Please Help! Looking into purchasing our first Sea Ray

Sorry Hopes. I meant to insert the link there. Thanks Morpheus
 
Thanks! Frank has some great pointers.

And just so I have some piece of mind, 5 hours on a 2007 boat is nothing right?? I'm sure we put 1 hour on it just from our test drive alone.
 
Yes 5 is nothing but it's 2 years. Boats don't like to sit and do nothing either. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here but the impeller probably should be changed. I can just see it sitting their dry and setting and then breaking. Someone with more experience hopefully will speak up on this. Your first service (normally just an oil change) is at 20hr and then 1yr/100hr you do a service.
 
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Yes 5 is nothing but it's 2 years. Boats don't like to sit and do nothing either. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here but the impeller probably should be changed. I can just see it sitting their dry and setting and then breaking. Someone with more experience hopefully will speak up on this. Your first service (normally just an oil change) is at 20hr and then 1yr/100hr you do a service.

Yes 5 hours is nothing and trust me when I say that Lake Union SeaRay will take care of the normal maintenance that should be taken care of annually regardless of hours prior to delivery. If you need the piece of mind, simply write it into your offer.
 
Sundancer,
I think that LUSR is the only dealer on the west side. They have other locations (4) but they are all interconnected. I haven't found a Sea Ray Dealer that isn't connected to LUSR :huh:

We took a NEW 2007 210 Select out for a sea trial yesterday, it rode very VERY nicely and has some great specs (I posted them in the 210 Select thread). But we aren't thrilled about the color.

Yes 5 is nothing but it's 2 years. Boats don't like to sit and do nothing either. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here but the impeller probably should be changed. I can just see it sitting their dry and setting and then breaking. Someone with more experience hopefully will speak up on this. Your first service (normally just an oil change) is at 20hr and then 1yr/100hr you do a service.

Hopes:

Try the Sea Ray dealer in Portland, Spokane or even further down the West Coast. IT doesn't matter WHERE you get the price, just use it as a baseline or comparison. Montana ought to have a Sea Ray dealer somewhere in the Kalispell area!

As far as maintenance, I agree with Morpheus, I'd INSIST on an oil change and a NEW impellar before you leave the shop. Two to three years is about as long as an impellar can last under constant use and that's pushing it. It's probably taken a set and could fail. You don't want to spend money looking for the broken parts somewhere inside your engine.
 
Ok guys, this will show you how new to boating we actually are. What is a impeller?? :huh:
The impeller is what pumps the water into the water jacket for the motor.

-VtSeaRay
 
The impeller is what pumps the water into the water jacket for the motor.
Sorry to sound like such a newbie once again but could you expand on this a little bit? And why it would need to be changed in 2 years time with only 5 hours on the water?

Is the engine Fresh Water Cooled? Does it have the SeaCore system?

dp, I have to say that I have no clue. All we know about the engine is that it is a 350 MAG MPI BR3 Mercruiser :huh: We're pretty sure that it is fresh water cooled because it is just a 210 Select, but we could be completely wrong.
 
Sorry to sound like such a newbie once again but could you expand on this a little bit? And why it would need to be changed in 2 years time with only 5 hours on the water?



dp, I have to say that I have no clue. All we know about the engine is that it is a 350 MAG MPI BR3 Mercruiser :huh: We're pretty sure that it is fresh water cooled because it is just a 210 Select, but we could be completely wrong.

I am not certain about that boat but I believe each has options. I was looking at a 260 that was not FWC and a 240 that is. I am running in the Puget Sound so FWC is a must for me. I am not experienced with trailering boats and I will be keeping my boat wet in a slip all year. So flushing is not what I want to do. The FWC uses radiator-fluid like coolant to circulate through the engine and a heat exchanger using raw water to cool the coolant (like a radiator on a car). All you need to maintain is the one zinc in the heat exchanger, the empellor running well, and your good. My Universal diesel in the sailboat had this system and it worked like a charm!

Read about the the Seacore system and see if this is what you may need.
http://www.mercurymarine.com/engines/inboards/sterndrives/index.php
 
I am not certain about that boat but I believe each has options. I was looking at a 260 that was not FWC and a 240 that is. I am running in the Puget Sound so FWC is a must for me. I am not experienced with trailering boats and I will be keeping my boat wet in a slip all year. So flushing is not what I want to do. The FWC uses radiator-fluid like coolant to circulate through the engine and a heat exchanger using raw water to cool the coolant (like a radiator on a car). All you need to maintain is the one zinc in the heat exchanger, the empellor running well, and your good. My Universal diesel in the sailboat had this system and it worked like a charm!

Read about the the Seacore system and see if this is what you may need.
http://www.mercurymarine.com/engines/inboards/sterndrives/index.php

Hey DR
If you're leaving it in the water the Seacore will be nice, but you may want to consider the Perko flush kit. It will allow you to flush while in the water.
 
Sorry to sound like such a newbie once again but could you expand on this a little bit? And why it would need to be changed in 2 years time with only 5 hours on the water?



dp, I have to say that I have no clue. All we know about the engine is that it is a 350 MAG MPI BR3 Mercruiser :huh: We're pretty sure that it is fresh water cooled because it is just a 210 Select, but we could be completely wrong.

I'd advise to get Fresh water cooling or again "add it to the list of things on the offer" in case you intend to make some fun day trips with us on the Sound.

If you'll be in the Lakes 100% of the time you won't need it.
 
