Detroit Boat Show VlX

Malibu VlX...44,000
Solid Hull Color...1000 "subtracted"
Board Racks...600.00
2 kicker Speakers...529.00
Perfect Pass...1200.00
Fiberglass Platform...225.00 "subtracted"
Amp...250 "subtracted"
sub w/amp...529.00
2 pair pull up cleats..220 "subtracted"
total 49,053
total with subtracted items from salesman 47,358

I spoke with Malibu after seeing the x2 and feel the boat is much more spacious and roomy than the x2, it also has more standard options such as the table and the bow filler cushion. I spoke with Malibu's vice president who graciously took off a few of my options as well as the salesman who ran me through the boat. I told the man that I would return the following week to discuss the price and my options further. My question to all of you is... should I demand a ten percent decrease in the price as most of you have suggested? on top of the savings in options? If not what price should I take back to the show next week? Should I be jumping at this price?

When I got my VLX, when the economy was HOT, I paid much less, without pushing very hard.

11% off everything plus free water-air temp, depth finder, fenders, dock lines (about $600 value).

($49053-$600)*89% = $43123 + Tax/Lic

I don't know what people think dealerships make on boats, but I think 11% would be insulting. I'm sure they don't just make the prices up and I think that most people would agree that everyone deserves to make money in business.

I just ordered my '03 VLX here in California and got it for $49,000 out the door (Befor tax and license it was close to 45,500) with the following options:
Fiberglass swim deck
Striped Bimini
2 Batracks
Yellow (extra) Skylon Swoop
3 port heater
wedge
docking lights
2 pair of pull up cleats
Boat Cover
Perfect Pass Digital Wakeboard Pro
Depth Finder
Transom stero remote
JBL Deck with Four Infinity Speakers (doing the rest myself)
Swing away tounge tandem trailer with disk brakes painted to match the boat
Bolster Seat
And watch out on the solid Hull Color it voids gel coat warranty (but it does look like the shizzle) Sorry the post is so long

Matt, the 11% off retail was the standard boat show pricing in Jan 2000. I bargained for the freebies. Everyone was happy. And, I don't think I worked hard for a deal at all.

$44,045 Total Retail
$39,200 After 11% discount
+ tax/lic

2000 VLX with
sunbrella cover
grahite dash/wheel
stereo and cd changer
shower and heater
boss tower and bimini
issolator and 2nd battery
pull-up cleats
depth and temp
fenders and lines

Vic,

I think the dealer has room to come down on that price. I got my '03 at the end of August, so I dont know if that was a slower time for the dealers or what, but I paid less than those figures. (About 10% ish.) But, I did not have all the same options. I am on the west coast, so I dont know if thats a factor.

Dane and Vic,
The price has come up on the standard VLX since 2000 so you would have to adjust for that

matt,

markup is usually in the 30% range so don't feel bad-unless you got hosed and paid the asking price.

Chad, your boat is a 03 and mine is a 00.
Plus you got a bunch of cool stuff that I did not get (wedge, racks (I added later), docking lights, transom remote, perfect pass (I added later), bolster seat, and an extra heater port).

thanx guys, i am goin to the show this saturday and lettin the guy know i want the boat with all options listed above as well as the wedge for 45,500$ I think by the end of the week they will be looking to get rid of more boats and cut me a good deal. By the way is perfect pass worth the 1200 or so it costs? Can I go without it?

thanx guys, i am goin to the show this saturday and lettin the guy know i want the boat with all options listed above as well as the wedge for 45,500$ I think by the end of the week they will be looking to get rid of more boats and cut me a good deal. By the way is perfect pass worth the 1200 or so it costs? Can I go without it? by the way they had the solid gelcoat in yellow and it just looked to good so i had to have it. Hope i can get a deal on this thing... wish me luck.. -Vic

Dane, do you ever come down to Don Pedro? Maybe sometime this summer we can meet, I have family in Antioch and will be up there a time or two

Vic, be careful about that last day. I went back to the pleasanton show the last day just to look again (and because a dealer gave me free tickets) and they treated me as if I was thier last "kill." The dealers were herendous.

Yeah that solid yellow is cool, there was one at the show I went also. Ask, because I think that solid color voids your gelcoat warranty.

make sure that price is with a tandem. and make sure you try to squeeze them for less than 45,5. and yes perfect pass is definately an option you NEED.

Vic,
I just sent you an email, and a couple of options that you forgot to mention in this post was that the boat has a polished titan tower (500.00) and the hammerhead engine (2000.0 ?) also the way Skiers Pier prices the boat in on a single axel trailer with cover. I think that price is pretty good, keep the PP and get the wedge.

Definitely get the PP. Its worth the money. Its so nice to spin the drivers seat around and watch, instead of staring at the tach.

Dealer here said new boats went up 5% for 2003. Loaded boat here is about $44000 with tandem.

Dane and tim, no worries I did alright on boat, but if you think that 11% is a normal discount than I would like to know what the dealers normally mark their boats up to at boat shows. It's all relative to the time of year and what you believe.

Vic, don't give up. It's the sweetest boat you could imagine; have fun with it.

