Total Loss?

T

TheBobC

Member
Sep 21, 2017
80
Pompano Beach, FL
Boat Info
1999 400 DA
Garmin 1242xsv, 742xs, Fantom 24 Radar
Highfield 10.2 Tender w/Tohatsu 9.9
Engines
Cat 3116
Have an 06 340 that took on water. Was away from the boat for a while(a few weeks) and upon entering, noticed a definite list to port, the boat was low in the water and everything electrical dead (except the shore power. That was still on) with about 2’ of water in the cabin. Obviously could not open the hatch. Immediately reached out to my insurance who called Tow Boat US. They showed up and we pumped out a significant portion of the water and had it towed to a yard. Initial reports claim water in both engines and the generator. Estimates are north of $130k for replacing all major components. What I am looking for here is best advice..is it mandatory to replace engines, transmission, etc? Know nothing of what happens on the transmission side. Engines I am fairly well versed in.
 
If in salt water you want it totaled and start with another boat. That much saltwater, the boat is toast. All mechanical, electrical, soft goods, exposed wood — all toast. Good luck.
 
+1 with @Golfman25 , seems like a total loss to me. Feel badly for you, hopefully the insurance company comes through for you and you can find a suitable replacement vessel.
 
+1 on total loss. There is way too much work to get this back in shape to be reliable.

Will the ins total the boat and will you get any amount of playout to purchase another boat (rhetorical)?

If not, then you have some decisions to make.

The two biggest things with this are -
1. All the wiring will not recover and will need to be replaced, or you will be having ghost's in the machine for ever.
2. The generator is toast and cannot be repaired, even if it runs and puts out electricity at first.

Mechanical part of Engines/transmissions can be fixed, but an 06' has smart craft and that won't survive and is quite costly to replace. Which also means all gauges at the helm need to be switched over to something else.

Not to mention appliances and AC units are gone.

How far up on the engines did the water go? completely covered, half way? Sounds like it made it up quite far, far enough to allow water egress. Paying someone to do all of that work will cost, well who knows these days. But I would think that 130K is low when it's all done. And that 130K is more then the boat is worth. Sorry.
 
I am not clear what you are asking us, it's up to the insurance company to declare it a total loss, not you/us. I worked in claims insurance claims out of college. A total loss is typically when the repairs exceed 80% of the value. In your case, that's an easy one for the insurance company IMO. The question you will have to answer is do you want to keep the boat or let them take it for salvage. If you keep it you get less of a pay out of course.

I'd let them keep it for salvage. I am curious to know what happened, where did the water come from?

I was close to buying a 06 340 years ago that had "brand new engines". After looking at it and digging in more I learned the swim platform got stuck under the dock and the engine compartment took on water. The broker did his best to convince all was well now, I walked away quickly. Sharing this as if you keep it this will be an issue for you as well especially if they declare it a total loss. Your claim will show up on a boat history report. I had a similar experience with 40' Formula I almost purchased before I purchased the 380DA. I ran a boat history report on it as something did not seem right. A fire showed up. The broker tried to dismiss it, even acted like it was new information to him. I called boat history and they were able to provide more details, I ran away from that one.
 
I see you are in FL, so most likely salt water. My advice is to settle with the insurance and go look for another boat. Otherwise, you will be forever dealing with issues from this.
 
My engine was at the bottom of the canal for 12 days after Ian. No insurance so I had no choice but to get it running.
New ecm, needed 1 coil , new plugs and 4 oil changes later she runs like new 6 months later. Lots of nay sayers about it never will be right or reliable. That's my story. Lots of work, use your insurance
 
scoflaw said:
My engine was at the bottom of the canal for 12 days after Ian. No insurance so I had no choice but to get it running.
New ecm, needed 1 coil , new plugs and 4 oil changes later she runs like new 6 months later. Lots of nay sayers about it never will be right or reliable. That's my story. Lots of work, use your insurance
Click to expand...

Could not agree more on the mechanical side of things but with Smart Craft, the engine may run perfectly but the electronics will be toast in a few weeks/months.
 
TheBobC said:
Have an 06 340 that took on water. Was away from the boat for a while(a few weeks) and upon entering, noticed a definite list to port, the boat was low in the water and everything electrical dead (except the shore power. That was still on) with about 2’ of water in the cabin. Obviously could not open the hatch. Immediately reached out to my insurance who called Tow Boat US. They showed up and we pumped out a significant portion of the water and had it towed to a yard. Initial reports claim water in both engines and the generator. Estimates are north of $130k for replacing all major components. What I am looking for here is best advice..is it mandatory to replace engines, transmission, etc? Know nothing of what happens on the transmission side. Engines I am fairly well versed in.
Click to expand...

If you had water in the engines and genset the water likely made it into the main break panel on the forward engine bulkhead. That means rewiring everything, new engine harnesses, new genset etc etc. The insurer is going to declare the boat a total loss. You might consider getting your own replacemt valuation to ensure you get as much as you can from the insurer.

Insurer will sell the boat for nothing, likely to be parted out and chopped up.
 
Fix it and you own all the down stream ailments. Insurance company will seek the cheapest avenue, which is to cut you a check at an agreed upon value that most probably they will dictate.
I'd get appraisals for replacement costs as well as value prior to sinking.
 
SKybolt said:
Could not agree more on the mechanical side of things but with Smart Craft, the engine may run perfectly but the electronics will be toast in a few weeks/months.
Click to expand...
Beauty of SC and the 555 ecm it will tell you what's failing. 6 months and still waiting, maybe next year.
 
Take the insurance - headaches will go on forever. All the systems.

If you really want a project - take the insurance, then buy it back from the Insurance company for salvage.
 
Some folks get confused thinking they're actually buying it back, you really aren't. When I used to work auto claims about 300 years a go, if you wanted to keep a total loss vehicle typically you got 80%. So if the car was valued at $1,000, you got 800 bucks and kept the car. If you didn't want the car, you signed the title over, you got $1,000, and the insurance company sold the car at auction to salvage.
 
Jeez. Just let it go. How much do you think a 17 year old 340 is worth? Total it and be done….he already said estimates are NORTH of 130k. Don’t get sucked down the rabbit hole of buying it back and all the headaches that come with it. Seems simple to me.
 
mrsrobinson said:
Some folks get confused thinking they're actually buying it back, you really aren't. When I used to work auto claims about 300 years a go, if you wanted to keep a total loss vehicle typically you got 80%. So if the car was valued at $1,000, you got 800 bucks and kept the car. If you didn't want the car, you signed the title over, you got $1,000, and the insurance company sold the car at auction to salvage.
Click to expand...

wasnt my original idea. Last week I was hanging around the dock with some did exactly this after Ian.
 
Been several months...I took the advice here and let it go. It was sad, but necessary I think. Having been boatless since the end of March, I am now getting a very nice '99 400. Really love the layout. And it has cat 3116's with just under 1000 hours. Looking forward to great times, that extra foot of beam makes the engine work so much more joyous comparitively. :)
 
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