Quality and the little problems in 2014?
 

Hi

End season is coming and maybe we have a little bit more time to talk :-)

Some of us maybe know the "Malibu factory" Video, where the QC employe are running around the boat like chickens, quality first etc., no different to other companies. And most of us have a boat and know that quality is... a stretchable term. Loose wires, incorrect drilled holes, lousy solutions..

So what i want to know from you is: Your problems with the 2013/2014 production boats. The big problems and the small problems ;-). I hope you like to share them. It should not be any offense or bashing against a brand. Just the facts, Brand, Model, Engine hours, the problems.. and at the end if you would buy the boat again with the knowledge you have now. Oh, and of course - "not a single little problem with my new boat" is welcome too :D.

Unfortunately i can't share it with you, my boat is from 2008 (Supra), i do like the boat but the build quality from Supra in 2008 is a shame. But 2008 is the past, a long time ago, so lets talk about 2014.

Cheers, OneCent

P.S Again: No bashing, just your experience with the boat.

2014 MC X30. Had the stbd lenco actuator fail within the first couple hours of use. Dealer brought a new one to my house that evening, and swapped it for me. (Dealer is 60 miles away) No problems except that actuator. I have about 128 hours this season so far.

Yes, I would definitely buy one again.

Another thing of note- The original fuel sending unit doesn't read 100% correctly with non-ethanol fuel. (Reads about 1/4 tank low. Somehow reads fine with ethanol fuel though) They had a TSB for this, and sent me a centroid type sending unit. 5 minute swap, and fuel guage reads correct with both types of fuel.

2014 Supreme V226

• Gel coat blem, - resolved by dealer – great service

• tower locking pins rattle loose and fall out – not resolved, no solution from factory. Have spent over $100.00 on replacement pins and have to ghetto tape them in when towing the boat more than a couple miles. Only one side falls out and then the extra tension on the other side keeps it from falling out.

• rear ballast drains while underway – no solution from the factory. They basically said “we don’t know” but did send me new hoses and clamps for me to completely rework the ballast plumbing based on a WW members rework of their 2014 V226. (I am a DIY type of guy but shouldn't have to rework the ballast on my brand new wake boat.)

• center ballast fills on its own – no solution from factory but again I have a solution from a WW member. Thanks H20King

• leaking batteries delivered with new boat – no reply even after multiple emails and escalation to Fineline's VP. I upgraded to new gel batteries (since they were needed to use the boat) and asked if they would just comp me a shirt or some trailer guide pads for the trouble.

Would I buy another one? Hell no!! We like the looks of the boat, the wake, and layout but I would not spend that kind of money for the service I have received. I guess R&D is what you don’t get in a budget boat. Which is a laugh to call it budget at 60K plus.

When we trade this one in a couple years it will not be a Fineline product. Which is too bad because I was loyal to the brand and this was my second Supreme. I'm not bashing as I do not think it is unreasonable to expect everything to work properly on a brand new boat.

CAVEAT EMPTOR.

I guess I should clarify, after rereading this it could be construed as bashing. A loose fitting, burnt relay, or failed part during the break in period would have been expected as most wake boats are relatively small production handcrafted products. Mechanically the boat has been great. How it was handled it why I wouldn't buy again. 50 something hours this season.

i bought a moomba outback v first v drive boat not a problem with it 50 hours this summer and its a budget boat. was looking at supremes glad i when with the choice i did

2014 226 I did have to re work the ballast but it was not a big deal. The factory system worked I just made it better. I have the same dealer as Darrin and they supplied all the parts and offered to do the work but I like to mod my boats my self. Darin if you fold the tower there is a set screw to tension the pins. We love our 226 and would for sure buy another one with the dealer support that comes with it. We have put 110 hours and counting and other than changing up the ballast the boat has been flawless !!!

Darrin, thanks for your info, i don't think that was bashing. We expect to have such problems, but .... A non working ballast system is a pain (i have similar problems with my ballast system) and its hard to understand why this is still a problem in 2014, with all the experience the manufactures have now.

2013 X2

no QC issues at all. I had a screen on the computer go out, but dealer came to my house to replace it about 20 minutes...

yes, I would buy another MC in a heart beat.

H20King is correct. The dealer service was excellent and I would absolutely buy from them again.

Just not Fineline, I tell everyone this that asks about the boat. It's a great looking boat and gets a lot of attention so I tell the story frequently.

Dealer = thumbs up. Factory = thumbs down.