Re: rust on trailer indictive of owner boat neglect ?
I found this statement interesting. I have had 2 boats surveyed- the surveyor simply provided a full, complete report of everything he found, both good and bad, along with his estimate of the $$ value of the boat. The rest was up to me. I've never heard of a surveyor "failing" a boat. That isn't his job.
What I meant by "failing" the boat was that the repairs needed by the surveyors estimate far exeeded what he thought the boat or deal was worth. In other words, he found something that killed the deal. Yes, he found problems that were there that maybe the average guy wouldn't, but the one boat I bought turned out to be just fine after a motor swap. It looked to me like he condemned the motor mainly since it was older. The only boat that come out with a clean bill of health was near new, with a brand new motor, and at that he found fault with the install, which he noted as an optional repair or need for an on the motor tilt function which was not installed for some reason. It wasn't my purchase, so the outcome and expense weren't mine to deal with. The boat I bought got really cheap after he condemned the motor. (I resealed the lower unit, installed two head gaskets and 4 fresh plugs and a decarb and it's been fine for 2 years now). He wrote that "the motor was old and in need of extensive repairs far exceeding the value of the motor". The motor is a 1996 Evinrude V4. He also wrote that the boats finish was badly degraded, may need refinishing, and that the boat showed signs of saltwater use. I thought that a bit odd since the boat as docked in saltwater when he examined it. He was probably right in that it was not the right boat for the buyer at hand, but his report dropped the price on that boat to near nothing which set me up to buy it real right. I since sold it for a pretty good profit over the winter, after keeping the motor and hanging an older motor of the same hp.
