Let's Summerize All Of Moomba's '06 Line-up

[Joe]

Hello everybody,

I've been following this board for several months and finally decided to sign-up and post a topic. I have a 2005 Bayliner 195, it is my first boat and clearly I didn't know what I was doing when I bought it (or I would have bought a Moomba)! I'm now going to be buying a Moomba soon and have been trying to get all the models figured out.

What I thought would be nice for me and possibly many other newbies is a brief "summary description" highliting the strengths/weaknesses of each 2006 Momoba model relative to other 2006 Moomba models. Items that seem important to me are:

1) Handling (D-Drive versus V-Drive)
2) Acceleration
3) Wake-making ability
4) Hull differences
5) Anything else?

I really would like to make the most educated decision this time and I know alot of you have been boating a lot longer then me and have alot of knowledge about Moombas! So, if you feel so inclined please tell me all about the:

- Outback
- Outback LS
- Outback V
- Outback LSV
- Mobius LS
- Mobius LSV
- Mobius XLV
- Mobius XLV GG


- Thanks in advance!!

[YellowMoomba0]

Hello Joe:

You do have a tough decision to make since everyone on here loves their Moomba for various reasons. I have an 04 Outback DD because I wanted the least expensive and most versitle boat for the money. I ski with a group of friends several days a week plus weekends. We have two slalom courses so the AWSA hull was critical to me. I also kneeboard and like as big of a wake as I can get. V Drives in the Outback, Mobius, and XLV models will definately make a larger wake but they are not as good as the smaller DD for the course. The slalom course capability was the most important factor in my decision since I can always add weight for my kneeboarding but I can never take weight away. Granted I will never achieve the V drive wakes. I would imagine any Moomba model handles great. I certainly have not read any complaints about handling on this board. It's an inboard afterall. Riding to the Marina for dinner across big choppy water is not as comfortable in my Outback as it would be in a Gravity Games XLV for obvious reasons.

You can certainly ski behind any Moomba Model and thoroughly enjoy it. You need to evaluate your needs carefully: i.e., family room and storage, skiing frequency vs wakeboard frequency. Definately get your dealer to take you out in both DD and VD for testing. In the end, your still getting a Moomba and that is hardly a wrong decision. Glad to have you with us and let everyone here know what you decide.

[Smrtz]

Hey Joe,

Im sure you will get lots of info from the guys on the board here. I do recommend that in addition you make an appointment with your local dealer and go and try all the boats. Part of your decision depends on what you plan to use the boat for. Are you a wakeboarder, or a skier? wakesurfer?

or maybe a little of all of the above.

Let us know

congrats.. its a decision you wont regret!
Welcome to team Moomba!!

[JoeTechie]

You essentially have 4 hulls:

* Outback - smallest direct drive, smallest wake, most nimble, cheapest.

* Outback V - larger boat, v-drive, larger wake, EXCELLENT wakeboard starter boat!

* Outback LS
- Outback LSV
- Mobius LS
- Mobius LSV
All have the new even larger 21.6' wider 97" hull, but with an even more pronounced rear stair-step hull so that with the wake plate up - it creates a larger wake. - should all really have the 325 HP engine since they are much heavier. Not small and nimble, at this size - they start getting harder to manuver at low speeds, but tons of room in the v-drives! MOBIUS has tower, ballast, and wakeboard prop. - otherwise identicle to the Outback model of the same name. All direct drive models will have a slightly smaller wake when the plate is down for skiing, V-drives get a "nice" ski wake above 31mph, but still not tournament ready.


* Mobius XLV
- Mobius XLV GG
LARGE boat. Period. These are jsut great for crankng up a huge wake, but require a larger engine - I'd only put the 340 in them. Lots of room for you and your 9 best friends to hang out. and still have rooom for gear and food. NOT for skiing!


Acceleration will shut you up the first time you feel what these can do. Trust me - we ALL got a shi* eating grin the first time we all felt it! All boats are about the same range of top end - 42-49 mph. These are not designed to skim over the water - they are designed to pull skiers - lots of them if need be.

