1994 Sea ray 200- potential buyer

[wshockey30]

I'm new to this forum, and have read through some previous threads on the site and there I can see there are some very knowledgeable people on here. I just got back from looking at a 1994 sea ray 200 with the 5.7 mercruiser. The boat only has about 200 hours on it, kept on a boat lift out of the water. Seemed to start and run fine, we took it out for a sea trial and everything seemed ok. A few concerns that I was hoping to get some input on. 1-the trailer has been sitting for years, as the owners live on the water and keep the boat on a lift. What are the chances of the brakes, lights, tires etc being ok after sitting 10+years. (galvanized EZ loader, dual axle, brakes) 2- I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing, but, the owner
said he hasn't done any repairs to the boat since he's owned it-only basic maintenance including oil changes and winterization. Any particular things that may need to be done to this 15 year old boat? 3- There is a piece of floor in the back of the boat, between the ski locker and the engine cover. It is about 2' in width and maybe 5' long. This section of floor is separate from the rest of the floor, it looks to be screwed in place. I believe it may be some sort of access panel, possibly for the fuel tank? Anyway- this screwed in piece of floor is very soft. The seller pointed it out before we got on the boat. The rest of the boat seems to have a solid floor. Is this something I should be majorly concerned about, or would i be able to replace just that panel? Some of the threads I read through talked about soft floor/rotting wood and people completely replacing the floors on the boat. One other thing- the boat is being offered at $5k. Seem like a fair price? NADA is about 5200 for average retail, not including trailer. Thanks in advance for your help! I hope to be out on the water in the near future.

 

[Quint4]

The major problem with those era Sea Ray bow riders is the rotting floor and resultant underlying stringer rot. Do not take your eye off this issue! The floor section you described is the tank cover. The boat is powered right with a 5.7. The trailer probably needs tires and a complete brake system inspection.

 

[wshockey30]

Thanks for the reply. After doing some googling, I came across a few people with in depth complete floor replacements on these models-suggesting it is a common issue. If the rest of the floor 'feels' solid, would it be necessary to get into replacing the whole floor? Or would I be able to get away with just replacing that panel? I think I may have to pass up the boat if a complete interior tear down is in store.

 

[CoralReefer]

Do some exploring. Unscrew the tank cover an have a look. Black wood is bad!!!

 

[MonacoMike]

Get a survey. Boats are a unique item, a 5k boat could have a 10k problem. In my value system a $500-$700 survey can avoid BIG $$$ expense after purchase, even on a low $$$ vessel. It's only a good deal if it's a good boat.