1993 Caravelle 2350 Royale

[Ed Harris]

Is the construction of these boats any good. I do not know anything about them and was considering buying one but thought I would ask here beforehand. It is equipped with a 350 Magnum Mercruiser Alpha 1 with approximately 400 hours, Any information would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Scott Danforth]

They were constructed like any other early 90's boat with a design life of about 15 years.

most importantly. what condition is it in now.

use this check list https://forums.iboats.com/forum/gen...eeding-help-buying-a-boat-a-buyer-s-checklist

 

[Ed Harris]

looks to be in good condition as it has always been a freshwater boat and covered and stored inside when not in use. Gonna go take a look tomorrow and if all is good then I will be bringing it home.

 

[Ed Harris]

Made the 5.5 hour trip Monday only to find a boat with "solid floors" soft as cotton balls in the rear. It did not get better from there either. Cuddy had a piece of aluminum plate in the floor= not good. rotten as can be. Also had some ramp rash on the keel where someone didn't know how to use reverse. clear coat was chipping away and some dings that went deep into the woven. Engine cranked but idled crappy which a carb rebuild isnt a problem. Boat had been left with the drain plug still screwed in so I took it out and it drained water for 10 minutes. You could look into the bilge and see water trickling in for the next hour or longer possible foam filled with water. Bottom of boat was stained with a thick layer of tannin color. Checked the transom from the inside and found the top half solid then the bottom started sounding hollow. Pushed on the FG and you could see it pushing in and out. Was bad at the bottom. My guess was it had delaminated. Trailer was in excellent shape for a 93. No rust powder coated. Boat and trailer had 5000 hanging on it. I offered 1500. Came back home without the boat or trailer. Another lesson learned.

 

[Scott Danforth]

running sounds like the best option. you will find that most boats are floating cisterns with a biology experiment going on in the bilge and foam.

 

[kpg7121]

Made the 5.5 hour trip Monday only to find a boat with "solid floors" soft as cotton balls in the rear. It did not get better from there either. Cuddy had a piece of aluminum plate in the floor= not good. rotten as can be. Also had some ramp rash on the keel where someone didn't know how to use reverse. clear coat was chipping away and some dings that went deep into the woven. Engine cranked but idled crappy which a carb rebuild isnt a problem. Boat had been left with the drain plug still screwed in so I took it out and it drained water for 10 minutes. You could look into the bilge and see water trickling in for the next hour or longer possible foam filled with water. Bottom of boat was stained with a thick layer of tannin color. Checked the transom from the inside and found the top half solid then the bottom started sounding hollow. Pushed on the FG and you could see it pushing in and out. Was bad at the bottom. My guess was it had delaminated. Trailer was in excellent shape for a 93. No rust powder coated. Boat and trailer had 5000 hanging on it. I offered 1500. Came back home without the boat or trailer. Another lesson learned.

The guy wanted $5 grand for a 26 yr old boat with soft floors & rottem transom. Lol.