separate "Sport" model. They were all 185 Sports. As stated above the 3.0 was the base engine. Available upgraded engines were the 4.3 TKS (Turn Key Start) and the 4.3 MPI. The only difference in the TKS vs. MPI was carburetor vs. fuel injection. I think one was rated at 190 HP and one at 220 HP. The hull would be exactly the same for any of the engines. I have the 4.3 TKS and will say I've been very happy with it and it is a nice package with plenty of power. We do a lot of water sports, so I would personally not want the 3.0L in this boat, but several have been happy with the 3.0L and like to brag about the fuel economy. The obvious concern here is what happened to the original engine???? Properly maintained, I would think it would still be going strong. So it's easy to assume it was not properly maintained (frozen block?) and to replace it with a 3.0 seems to be cutting corners and would cause me concern as to how well the boat was taken care of. As to your question on wood, I think I remember this model being advertised as wood free construction, but I'm not an expert here. Best of luck in whatever you decide, but unless this is a steal, I would think you could find a nicer one. Mine still looks like it just came off the showroom floor.

Thank you both, they were very helpful replies.

I agree with the "why" the engine was replaced question, it would be great to know. I'm going in expecting the worst, but at the same time have high hopes based on the overall condition of the boat. I mean, things happen, even to the best of us and motors sometimes fail even when taken care of. I can only guess the 3.0 was the most economical choice for who ever did it and then they moved on... we'll see.

As far as the power and fuel consumption of the 2 engines, I don't need much. When we have larger groups, or are planning on any tubing type activities, well go out on friends' bigger boats...but, they don't go out as often as I'd like, so I'm looking for something I can take out on my own, or just with my girlfriend. The lake I'm on isn't huge and most times I just want to find a quiet cove and chill out on the water.

My only remaining concern right now is absolute confirmation on the wood free construction.

The floor and stringer system is entirely composite. The transom will have wood in it. There may be some small, non-critical pieces used elsewhere (a backing of an upholstered panel, for example). But even most of that is composite - the bench cushions, the sundeck cushions - those are all a composite/plastic.

Thank you for that.

Welp, I bought it.

Turns out the motor was not replaced, the selling dealership is not a Sea Ray dealer and this was there on consignment from one of their customers who moved on to a pontoon boat. Dealer was under the same (wrong)assumption that all of the "Sport" models came with a 4.3, as was I.

Outdrive and motor serial numbers match the boat.

Overall, as usual, the pictures I saw online looked a little better than what I saw in person, but...it's still really nice. The yellow on the hull is a bit faded and some of the decals are peeling a bit, things I'd expect for a 14 year old boat. Vinyl is good, I see no hairline cracks anywhere in the gel coat, stainless rub rail has no dents, all guages/lights/stero/bilge pump and fan all work. Trailer is excellent with new tires and working lights.

A little Star Brite instant hull cleaner and polishing will get this thing looking great.

It's been really rainy here and reports look like it's going to stay that way for at least another week, but any dry time I'll be out there inspecting everything in depth. My list of things to replace for peace of mind;

Oil change
Lower unit lube change
Lower unit water pump change
Spark plugs/cap/rotor change
Fuel filter change
It runs fine and seems to be pumping plenty of water on rabbit ears, but I'll likely do those anyway.

Will also be taking a close look at the bellows. Part of me wants to pull the lower unit and replace them along with the gimbal bearing.

Fuel tank is half full, so I may dump in some SeaFoam and run through it before filling it back up with fresh, ethanol free stuff.

Not sure if this'll work, but here's a link to some photos. I'll add interior photos when it stops raining for a bit and I pull the covers off.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/NkcizMVNHDj96ip27

I had a 3.0L in a 19’ Bayliner cuddy cabin years ago. I pulled knee boarders and water skiers all day with it. You should have plenty of power with that cool looking boat. Very nice tower.

DWABoat said:

I had a 3.0L in a 19’ Bayliner cuddy cabin years ago. I pulled knee boarders and water skiers all day with it. You should have plenty of power with that cool looking boat. Very nice tower.

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Thanks. I'm excited. Did a compression test tonight and added those photos to the album link. Think I'll turn this thread into sort of a log to keep up on what I do to it over time.

I bought new spark plugs, motor oil+filter and gear lube locally.

Ordered ignition wires, distributor cap+rotor, blow off elbow grommet, fuel pump filter kit and a thermostat+gaskets.

Also ordered a water/fuel separator kit, which this boat didn't come with, so I'm adding it.

Aside from the great compression numbers, the motor oil and gear lube were super clean.