I've only seen the fresh water mode in the 210 Select. I could be wrong. Mine just sucks water from the lake, (using the impeller) and uses that to cool the engine, sending it back out to the lake, when it's done with it.

Hopes, there are kits available as options(depends where you purchase the boat obviously - some places it might be std equip) for folks that boat in water that's not good(salt, brackish, etc.) for the engine jacket.

-VtSeaRay
 
Hopes:

The impellar is located down in the outdrive down near your propellar. If you look at an outdrive, there are little holes that allow water inside. Behind the scenes is a little star shaped rubber impellar that is spun by the shaft from the motor down the leg to the prop. That shaft spins anytime the motor is running and you control whether it's in neutral, forward or reverse at the helm. The rubber impellar can take a set or get dried out after a period of time. It can ONLY be run when wet by applying water to the outdrive with a set of "muffs" or by running it in the water. Running it dry will cause it to heat up and melt. The muffs allow you to flush the outdrive while in the driveway. I'm NOT an expert on the B3, but I think it might have another pickup under the boat somewhere to supplement that water that comes from the leg.

If it takes a set, it won't pump efficiently and this will be noticeable when slowing down after a good run. The motor is hot and needs a lot of water, but the pump won't provide enough so it can run hot during that period. It may also get warm when idling for long periods of time. The little vanes can break off and get pumped into the motor where the pieces can lodge in some of the smaller cooling passages. That causes problems as well, so preventative maintenance would be to replace it every 100 hours or every two years, MAYBE three. I'd still opt to have it replaced because an 07 could have been made in the fall of 06, right? Kind of like cars?
 
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Hopes:

The impellar is located down in the outdrive down near your propellar. If you look at an outdrive, there are little holes that allow water inside. Behind the scenes is a little star shaped rubber impellar that is spun by the shaft from the motor down the leg to the prop. That shaft spins anytime the motor is running and you control whether it's in neutral, forward or reverse at the helm. The rubber impellar can take a set or get dried out after a period of time. It can ONLY be run when wet by applying water to the outdrive with a set of "muffs" or by running it in the water. Running it dry will cause it to heat up and melt. The muffs allow you to flush the outdrive while in the driveway. I'm NOT an expert on the B3, but I think it might have another pickup under the boat somewhere to supplement that water that comes from the leg.

If it takes a set, it won't pump efficiently and this will be noticeable when slowing down after a good run. The motor is hot and needs a lot of water, but the pump won't provide enough so it can run hot during that period. It may also get warm when idling for long periods of time. The little vanes can break off and get pumped into the motor where the pieces can lodge in some of the smaller cooling passages. That causes problems as well, so preventative maintenance would be to replace it every 100 hours or every two years, MAYBE three. I'd still opt to have it replaced because an 07 could have been made in the fall of 06, right? Kind of like cars?

CORRECTION: Bravo III drives do not have an impeller in the outdrive. The seawater pump is located on the engine and is driven by the surpentine belt. The only water pickups are on the outdrive your boat won't have any on the hull. The rest of what Sundancer is true.

As I said before boats have parts that fail if they sit and fail from heavy use if not changed on a regular basis.

On the closed cooling/fresh water cooling this is a system that doesn't use the seawater impeller and rather is a closed system like in your car to cool your engine. This is mostly important if you plan to leave your boat in saltwater all the time. Since I imagin you will be trailering the boat and not keeping it in a saltwater slip just flushing the engine with the muff's after each saltwater use will be just fine. You should alway wash all the saltwater off the boat after each use using a product like Saltaway. If you will only be in fresh water lakes/rivers then flushing is not as important but never hurts.
 
Saw your post about jason, and want to say that i am very surpised he rubbed you the wrong way. He was our delivery captain and i can say that he is a true southern gentleman. We had nothing but the best experience with him and is a wealth of knowledge. He comes from a manufacturing background and use to own a watersports company. He is a boater himself, not a used car salesman that many delaerships pick up. He pointed out minor imperfections on our boat and made sure that they were taken care of. We have truly built a relationship outside of the sales aspect. He will be there for you, as we have called him after hours for simple questions and he has always been there for us. I can assure you that after the sale, he will not disappear like others do at some dealerships. I think you may have taken his comment the wrong way, or maybe could have worded a little different, but he was probably just trying to show you perfectionist side that he truly has and cares greatly about.
 
Mike,
Thank you for posting your personal experience with Jason. I think it was just the initial contact that wasn't the best. Maybe he was nervous in the beginning because he hasn't been on the sales side of things very long :huh:

That being said, he was great on our sea trial. Much more relaxed and as you have said, a wealth of knowledge. If he didn't know something, he just said he didn't know, rather than trying to give an answer he wasn't completely sure about. We really respect that. If we end up getting the boat, we look forward to working with him. :smt001
 
Hey DR
If you're leaving it in the water the Seacore will be nice, but you may want to consider the Perko flush kit. It will allow you to flush while in the water.


Todd... thanks I will check it out. I don't remember if mine has a direct flush connection on the engine. I remember seeing one but that may have been on the Regal w/ Volvo I was debating on. So many toys at the boat show!:smt101

If you Puget Sounders ever want to venture south to Vashon, let me know. Docton is a great King Co park with terrific docks/showers/hiking, etc where we can meet up.

dr
 
I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for all of your responses. Your input has proven to be very helpful! We're really glad we found this site.

We are getting closer and closer to a decision, and if you see me back here, you'll know why. :grin:

Thank you again everyone, we truly appreciate it!
 

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