Looking at 1990 Bayliner, need advice

[Markpagnani]

Just came across a 1990 Bayliner 1850 for sale cheap. I had an ‘85 Bayliner w/ Force outboard that I got for free & after a little tlc it ran great for the years I had it. Sold that & miss having a boat, & always wanted an I/O engine, this one I looked at yesterday has that, everything looks really solid on this one just the same deal tlc & it will be really nice. Here’s the advice part(I Know no engine stuff in here but), the sign says $1000, needs motor work possible spun bearing. Should I just walk away? Or is it worth taking a chance? Going to offer no more than $800, it really will look nice after the cleanup

 

[Scott Danforth]

welcome aboard

I personally would walk away for a variety of reasons.

first, its a 32 year old bayliner, it will most likely need to have a full hull restoration. bayliners from the 80s thru the 90's should be avoided as they did not have the best build practices.

most likely its a 3.0, and it will cost you about $3000 to replace the motor.

 

[matt167]

Could be a 2.3l too or even an L drive being a 1990

 

[Sprig]

I’d run from that. Cheap boats are cheap for a reason. Cheap boats end up being very expensive boats.

 

[Markpagnani]

Ya, pretty much confirmed what I was thinking. As far as the $3000 to replace the motor, what about rebuilding it? Or is that what you were talking about?

 

[Bondo]

Could be a 2.3l too or even an L drive being a 1990

Ayuh,.... That would be even worse,....

 

[matt167]

Ayuh,.... That would be even worse,....

I know, that's what I was kind of getting at. An OMC 3.0L is bad enough

 

[mr 88]

Ya, pretty much confirmed what I was thinking. As far as the $3000 to replace the motor, what about rebuilding it? Or is that what you were talking about?

Going to be almost the same , parts and correct tools along with having a clue to rebuilding will have you dropping it off a rebuilders , back to 3,000 , for starters and your not even into the outdrive and what issues that might have.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Ya, pretty much confirmed what I was thinking. As far as the $3000 to replace the motor, what about rebuilding it? Or is that what you were talking about?

rebuilding or buying a reman will cost you about the same (about $2700 plus shipping) and that is just the longblock. if you need a manifold, it will cost you more.

you may be able to shade-tree the rebuild for a bit less, however if you have to grind the crank, replace the rods/pistons, align hone the block, deck the block, bore and hone it, then address the head, you are looking at about $1500 in machine shop costs, and about a grand in parts cost.

a new 3.0 base engine is $4k

now if the motor in the boat is a 2.3 or an L-drive there is even less support than a 3.0. many parts for the 2.3 and the L-drive are NLA (No Longer Available)

 

[hugh g]

It may look solid but that means nothing. Unless he stored it in a sarcophagus I can almost guarantee it needs a full restoration. Bayliners of that vintage were manufactured to get them out the door & onto sales lots & build practices were a joke. I saw it first hand because 2 of my buddies owned late 80's Bayliners, purchased brand new. Your call.

 

[Extrasalty]

Just came across a 1990 Bayliner 1850 for sale cheap. I had an ‘85 Bayliner w/ Force outboard that I got for free & after a little tlc it ran great for the years I had it. Sold that & miss having a boat, & always wanted an I/O engine, this one I looked at yesterday has that, everything looks really solid on this one just the same deal tlc & it will be really nice. Here’s the advice part(I Know no engine stuff in here but), the sign says $1000, needs motor work possible spun bearing. Should I just walk away? Or is it worth taking a chance? Going to offer no more than $800, it really will look nice after the cleanup

It really depends on the compression on the engine and if the problems are minor or not. (I own a 1992 bayliner capri 195 with a 3.0 mercruiser) Personally I would get outboard because inboards from that time tend to need more repairs and even though there cheap fixes the jobs themselves are advanced.

 

[Markpagnani]

Yes sir, did a little research on my own as well as the great advice here... definitely pulling the plug on that idea. Thanks everyone

 

[poconojoe]

Wondering why you "always wanted an I/O".
I have an I/O and wish it was an outboard.

Too many negatives with an I/O in my opinion:
- More work winterizing and risk of damage from freezing.
- Engine compartment that has to be vented or you risk exploding gas fumes.
- Much heavier than an outboard.
- Bellows...can leak and sink your boat and are a pain to replace.
- An outboard can be trimmed up higher since they sit higher.
That's just a few reasons off the top of my head.

