For the record, I never said I only tried running 2k in my 230s. On the contrary, I tried to run the exact same setup in my 230's that I have in my A22, which is two of the Fly High 1000lb surf sacs in each rear compartment, as well as a 1000lb bow triangle and factory ballast. I added 500lb sacs in the walk through area of the 230 trying to keep the front from porpoising. I tried less weight in the rear, less weight in the front, speeding up, etc. When I added over 1500lbs of extra weight, on top of factory in my 230's, the wake was always tempermental. I lived and breathed those boats for over three years and knew them inside and out. One of my good friends owned the local Correct Craft dealership and five of my friends have 230's. I have a ton of experience with those boat. I'm not just throwing crap out there just because I changed brands. I bought an A22 because I thought it was a great value and because it produces a better wake, hands down.
I loved a LOT of things about my 230's. They were roomy, were built very well, held their value, gave me very little trouble overall, looked great, had all sorts of bells and whistles, etc. However, I just was no longer willing to pay so much more (almost double) for a boat that simply did not produce the best wake.
As for the ZR6 vs. the Raptor 400, it's hard to compare. The fuel consumption when weighed heavy seems about the same. Any boat's going to blow through gas when loaded really heavy. What I have noticed is that, when running around the lake, surfing, and riding with factory ballast + wedge, the A22 seems to do better on fuel than the 230's did when operated in the same manner (I had the ZR6 in all 3 of my 230's). However, to be fair, the 230 is a bigger, heavier, and more combersome boat. It's going to burn more fuel to push that thing around. I had no trouble out of my ZR6's. That's a great powerplant for sure.
One other thing to consider - and you can verify this on the nautique boards - is that if you buy a used 230 with zero off, lots of people had surging issues with the '08-early '09 model year boats when weighed heavy. I had that problem with both my '08 and '09. It was much less noticable with my '10. However, the '10 did sometimes lose sat feed and cut off completely when riding in tight areas (like up river in Knoxville near Sea Ray).
There is no doubt that the 230 isa great boat. It produces an awesome wake to a point, and then it begins to have problems. At least that's my opinion and experience. The A22 wake is just much more user friendly and can get bigger and bigger without washing.
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