Hmm... handling vs a I/O... um - look in the dictionary under "no contest" or "silly question" Here is one for your first test ride... drive 25 mph and turn the wheel HARD. Now try to stop smiling. Now go sit in the back seat and have the person giving you the test ride the same do the same thing... oh.. did I forget to tell you that those grab handles all over the boat are there for a reason ?

"oops."


Options:

Pretty much everyone agrees on:

* Perfect Pass
* Wake Plate
* Water Strainer

Others will chime in on their favorite option and why.

Downsides to inboards:
*Fixed minimum depth you can run in - must learn to stay away from the shallows or be willing to carry a spare prop at $500.
*Difficult to reverse in one direction - prop steer is strange - but you get used to getting around it.
*All the gawks you get from people with I/Os that wish they had what you do.



I agree w/ the above - you need to decide what kind of sports you are into - if you ski a lot - you want the Direct Drive. If you only ski a little or not at all - the v-drive is much more open and friend/family oriented. The Outback-V is the old LSV and TONS of the members here have it and love it - it is so cheap now that I'm amazed they are not the top selling boat from SC. I'd start there and see if you need more or less. Find a good dealer and talk a LOT about what you are looking for.

just my $0.02,

Joe

[Joe]

Thanks for the replies! Based off last boasting season, I'd say we spent 1/3 of the time wakeboarding, 1/3 of the time skiing & 1/3 of the time pulling some kind of towable. I know that one boat can't do it all the very best but I would like to pick one that will do most everything good (if possible). So, lets say I picked up a Outback DD (Love the price), would I be able to add enough ballast to get a nice sized wake without having to lay bags all over my floor? Same question on a Mobius LS...?

- Thanks!

[Joe]

Thanks for all the info, it's really usefull to know about the different models. At this point I am leaning towards the Outback V. My reasoning is this: (Let me know if any of this is incorrect)

- Still a nimble and good handling boat
- Can creates a big wake
- Wrap around seating

[Smrtz]

Yes Joe Correct. I have the05 outback If I had had the option at the V last year I would have jumped on it. If you are into wakeboarding I'd say the V is a great pick!

Looking forward to seeing some pics of your new boat

Jay

[TN_Boarder]

I just have one thing to add. If you're planning on loading the Outback V up with a bunch of options (especially planning on adding a tower as it doesn't come w/ one factory), you can probably go ahead and get the Mobius LSV for around the same price. I was also looking at the Outback V mainly because its a little shorter than the LSV and there was an outside possibility that I would be able to fit it in my subdivision spec home with so called two car garage (yeah right, if you drive two geo metros maybe). I lucked up and found a dealer that already had an LSV ordered with a bunch of boat show incentives and I ended up getting a loaded Mobius LSV for $36700 which is actually cheaper than I could get an Outback V with all the options I wanted without boat show incentives because they were gonna have to order it later. You should price both boats with the options you're looking for and definitely, as said before, take a ride in both if possible before purchasing. One more thing, I enjoy all water sports skiing, boarding, and pretty much anything else I can attach to the back of my incredibly awesome boat, and the adjustments on the LSV allows you to create a wake that's great for all of them.

[Joe]

That's a good point about the Mobius LSV. They way that I figure it I could get the Outback V for $37,700 and the Mobius LSV for $40,060 (both equipped the way I want it). So that is pretty close. I guess I was leaning towards the Outback V because I wanted to make sure I was getting a sharp cornering boat but at this point I think I just need to go test drive them both because I'm beginning to form pre-conceived ideas about what these boats are like without ever being on one!

[TN_Boarder]

Well, I do know that this year's OBV has the same hull as last years MobLSV at 20'6". This years MobLSV is a new hull design at 21'6" and I think a little wider beam as well. Naturally the bigger hull design is going to limit the LSV cornering a bit compared to the OBV. For me the LSV corners great for recreational skiiing/boarding. But yeah, go drive both and I'm sure you will not be disappointed with either.

1 hour and 34 minutes 'til lake time boys....WooHoo!!