Buying Advice - AR240

[JohnB]

I've been following the forum for a while now...and have myself convinced that I'm ready to make the jump into another boat. My last one was quite a few years ago, 19' I/O. Kids are 7&10 and I think an age where we could really enjoy boating again.

After reading all the posts, it hasn't taken much for me to rationalize that the 24' are the way to go.Will primarily be using on inland lakes around Ohio, but would like the capability to occasionally go on Erie or Lake Michigan near-shore.

Part of my post is asking the question of how crazy am I? The boats look great and I've walked around on them at dealers, but I 've never ridden or driven one. Seems to be a big jump to be ready to spend $50k without being in on the water. Also, are they really worth that vs. picking up a used prop drive for less than half of this.

Has anyone taken this type of jump before? What are your thoughts now? By virtue of being on the forum, I would expect the people he to be positively bias to jetboats and Yamaha in particular.

What would be a good deal on a reaming 2017? What's a great deal? Seems silly to buy a boat knowing it will go into storage for months before even using!

I've learned a lot from reading posts and am hoping for a bit more insight before I make the commitment!

 

[dnicholas47]

I found a very nice used '15 for well under a new and it had $10k worth of upgrades. I would look that route if I was you and had hesitations. First boat, hadn't test drove a '15 until my water test the day I bought it. (I had been on a friend's '14 once). Everything I knew about them were from this forum and the boat I bought was owned by a member here. There was a small learning curve, but we are past that and are very happy with it. I have 4 kids, oldest is 9 and they love it. On the flip side we've had 11 adults cruising the Ohio river for a concert and it didn't feel crowded. I can't speak to Erie or Michigan, but I was just as crazy as far as no on water experience prior to buying and have no regrets.

 

[WildCatFan54]

I made the jump from an older model 19' Bayliner to a 2016 AR240 in the spring of last year. As foolish as it sounds I did it without first doing a test drive. Part of that was the absolute trust I had in my dealer and the fact we were getting pounded in the Bayliner on a busy day at Lake Cumberland. For sure the best trade I ever made. This boat rides and runs great all the time , no matter how choppy the water on the lake. But I would also agree that preowned deals are very attractive.

 

[JTC1016]

Same as the other guys here. I had a 2005 Bayliner 185 and never rode in a Yamaha until my water trial the day I picked mine up at the dealer. After 2 seasons I haven't regretted it for a second. I have three kids 7 and under and they love it too. If I had it to do over again I would still buy the same boat.

 

[Slfmde]

Bought a new 17 Ar240 last month and this our first boat. Wife and I with two 4yrs olds. This is the first time I ever towed or even drove a boat.

 

[John Mcpartland]

We did the same this year. Went from a 20ft regal to an 2017 ar240 without test driving. Our Main reasons for going with the Yamaha is not having and prop, since we have a 6 and 8 year old and the head, it has come in handy a few times this year having little kids and women on the boat for all day. A couple things I have noticed is that the fiberglass is a lot thinner. Regal, Monteray and others have very thick fiberglass and are very solid and on my ar240 the sides will actually flex when washing waxing and the carpet is pretty thin also. But to get one of the other boats in the same size its almost double in price. With over 45hrs this year we haven't had any real issues and the kids and wife love the boat and it is alot safer than our old i/o. I looked at a few surf/wake boats also but for the price for us it couldn't be beat. I also like that you can buy any piece for this boat so if you rip a cushion for example you can just buy that one and not have to have it redone at an opholstery shop.

 

[0627Devildog]

Went from a 22' Sea Ray 225 Weekender to a 2014 AR240HO. . . . . . Absolutely love my boat. So much so, I am considering selling it and getting a 2018.

 

[Chadt4]

I went from a 76 16ft Lund to a 2017 ar240ho two weeks ago... family is happy with the choice!

 

[robert843]

I owned several I/O boats and there are few things I miss. The quite ride and the thicker hull other then those two things no regrets. I still think I will switch to an outboard in a few years but it would be a tough sell to go back to an I/O it would just have to be a crazy deal price wise for me to go back.

 

[Britboater]

I love my AR240, and the look and swim deck really made it for me, however, I'm getting tired of the "build your own" maintenance I have to do.
The other makers are pumping out some real nice looking boats now and I'm thinking my next purchase will be from a manufacturer that actually finishes the job.

 

[Nimrod_R]

We bought a 2017 AR240. Love it to death. Told the wife I wanted to buy a 24 foot because I didnt want to worry about upgrading later down the line. I just wanted to buy a boat once. I feel like buying anything smaller would have been a mistake for us, family of 4 and regularly have 8 people on the boat now. We went from a pair a 2012 Sea Doo's so we were already familiar with the way jet drive watercraft steer, so no surprise there. If we didnt already have the experience with those I might have been nervous about buying a boat without the water test. But no regrets.

 

[FloJet]

Bought a new 17 Ar240 last month and this our first boat. Wife and I with two 4yrs olds. This is the first time I ever towed or even drove a boat.

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Good choice for a first timer. Congrats.