My family bought this boat new either in late 1974 or early 1975. It was originally equipped with an 85 Merc but we had the dealer take that off and had another dealer re-power it with a '74 Johnson 115. Best move we ever made. That boat would have been a dog with the 85 Merc. It jumps out of the hole like a scalded dog and is great for pulling slalom skiers with the 115 Johnny.
The boat made it's debut on our lake (Shuswap Lake, B.C., Canada) in the summer of 1975. It was the first bowrider Vee hull that anyone around there had ever seen. Prior to that, the only bowriders anyone had seen were Tri-hulls. Because of it being a bowrider Vee, the boat got a lot of attention and interest from the other cabin owners along the bay that year. In the following years, a lot of them replaced their closed bow Vee hulled runabouts with bowrider Vee hulls like the Costa Lotta (that's my boat's name).
Over the years, this became my property and I have lovingly maintained and taken care of it all along. It is because of the work I've put into it that it's still operational and in such great condition after 40 years. (It's also helped that it's not been trailered since around 1977. The total distance it travels on a trailer every year is less than about 100 feet in total (i.e. going from the boathouse to the water for launching and from the water back into the boathouse at the end of the season)).
This year is the Costa Lotta's 40th year on the lake. It's still a great boat. The engine, which has had a complete rebuild with oversized pistons, etc. runs beautifully and idles smoother than it ever has thanks to some adjustments I made to the carb syncing a few years ago, The boat still looks great and is still pretty solid although the floor board is getting just a tiny bit soft in one spot. We replaced some of the upholstery along the way but a lot of the original vinyl is still there and is holding up well.
I hope others will join me in celebrating this milestone with my beloved Starcraft. The Costa Lotta and Starcraft boats forever! :happy:
The boat made it's debut on our lake (Shuswap Lake, B.C., Canada) in the summer of 1975. It was the first bowrider Vee hull that anyone around there had ever seen. Prior to that, the only bowriders anyone had seen were Tri-hulls. Because of it being a bowrider Vee, the boat got a lot of attention and interest from the other cabin owners along the bay that year. In the following years, a lot of them replaced their closed bow Vee hulled runabouts with bowrider Vee hulls like the Costa Lotta (that's my boat's name).
Over the years, this became my property and I have lovingly maintained and taken care of it all along. It is because of the work I've put into it that it's still operational and in such great condition after 40 years. (It's also helped that it's not been trailered since around 1977. The total distance it travels on a trailer every year is less than about 100 feet in total (i.e. going from the boathouse to the water for launching and from the water back into the boathouse at the end of the season)).
This year is the Costa Lotta's 40th year on the lake. It's still a great boat. The engine, which has had a complete rebuild with oversized pistons, etc. runs beautifully and idles smoother than it ever has thanks to some adjustments I made to the carb syncing a few years ago, The boat still looks great and is still pretty solid although the floor board is getting just a tiny bit soft in one spot. We replaced some of the upholstery along the way but a lot of the original vinyl is still there and is holding up well.
I hope others will join me in celebrating this milestone with my beloved Starcraft. The Costa Lotta and Starcraft boats forever! :happy:
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