Is this Nautique worth 10k

I am looking at this 91 Nautique Excel. I havnt seen it in person yet, And I dont know what to look for when I do. Any help would be appreciated. What do I look for? I know new boats, but where I am now located comp boats are few and far between. Its all fishing boats here in Panama City, and the bay is right outside of my house and I need to play. Where do I get parts for these? Like belts, hoses, fuses...etc...

Walk all over the floor and feel for softness. Take a look at the motor mount bolts to see if the hull is rotting there. Make sure it idles smooth and starts well, if not a compression check is in order. A test drive should be in order too. Does the transmission shift positively? Then there is the obvious, engine bilge condition, does everything in the boat work (bilge pumps, lights, horn, etc.), seat condition, hull condition, have any repairs been done to the gel coat, etc...

Edit: Forgot the parts question. Skidim.com has tons of parts, and belts can be had from a local auto parts store. Impellars are needed anually, but hoses should last the lifetime of the boat. They are not subjected to heat unlike a car.

(Message edited by Peter_C on December 18, 2005)

thanks, As far as the engine mounts...are you talking about the stringers or hull?

(Message edited by goth2o on December 18, 2005)

Here's book values from NADA Guides. Not sure how the formatting will come out, i'm new this html garb.

	Low Retail	Average Retail
Base Price	$8,870	$10,690
Bimini Top	$165	$195
Teak Swim Step	$185	$220
Ski Pylon	$70	$85
Total Price	$9,290	$11,190

Pete gave you some good things to look for. I wrote a long post on the Supra board a while back with a few more things you might want to look for. You can see it at this link:
http://supraboats.com/msgboard/read.php?TID=1271

Cheers,
DKJ

the engine mounts to the stringers. 91 nautiques had wood stringers in them. try to turn the bolts to check the stringers. If you can turn them and they don't tighten, they may be rotten. If everything works, stringers are good and the boat has moderate hours on it, I think its worth 10. Check NADA etc. I see its in FL, so it may have had a lot of saltwater hours. Over time, causes major corrosion and rusting. I don't know how you check the inner parts of the engine to see if you're buying some problems, but at least talk to the seller about it. Did it get flushed after use? All hours salt? etc.