Hi All, <BR> <BR>I have got 2 boats on my list to buy: <BR>2005 Malibu iRide (600 hours) inboard <BR>1999 mastercraft xStar (1500 hours) v drive <BR> <BR>Both boats are the same spec, ballest,PP,etc <BR> <BR>The iride is 6 years newer than the xstar so should be less hassle with breakdown's etc, but the xstar will have a better wake, what do you think? Both are the same price.. <BR> <BR>Cheers <BR>Rossl

Xstar....just for the v-drive. Even though the xstar is older, it has depreciated more than likely all that it will.

I would go x-star on this one also.

Better be getting a heak of a deal on that Xstar with that many hours!!

Thats what i am a bit worried about, both boats are the same price and have 1 years warrenty on them, i don't want to buy a boat and it fall apart, but if i get the iride i may wish the wake was better and have to upgrade again. <BR> <BR>rossl

The x-star or i-ride should not have a warranty left on them. I think indmar's three year warranty is limited to around four hundred hours or three years which ever comes first.

They are both in dealers and they are giving the warrenty.

be careful with a boat with 1500 hours, it will be tough to resell. but the x-star/205 wake is awesome

Is the wake worth the problems of resale and reliabilty or is it better to go for the 2005 iride.

That is a tough decision...you are talking about 2 different boat set-ups. <BR> <BR>Direct Drive vs. V Drive. I would go with I-ride and a big sac for the nose.

I would not buy either of them way to many hours to not know how the previous owners treated them. I say keep looking there are plenty of boats out there with low hours that start popping up in the spring. Hold out for that really good deal. What is your budget?

Budget is $40,000 but i live in England , you don't get much for your money here.

Yeah I am with Ken on this unless they are just a smoking deal. Not that owning a boat is a good investment, but you might as well make a sound decision. Give us prices and we might be able to help more, but I know I would keep shopping unless they are a steal.

are you having them shipped over or are they already there? Check with some of the US dealers located close to major ports. I know there are quite a few dealers who have shipped boats overseas.

These ones are UK boats in UK dealers

I was trying to understand how the wake is "so much better" than the 2005 iRide and would have to disagree. Unless the iRide came without a wedge.?. I have been behind both wakes. They are both different a little, but they both rock! 1500 hours sure is a lot when you are considering both boats for the same price and a 5-6 year difference. My thoughts! <BR> <BR>I found a link that has nice shots of the wake for a 99 MC xstar. <BR><a href="http://www.wakesiderides.com/rides/index.php?page=out&amp;id=2412" target="_blank">http://www.wakesiderides.com/rides/index.php?page=out&amp;id=2412</a> <BR> <BR>(Message edited by hawaiianstiln on March 29, 2007)

The iride has mid ballest and wedge, anybody got a pic of iride's wake

i have an '06 iride with mid ballast and power wedge, its great. load the ballast, drop the wedge, fill it with people and put some weight in wherever you can spare it. the wake is super rampy, i have yet to play with wedge settings to see if it'll get more peak to it. but i love it.

Try that website for stock wake pics. You may not be able to find the exact model that you are looking for but for most boat makers the hulls dont change much from year to year. For example, for the xstar look at the new X1, Im pretty sure they are the same hull. As far as malibu im not to familiar with them maybe the ride XTI, but maybe some one else can shed some more light on that. <BR> <BR><a href="http://www.waterskimag.com/boat_inspector/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.waterskimag.com/boat_inspector/index.html</a>

Does anybody know if i can upgrade the stand 500 pound center sack system to add auto rear or front sacks

You can do anything to a boat as long as you have $$$$$$

it's not that hard. Just do a search on here. Lot's of people have added automated ballast system add-ons to their boat. Are you willing to drill thru your hull for the intake/exporting of the water for your ballast system?