Somewhat of a dilemma that I'm trying to decide on what to do at the moment, is that it has a half tank of fuel in it, and I'm thinking it's at least a year old, possibly 2. The boat was winterized sometime before I bought it, so I assume they added a stabilizer...but I'm doubtful it's very good. Should I run it til I deplete it, or fill it up all the way with fresh gas? Only ran it at the dealer and it seemed ok.

Nice looking boat. A little elbow grease and you'll be good to go. I see it also came with the factory installed wakeboard tower, which is a nice option. As for the fuel, I'd top it off with fresh gas, use it until it's nearly empty and refill.

emilime75 said:

Thanks. I'm excited. Did a compression test tonight and added those photos to the album link. Think I'll turn this thread into sort of a log to keep up on what I do to it over time.

I bought new spark plugs, motor oil+filter and gear lube locally.

Ordered ignition wires, distributor cap+rotor, blow off elbow grommet, fuel pump filter kit and a thermostat+gaskets.

Also ordered a water/fuel separator kit, which this boat didn't come with, so I'm adding it.

Aside from the great compression numbers, the motor oil and gear lube were super clean.

Somewhat of a dilemma that I'm trying to decide on what to do at the moment, is that it has a half tank of fuel in it, and I'm thinking it's at least a year old, possibly 2. The boat was winterized sometime before I bought it, so I assume they added a stabilizer...but I'm doubtful it's very good. Should I run it til I deplete it, or fill it up all the way with fresh gas? Only ran it at the dealer and it seemed ok.

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Add a can of Sea Foam like you said above and top off with some higher octane fuel to make up for the loss of octane in the stored gas and go boating.

Cool, I think that's what I'll do with the fuel.

Noticed yesterday I was missing the clear plastic dome for the anchor light, on top of the tower. A quick search here shows it's common to lose it and that the tower was manufactured by Xtreme Tower Products. Emailed them late last night and woke up to a reply...kinda shocking. New one is on the way, 20 bucks with tax and shipping. Super easy transaction and really pleased they even had it and how helpful they were.

Like a kid on Christmas morning, parts have landed.

And like a kid the day before Christmas morning, it's been steady raining here for a straight week, at least. Supposedly it's going to let up for a day tomorrow, and then get right back into it for another week. Hopefully I can get all of this stuff installed and change the fluids. Have motor oil and gear lube already for it. Fuel separator will be here in a couple of days. So excited!!

Added some photos to the album in the link.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/NkcizMVNHDj96ip27

Got all of the ignition parts replaced, along with the thermostat today. Then filled the tank up with some ethanol free 90 octane, and it fired right up.

Once it was warm, I changed the oil with QuickSilver 25w-40 synthetic blend and a Wix 51060 filter, which is about twice the size of the stock filter for some extra capacity and filtration.

I also took the snap in covers and bimini to a laundromat and washed them in their giant, industrial machines. Came out pretty good. Only the very back of the cockpit cover needs a little more attention.

Still left to do is fuel filter in the pump, the strainer in the hard line at the carb and to add the fuel/water separator when it comes in. I'll also replace the gear lube before its maiden voyage(in my posession).

emilime75 said:

Got all of the ignition parts replaced, along with the thermostat today. Then filled the tank up with some ethanol free 90 octane, and it fired right up.

Once it was warm, I changed the oil with QuickSilver 25w-40 synthetic blend and a Wix 51060 filter, which is about twice the size of the stock filter for some extra capacity and filtration.

I also took the snap in covers and bimini to a laundromat and washed them in their giant, industrial machines. Came out pretty good. Only the very back of the cockpit cover needs a little more attention.

Still left to do is fuel filter in the pump, the strainer in the hard line at the carb and to add the fuel/water separator when it comes in. I'll also replace the gear lube before its maiden voyage(in my posession).

Click to expand...

Spray some water repellent on your clean canvas.

Video links below.

Finally got to take it out for its first trial run this past Sunday. The goal was just to burn some fuel through it, and shake the thing down to see what problems might creep up. Found 4 issues, all minor.

1. The ignition switch took a dump. I could turn it and get the ignition to turn on, but going past that to crank the motor over, it would just spin right around in circles. It wasn't the outside of the switch being loose and spinning, the problem was internal. Easy fix at the boat ramp was to turn the ignition on, then just take a screw driver and short the battery lead to the crank trigger terminal on the starter. Fired right up and ran great. New ignition switch has been ordered.

2. The Neutral/Forward/Reverse release lever kept sticking, making it difficult to smoothly control approaches to the dock and when loading the boat back on the trailer. It takes a lot of force to get it to release, but once it does, all is good. Have a thread started over on iBoats about that. Hopefully it's an easy/cheap fix, may just need to be taken apart and cleaned/lubed.

