What do you think of this Malibu Sunsetter VLX

I'm going to look at a boat tomorrow -- a 96 Malibu Sunsetter VLX with tower and ballast for just under 20K. Does anyone know of a good marine mechanic in the Salt Lake City area that I could have look at the boat to make sure it's in good shape? I had a good mechanic save me from buying a big mistake one time so I've learned my lesson. Any recommendations?

Also, here's the link to the ad on KSL.com: http://www.ksl.com/?nid=218&ad=1301779&cat=147&lpid= -- tell me what you think. No pic's on the ad but they sent me the pics and the boat looks great.

I have that same boat except ours has the Monsoon engine. Not too bad of a price if it is in real good shape with not too many hours.

Silent choice exhaust???

Tuna tower??????????

Make sure it has at least 50+ hours per year, and make sure that it has been maintained on schedule and stored indoors. Having a mechanic check can only help.

I have the same boat with the monsoon also. I got mine in 2002 for $23,500 out the door with titan tower and wedge with 300 hours. If the boat has low hours and is in great shape I would pay around 18k for it. Wake is great, same hull as an older wakesetter vlx and the new v-ride. 20k for a 11 year old boat sounds steep to me, maybe its mint, let us know.

the wake of the sunsetter is molded different than the wakesetter. Therefor the wake is really tiny. You will need lots of weight in that boat to get a wake.

for price comparison...i just sold a '98 vlx with 200 hours on it for $23K (or maybe it was $21K...I forget) last summer to a family in salt lake. the main difference was mine had a series 1 titan tower. no wedge...no auto ballast...and dave27 is right...that boat needs a LOT of weight to make right at 22-23mph and 70-75'. but they're nice boats...good luck with it.....

Sorry Dave you are wrong on that one. The early sunsetter is what the wakesetter became it is the sv23 hull. What Matt said is correct. Some of the early 2000 sunsetters were put on the diamond hull which would be a bad choice for boarding but the 96 will be good. That sounds like a fair price to me provided it is in good shape. These things hold their values really well.

sounds like sbt3 did your homework...but it still needs a lot of weight to sink it...

eric any boat that you want to have a pro level wake is going to take some weight to get it good. I run 2100-2300 in my super sport nautique (210 hull) the other boat I ride all the time is a 06 vlx and he runs 2800lbs same goes with the new style xstar you need minimum 2500 for a good wake probably more like 3000. I would say with the 96 vlx you would want around 2000-2300. The beam on that is narrower than the new vlx which makes it a little easier to sink.

hey man...i wasn't disagreeing with anyone...i just know that my '98 took a lot of weight in the floor to make "right"....and of course, everyone's definition of "right" is different.

bottom line...slfxm asked what we thought...that's what i think...and i didn't misrepresent by saying it took any more than any other boat...just a lot. i guess i prefer a wake with more lip so whenever we rode mine, it just never seemed as big as some of the "steeper" wakes. maybe i could have said it differently....or added a wedge for $800....whatever....

but since i haven't had a chance to ride one, didn't they change the hull on the new vlx so that even though it is wider...it makes bigger wake........naturally i mean?

eric sorry if you thought I was taking a stab at you. That wasn't my intention. I agree that everyone does have a different opinion on what is "right". I was just trying to say that the hull he is looking at is a very nice hull and can have a great wake if weighted properly.
The new vlx is wider and the wake is a little steeper than the old one. I really like the new 05-current vlx hulls. If you get a chance ride one.
stan

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to look at it in about an hour. He's somewhat negotiable but not much. According to blue book he's right about average. The pics he sent make it look very nice and it's got about 480 hrs (about 44 hrs. per year).

We'll see how it looks but so far it sounds pretty good to me. I'll let you know.

show us some pics.

I only run about 700 lbs in the back and about that in the ski locker and I get a great wake. Drop the wedge and it gets big and steep, but you need to run more weight in the bow. VLX hulls need weight in the nose. Here are a couple of frame grabs from a video. I throw big raleys with only 1400 lbs of ballast and you can se from the other pic the size and shape of the wake. Sorry I don't have better pics