What do you think about your Moomba and Skier's Choice?

[sleepyluke]

Background - I have been skiing out of the family's Supra Comp since 1992 and you can not convince me (even if there is) that there is a better built boat or company behind it. Well fast forward to now, we are 4 hours from my parents and only get to steal the boat a month or so a year and I am in the market for a boat of our own. Well the more I look the more problems I seem to find with every brand out there, and seems to be a good many people unhappy with lots of Supra issues both big and small to include all speakers to the engine. I know these are both not built by Supra, Skiers, Moomba, Mastercraft whoever, but they are issues in your boat. I love the Supra/Moomba look, have always thought my boat would be one of these two and really looking at the LSVs. I know there are going to be issues crop up and that is to be expected with any purchase, but are we talking lots of issues or are we talking Ford vs Chevy issues that people just like to gripe when they are mad and really in the long run they are really good products? It just seems the more I look the more I see about lots of little things which should not be issues if quality control were in place in full force, but yet they seem to exist. Things like most people having ballast trouble, all having noise from the radio because the wires are touching, again little things, but things that are a pain when you are spending $20,000, much less 50-80k that some of these boats demand. Sorry for the long winded explaination, but I really need a boost of confidence from the Moomba world that this is where I need to KEEP looking. THanks

[viking]

Keep in mind that the things you are mentioning (ballast trouble, noise from the radio because the wires are touching, speakers, ect...) are all things that you are probably going to want to upgrade no matter what manufacturer you go with. At least I would.

And the engine? If i'm not mistaken - they all pretty much have the same Indmar or PCM Chevy powerplant and then brand them with their own name like "monsoon" or whatever. And they have comparable HP options accross the board.

What really sets them apart is the Hull designs, Electronics, Types of Ballast (hard tanks vs. sacks), bells and whistles as standard OR options, Quality of vinyl and construction, and special options associated with one manufacturer such at Malibu's WEDGE or Tige's TAPS system. OH........and profit margin

[skiyaker]

I love my Moomba, I've had just a few small and easily correctable issues. Not like my buddy with a Tige who has had his boat over a year and still having stereo issues.

[Razzman]

Browse other forums specific to different brands and you'll see the same issues gauranteed. I belong to quite a few and see the exact same issues and some more than here. Remember these are hand built boats and perfection does not exist, period. Anytime you have units built by many mfgrs that come together into one product you'll have issues no matter what that product is. Boat mfgrs do the best thay can to ensure a great product but none of them can control the quality of another mfgrs product.

Compare apples to apples for an example, that being and assembled product compared to another assembled product and you'll see that same issues ratio. Look at the auto industry, fully automated and light years ahead of the boating industry yet they have just as many if not more issues. People, for some reason, expect perfection with boats hence all the complaining imo.

As for engines i'm convinced one is not better than the other. I'll wager if you were to research alot of the engine issues they are operator error or caused. Factor those out and you'd have computerized electronic issues, sign of the times. That would leave a very small margin with actual engine issues. Normal.

[zabooda]

You need to get away from reading about all the issues and look for common threads. I haven't seen any issues lately. My boat had windshield issues some newer models had vapor lock issues. If there is a systematic problem with something, I found the threads to be miles long. I don't see that on this site. Statistically, there will be issues and to reduce the issues to zero would be too cost prohibitive.

The number of people on this website probably represents 0.1% or less of the total boats sold so don't take the issues brought up here as a good representation of what is happening with the rest of the SC family. It sucks to have a problem but statistically someone has too.

Again, when I look for big ticket items I look at forums and search for common issues and they will fill the screen if there is one. The others are just bad luck or operator error.

[sleepyluke]

Well I am trying to get on other forums and yes, there are issues everywhere, and for what it is worth, either less people or whatever, I have seen less issues with Moombas than even their more expensive cousin Supra. I really am looking for a boat that I can really enjoy without buying a boat that I know I am about to sink $5,000 more bucks into fix. Now if I decide next year it needs LOTS of speakers, well that is a whole other issue that will be addressed with any boat as said above. I have looked atht eMC forums and see the same issues and even more issues with $100k plus boats, so it really is across the board, but I just wanted to ask the question because you usually get a better answer if you ask direct instead of finding lots of bits and pieces.

I really am not a hardcore boarder that needs 6 foot wake, a pro surfer or a short line slalom, but really like to do it all and have friends that I love pulling their kids on the tube, yes I said the evil word, but I will get them on a board one day! I am looking for a good quality boat at a fair price that will be a good all around boat. I really want that to be a Moomba and stay in the family anyway! Thanks for the comments.

[maxpower220]

I have had my Moomba Outback since May 08 with Zero problems. I had 2 MCs before this boat also with zero problems.

Some of the issues that you are seeing are based on equipment. The Moomba is a more basic boat without LCD screen, multi-function readouts, LED lights, etc. So, there are less things to break (just a possible theory). I have found no issues with construction quality from my Moomba and I like Indmar power plants and likewise have had no problems with it either.

No matter what brand of boat that you purchase, you MAY have some issue. Much like the Kia vs MB/BMW debate: If you buy a $10K Kia, you MAY expect issues and are less like to report them when filling out a survey. If you buy a $50K MB/BMW, you are most likely not expecting any issue, and will be very vocal about issues.

[wolfeman131]

The only issue I have had with my Moomba is not being able to use it enough!

[NCSUmoomba]

I bought my 2001 Outback in 2005 without even test driving it. It had just under 100 hours on it. I am getting close to 500 hours now, and I have not had a single problem that wasn't my fault.

My stereo has messed up, but I had rewired the entire thing. I have had a dead battery a few times, but it turns out I didn't tighten the leads tight enough, and the other issue was my loud stereo drained my one battery. Now I have two batteries. My boat has cut off on me a couple of times, but I was driving a double up and knocked a wire off the switch. One other time it cut off, I had run out of gas. My factory ballast system worked great for the first year, then I ripped it out to upgrade it. My vinyl has split and torn some, but we beat the boat up and it lived outside for 3 or 4 years.

I also maintain my boat meticulously. I follow the manual to the letter, changing the oil, impeller, spark plugs, filter, etc. and it has never let me down. The only time I had to get towed was when I ran out of gas. I have towed 4 or 5 boats in that had trouble, one of which was a MC X45 that was only two weeks one (he ran up on a shoal at wakeboard speed). My Outback starts every time I turn the key.

I love my Moomba and plan on getting another one soon (a vdrive) to park next to my Outback, which I plan to keep forever.

[cab13367]

I bought mine new and I'm in my 4th season and coming up on 150 hours now. I have not had one problem with my boat. It starts every time and runs perfectly 100% of the time. Other than a few scratches in the gelcoat here and there that are my fault, the boat still looks new. There is no wear on the vinyl at all.

We wakeboard, surf, and yes, tube and the LSV is the perfect boat for us. Every time I take the neighbors out, they are so appreciative and they think my boat is the bomb.

So buy a Skier's Choice product - u wont regret it. But if u are buying used, be sure u get a good one and pay a boat shop to do a pre-purchase inspection on it.