3. The OEM depth finder is reading way off about 90% of the time. While researching possible fixes, I came across a killer deal on Craigslist for a Humminbird Helix 5 GPS SI G2, so I bought it. It was being sold by a local marina on behalf of a member who recently sold his boat. I think I'll pull the the OEM depth finder out of the dash and install a voltage gauge in its place. A little perturbed that the boat didn't come with one. Need to decide if I want to buy the in hull transducer for it, or bite the bullet and drill holes in my transom for the one it came with.

4. Speedo doesn't work, no surprise there. Trying the usual fixes, the intake on the leg is jammed up hard. I can only insert something in about a 1/2", and whatever the blockage is feels really hard. I'm suspecting that a previous attempt may have ended up with a broken drill bit inside...meaning it will never work. No biggie, my new Helix 5 will give me GPS speed, but I don't like having things that don't work, so I may pull the speedo out and install something else in its place, possibly a gauge style head unit or controller.

Beyond that, it was quite nice and everything else worked. Engine ran well, easily got to WOT RPM, came on plane reasonably quick, drive shifted fine... The boat even came with a GoPro mount already attached to the tower, so about mid run I grabbed my Hero 8 Black and started recording. Forgot it was last set to timelapse and to limit file sizes, so it's broken up into 3 clips.

Oh, it also lists from side to side really badly at low speed. Seriously considering trim tabs, even though I always shudder at the thought of drilling holes in a transom.

Also ordered LED bulbs for the front nav light, tower mounted anchor light and all of the gauges.

Next up is some detailing. Peeled the old reg tag and id number decals, which of course left ghosting in the gel coat, along with ghosting from a different style of number decal that was on the boat at some point. Tried compounding it out, but it made little difference. Will likely have to wet sand it, first.

Still have the new fuel/water separator to install and replace the in pump filter.

Install the Helix 5.

Then it'll likely be some sound system improvements. This came with only 2 speakers and a super basic head unit which doesn't have BT or an AUX input.

After that, just going to enjoy my summer with it.

Pt.1 Pt.2 Pt.3

Glad to hear (and see!) you had a good first ride!

Pitot... try a small drill bit, by hand. You can probably tell, by feel, if it's metal - if so, you're probably right about the broken bit. Somebody may have been using a drill. The hole goes in a good inch, or so, before it turns and goes upwards. There's a quick disconnect in the area above the anti-ventilation, FYI.

Listing... I didn't look at all of the videos, but I didn't see any listing? What speeds are you talking about? The reason I ask is because I've never experienced that when running 185 or 195's. Wandering, yes - listing, no. But wandering is normal and I could see in the videos you were doing the proper "back and forth" with the steering wheel to try and counter that.

One thing I noticed is that in your second video (in the beginning, anyways), there was a lot of spray coming from what seemed like too far forward on the boat. Trim it up, more. That hull doesn't really take a whole lot of up trim, but too much hull being in the water can cause some listing issues once on plane (hull steer).

Good luck with the new boat!

Yes, I was trying with a small drill bit by hand and at one point gripped it with a pair of vice grips. Spinning the bit by hand, I could get it to grab something once in a while, but couldn't get it to bite whatever is in there and check the tip for debris. Was hoping I would at least see if it was wood/sand/mud/dirt... Not really sure what is in there, but it is very hard. I also disconnected the hose and poured some soapy water on the miniscule chance it'll soften up whatever is in there. Either way, not overly concerned about it.

Sorry, had to look it up and I've been using the wrong terminology. The boat was not "listing", wander is what I meant. At slow speeds, like in no wake zones, the bow will turn from side to side quite a lot, much more than I've experienced with other boats. I can usually just let it be and it will correct itself, to a certain extent, but it was also very windy out, so that didn't help. You can really see it in the first 30-40 seconds of video 3. Here we're in a no wake zone and cruising at idle speed in a marina and approaching a dock.

As for the splashing, what the video doesn't portray well is just how windy and choppy it was that day. The Hero 8 Black has phenomenal image stabilization, that's its #1 attribute. The main body of the lake was relatively bad, while the coves were a bit smoother. While it looks like we were going fast, we were mostly cruising, and while we were still on plane, the hull wasn't lifted up as much as it would be if we were WOT.

Wandering - OK, yup that's very normal with this type of hull. Nothing to worry about there - as you get more time behind the wheel, you'll get used to it and you'll pretty much be able to do the steering wheel "correction" without thinking about it. Altering the drive position (up/down) a bit will sometimes lessen the wandering effect.

Splashing - yeah, maybe it's just the angle of the video. Generally speaking, though, when cruising, you should be able to adjust the trim to get the splash coming out around half-way back to 2/3 back - about where the driver is or a little aft of the driver. As you go faster, the splash will move further back. However, when the water is choppy, keeping the drive trimmed a little further down (and subsequently, the splash further forward), will give a better ride.