 

[starcraftkid]

I owned two I/O boats in my life, the first and early OMC in a Johnson boat, the second a Mercruiser in an 70's trihull. The OMC was the better set up, that Mercruiser was more trouble than it was worth. Leaking shift cables, leaking or cracked bellows, poor engine choices,.
A buddy had a 1989 Capri, the floor was soft and falling apart by 1992. When I dug the floor out it was a mix of some cheap plywood and some tar/foam looking stuff they used that looked like a bunch of old carpet bits, white styrofoam bits and some black resin or tar. The hull had cracks starting, the transom was rotten, and after the floor came out, we realized that the fuel tank had been leaking saturating the floor and stringers. Sort forming a floating bomb. All it would have taken was one little spark. That was no doubt the vey worst boat and construction I ever saw.
The worst part about fixing one of those is that its still a bayliner when your done. Its kind of like putting a fancy new leather interior in a Yugo.
Find an outboard boat, leave the Bayliner where ever it sits, run, don't walk, don't look back.

 

[hugh g]

Some guys called them Baypigs but I won't go that far as I've heard build quality in recent years has improved.

 

[AShipShow]

I just still call them bayliners cuz its what the bottom of the bay is lined with

 

[starcraftkid]

The newer boats are quite different, it was the early 80's to mid 90's stuff that made for horror stories if anyone kept it beyond the first year or two.
They were cheap boats marketed to first time owners and most first time owners don't usually take very good care of their boats either which made matters worse, couple that with the 60's technology in the Force motors at the time which often meant a lot of frustrated owners.
They sold thousands of them because they were usually the cheapest thing out there. In the late 80's, when they started pumping out the dark blue with pink/blue stripe models, there had to be a dozen of them on my street alone.
Most of them rotted away and became backyard ornaments in a matter of a few years. I think guy still has his in the garage but its not seen the water in decades.
Being a cheap boat they introduced a lot of folks to boating who otherwise may not have ever bought a boat, but at the same time they soured almost just as many on boat ownership when they realized the boat they bought was a worthless pile of rotten wood and fiberglass three or four years later.
They made a huge array of boats, some were impressive looking with a ton of options for less money but the build quality was horrendous across the board.

I'm not sure they started to improve but i do know that the later Trophy models weren't much better either. A friend of mine junked his after realizing it was completely rotten below deck after four years.

 

[hugh g]

The newer boats are quite different, it was the early 80's to mid 90's stuff that made for horror stories if anyone kept it beyond the first year or two.
They were cheap boats marketed to first time owners and most first time owners don't usually take very good care of their boats either which made matters worse, couple that with the 60's technology in the Force motors at the time which often meant a lot of frustrated owners.
They sold thousands of them because they were usually the cheapest thing out there. In the late 80's, when they started pumping out the dark blue with pink/blue stripe models, there had to be a dozen of them on my street alone.
Most of them rotted away and became backyard ornaments in a matter of a few years. I think guy still has his in the garage but its not seen the water in decades.
Being a cheap boat they introduced a lot of folks to boating who otherwise may not have ever bought a boat, but at the same time they soured almost just as many on boat ownership when they realized the boat they bought was a worthless pile of rotten wood and fiberglass three or four years later.
They made a huge array of boats, some were impressive looking with a ton of options for less money but the build quality was horrendous across the board.

I'm not sure they started to improve but i do know that the later Trophy models weren't much better either. A friend of mine junked his after realizing it was completely rotten below deck after four years.

If they built autos the way some manufacturers built boats back then somebody would have gone to jail.

 

[H20Rat]

Wondering why you "always wanted an I/O".
I have an I/O and wish it was an outboard.

Too many negatives with an I/O in my opinion:

Forgot one positive... I can replace the 4.3l inboard in my boat with a $2100 reman longblock, and will take maybe a weekend at worst to do it. (or even way cheaper if I go to a junkyard and find a trailblazer, lots of them out there)

Refreshing a 4 stroke 200hp outboard will add a digit to that price tag.

Its hard to beat something like a carbed 4.3l or 5.7. Bullet proof tough, easy to work on, huge parts availability.