The iride already has auto ballest in the centre so a thought they would just connect into that

Man 1500 hours is ALOT!! I dont know about you guys but I think 600 hours on a 05 is a lot too! I understand your in england but you can buy a used 06 moomba LSV for with under 100 hours for 40,000.00. IMO I would look around a little more. How much would it cost to ship from the States to England??

if you tap into that, which I guess you could...However, it would take forever to fill/drain your ballast off of that one hose. <BR> <BR>You should really install two pumps for each ballast bag with seperate hoses (Fill &amp; drain). This is usually the standard for most Wakeboard Boat MFG's. <BR> <BR>I couldn't imagine how long it would take to fill 3-4 sacks off of one pump and hose.

1500 hours is way to much....do u know how the previous owner treated the xstar? did he add alot of extra weight or did he just ride stock ballast? I bought a 2001 xstar with 73 hours for 30000 so 40000 sounds like way to much in my opinion

The xstar has the triple bag system and the iride has a wedge and 500 pound centre and i was going to put a 350 lb in the trunk and 350 in the bow. How much better would the x-star wake be?

Isn't the I-Ride the same hull as the V-Ride, which is the same as the late Sunsetter VLX and Wakesetter VLX through 2004? If so, that is a great wake.

Ross i am over in Ireland and have just bought my second boat. Here is a link to probably the best boat around in ireland. <a href="http://www.apolloduck.com/dealer.phtml?bid=208" target="_blank">http://www.apolloduck.com/dealer.phtml?bid=208</a> <BR>If you can find one here try TV Ski outside London.You would have about €30,000-00 Euro to spend here.

The I-ride puts out a great wake! <BR> <BR>Check out this vid. <BR> <BR><a href="http://wakepics.com/view_single.php/Jakober-s-NWWF-Video_wakeboarding-photos.html?medid=20308" target="_blank">http://wakepics.com/view_single.php/Jakober-s-NWWF-Video_wakeboarding-photos.html?medid=20308</a> <BR> <BR> <BR>Edit - the first 3/4 of the vid is the I-ride. The las minute is obviously a SAN wake. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by SEATTLE on March 30, 2007)

I have found an other contender, A 1997 Nautique Super Sport V drive with tower (I think it is the same as a Super Air Hull), anybody know what the wake is like with no ballast as its got no ballast tanks?

yeah, but you can add your own ballast with sacs, etc. the super sport is a great boat.

So to add my own ballest, do i just take the infeed from the engine raw water intake and connect the drain line to the bilge pump out, I dont want to drill holes in the boat if i dont have to.

I have a 95 super sport with a tower and the wake is good with out ballast. But I have 1500 pounds hidden in the boat and it throws a great wake all you'll need. Just do your on ballast I did it this year with out drilling any hole using a reversible pump.

With a reversiable pump where do you get the water feed from?

without drilling a hole you would either have to tap into the raw water intake for the engine or one of the drain plugs in the boat.

I used the raw water intake for the fill and drain lines. Took the hose off the glove box cooler which is worthless used check valves to vent all the bags. No holes drill and it works great.<img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/clipart/proud.gif" border=0>

I have owned both and can tell you the direct drive is going to be the way to go. Wake wise they are no different if you ballast right. You have to go malibu. And with the direct drive you will have much better handling. I am running the malibu now and will never roll anything else. Besides top ramen will always be there to keep me fed so I can be on the water.......But its your money you go with what you like the best as long as its a wake boat!!!!!

I think you guys are being a bunch of princesses about the hours on these boats. The price should certainly reflect the hours somewhat, but you should judge the boat as a whole. <BR> <BR>All of these boats are inboard/v-drives so using an automobile as a model you have: <BR> <BR>1500 hours x 24 mph = 36000 miles <BR>600 hours x 24 mph = 14400 miles <BR> <BR>You wouldn't buy a 1999 car/truck because it had 36000 miles or an 05 with 14400? <BR> <BR>I know that an automotive model isn't an exact fit for comparison and for boats that are operated at WOT or salted regularly it likely wont fit at all. <BR> <BR>My 99 X sees WOT maybe a 3-4 a year and it has 800 -some hours on it. I don't notice any drop in power since I got it and really no major mechanical difficulties. <BR> <BR>The X,Bu,or Nautty are all good boats and you will have a good support network of dealers with any of them. Judge the overall condition and go with your gut.