Rep I talked to from the Mastercraft booth called yesterday about pricing on the 03 x2 with same options listed above. He wants me to come down on saturday and go though a rundown on the boat and an explanation of how the quality of Mastercraft far exceeds that of Malibu. At first the guy was asking 50 now he is down to 45 out the door including tax and trailer. If the Rep goes down to 45 I am going to take that price back to Malibu to see if they will match. From there I will decide which boat to purchase. What is everyones thoughts on the boat? Which one would you choose and why? I like the fact that Malibu pays more attention to interior detail. I also feel Malibu has more standard options such as the bow filler cushion, cockpit table and the 325 hp motor as opposed to the MC 310 Vortec. What do you all think?

They are both great boats, the x-2 is a little smaller and doesn't have all the same items stock. When I purchased my 01 Wakesetter VLX at the boat show, I was going to purchase the X-Star untill I compared the two Watersports Marine are usually not ready to make a deal. When I was purchasing a new 2002 last year I was pricing and shopping at the boat show, I actually recieved a cheaper price for a Team Air loaded then a x-star loaded. My wife had decided she wanted to stay with Malibu because of the far suppior interion and the size difference between the three.

Allen

Ya I noticed that.. Thought there was no hope for the x2 untill they guy called! they must have had a ••••••• weekend just as I thought everyone at the show would. My little sceme to wait a week might just work for me... we will see what happends.. -Vic

I've heard that it has been very slow at the show. Make sure someone is giving you free tickets to get back in and work the best deal you can. I will be going on Friday to talk to some of my buddies at the different dealers and to look at the new x-star

You're in the exact same position we have been over the past several weeks. My wife and I literally spent 35 hours at the Seattle and Vancouver boat shows agonizing over our decision. Our short list came down to 3 choices: Malibu VLX, Mastercraft X2 (2002 leftover) and Tige 20V. We came to this shortlist after deciding that a direct drive just wouldn't do it for us as storage space and overall comfort were a concern.
In the end we realized that we would be splitting hairs when it comes to the quality of the wake. All 3 would throw an excellent wake - probably better than we would ever need. So, our decision came down to comfort, realtionship with local dealer, resale value and 'love' ... we ordered a Malibu VLX.

As much as we tried to like the X2, I just wasn't as comfortable in the driver's seat. The interior just seemed too small for our liking. The Malibu was outstanding. It also offered comforts such as a cockpit table, and plexiglass windscreen that we really liked. We're not professional wakeboarders. We are recreational boaters who love wakeboarding and this was the only boat that I can see us keeping for 5-10 years. When we stepped out of the boat we looked at eachother and knew that would be the one. We absolutely loved the boat. If you're looking to throw $40,000+ at a new boat, don't settle for what will be second best in your mind.

Joel, what did you pay with what options, going for a test drive on Saturday, and want to insure that I get the right price.

Our options included:
- tandem trailer with swivel tongue
- wedge
- 4 speaker installation (stereo will come later)
- 2 sets pull up cleats
- mooring cover
- bolster driver seat
- (I think that's it)

Before taxes we're paying just under $40,000 US (converted from Canadian dollars). I think we're getting a pretty good deal. Certainly, I felt the price justifed the quality and was far better than what I saw from the other top guns. Although I don't know this for a fact, I get the impression that some manufacturers offer better prices to Canadian dealers to make up for ourcrappy dollar. I'm not saying this is the case with Malibu, but if the price is lower than what you're seeing in the States, that might be the reason.

I saw a few for 43,500 at the dallas Boat show and it had normal options im sure a few upgrades would have pushed it to 45,500 i wouldnt pay more then that for it..They were only asking 47,500 for a 2003 super air limited stock but still it is a nauty

I was quoted 44K at the Dallas boat show fully loaded with PP. T/A, tower, wedge, boat cover, stereo, bolster, heater, 2 sets of cleats, docking lights, depth and temp. If they can pull 2k off this price, they might have a deal, if not, I have my eye on two sweet used boats.

Joel, you forgot the depth sounder.

Ah, yes, corrected by my better half. You can correct me all day as long as you continue flipping half the bill!

Guy at Mastercraft just called back and said best he could do was 47,500 out the door. I feel this price is still too high and am looking forward to Malibu's response on my price of 45,500 i will let you all know how it goes after sun. also i have decided to work perfect pass in somehow, whether it be in place of the board racks of tower speakers i realize now how important a feature it is and how many problems and fights it will solve when trying to get a decent pull, so thanks for the persuasion. -Vic

Vic,
If I were you I would subtract the tower speakers, you can live without them but you can't live without board racks. I have two pair of board racks on my tower and they are always full. The PP you can't live without, I didn't get it on my 01 to try and save a grand but kicked my self everyday for not having it now that I have in my 02 I will never own another boat without pp again. Good Luck getting the price you are looking for. I will be down at the boat show tonight to check things out and talk. Hopefully you end up in the Malibu Family.

Allen

Vic,

If you like the spaciousness of the Malibu you should definately give the Supra line a look over. Both Mastercraft and Malibu undoubtably make a solid boat, but don't oversight some of the other manufacturers who may have something to offer in the same price range. You could get into a pretty decked out Supra for the prices you are talking about. Just something to ponder. If you want some more info give me a call.

Brett Watson
Club Royale Marina
(248) 681-9100
ClubRoyale@ClubRoyale.net

Go talk to Silver Spray Sports. You will never get warranty work done with the Malibu. Talk to them at the Novi Show or calll them at their shop. You won't be disappointed.