To the folks thinking of buying a Yamaha: I will never buy one again.

[Ancient canoe]

Low end boats I would have to disagree. You win some and lose some. I have friends that own Super Natiques, Centurions and Master crafts. First I hear more complaints from them than any Yamaha owner. Second, I leave everyone of them in the dust when we go out cruising to our destinations spots. Besides them putting out better wakes, there is nothing about their boats that mine can't do plus some. Most of them complain about harsh rides in windy rough conditions and not mention getting wet all the time with splashing water from the low hulls of those such boats. Now you right they probably spent $90k and up for those toys but the price does not really justify what is high end or not. Master craft has probably the strudiest tower on the market but at what price you pay for that? With Yamahas you lose the hardcore sporting aspects and elaborate interior designs. Both I care less about. Plus all those boats I've named up there, it seems they are sitting in the party cove the majority of the day with us? So kinda lame excuse for them saying they want a wakeboard/surf boat when most of their times are spent floating. I've came to realize now days its all about just saying you own one rather than using it to it's full capabilities. Either way everyone has their own tastes and what they consider a good purchase I believe.

Maybe low end wasn't the best choice of words and I was mainly talking about where Yamaha started and where they want to be. I don't disagree with a lot of your points, but I was speaking to quality not necessarily function. Wake boats are built a specific way for a specific function, and as a result they don't function well in other areas. That has nothing to do with being low end or high end, that is just the nature of their design. Higher price tag doesn't always mean more function

I agree there are people that probably wasted their money on those boats as they probably don't do watersports enough to even utilize their advantages, and practically would be better off with a lot cheaper runabout, but very few people actually purchase boats or any vehicle for practical reasons. A lot of the purchase decision comes from ego/image standpoint. 90k wake boats look bad ass and plenty of people own them that don't use them it's no different than someone in a completely decked out 4x4 that never sees as much as a dirt road.

 

[ncnmra]

It seems my sentiments are validated here. The older style boats (pre-2011?) seemed to be built with pride and care. This got Yamaha a lot of attention and popularity, and I think they have now lost their way. The continued issues I keep reading about (timing chain, anchor locker, tower) make me really NOT want to upgrade my boat. Bad customer service is a plague and can ruin a company (Dell, PayPal before they changed their ways). I hope Yamaha doesn't lose sight of what got them where they are in the boating world...reading these cases of horrendous customer service makes me think they already have.

 

[Mainah]

Lots of brands have issues. Anyone remeber that Seadoo was a major direct competitor to Yamaha in the boat market until 2012? They were known for not supporting their dealer network for warranty issues very well. It would seem that without direct major competition that Yamaha is enjoying higher sales volumes without fear of losing a material amount of market share to a direct competitor. That has possibly made them a bit lazy and able to afford a few post sale customer service failures.

Yamaha did not design a bad crop of boats. In fact their designs are pretty darn good for the market they are targeting. It is their product readiness testing (both what passes with flaws and not enough rigor; including vendor supplied parts), quality control, and post sale customer service that has more than its fair share of room for improvement in the mass market boat segment IMO.

I choose to fix what I think needs fixed and enjoy my toy. Bitterness does nothing to help one enjoy the short time we have.

 

[Wr3ckdiver]

@davel501, Sorry to hear that but I think its going to be an issue where your going to have to sue the sh** out of them to get any results. Actually all of you who have issues with these wakeboard towers should work together and find a lawyer to sue Yamaha to get this resolved. Seems like in today's world your at the mercy of these conglomerate companies who don't give a crap about their customers.

 

[FloJet]

Even with my

Lots of brands have issues. Anyone remeber that Seadoo was a major direct competitor to Yamaha in the boat market until 2012? They were known for not supporting their dealer network for warranty issues very well. It would seem that without direct major competition that Yamaha is enjoying higher sales volumes without fear of losing a material amount of market share to a direct competitor. That has possibly made them a bit lazy and able to afford a few post sale customer service failures.

Yamaha did not design a bad crop of boats. In fact their designs are pretty darn good for the market they are targeting. It is their product readiness testing (both what passes with flaws and not enough rigor; including vendor supplied parts), quality control, and post sale customer service that has more than its fair share of room for improvement in the mass market boat segment IMO.

I choose to fix what I think needs fixed and enjoy my toy. Bitterness does nothing to help one enjoy the short time we have.

I agree. It's very hard to blame companies now days. Yes it's their names and brands but people who work for such brands need to take more pride in their work. I'm sure if executives knew about these customer experiences we have heard, those individuals will not be there any longer. The problem is just like our great country, once something gets so big, it becomes difficult to hold everyone accountable. It's like eating in a restaurant. I can't get mad at a restaurant chain just because I had a crappy server. That server has to be held accountable individually. I believe most companies are in for the good but the bad apples ruin their names at times.

 

[McMark]

A friend of mine’s brother started his family with a Tige. He upgraded after a couple of years to a Super Air Nautique G25 I believe it was, all black. Beautiful boat. So sleek a perfect...but it was disintegrating in front of his eyes. The last issue was that the motor had to be pulled so that the hull could have a huge crack repaired. The dealer that fixed it told him don’t ever bring this boat back again. He sold shortly after the last hull repair and has been boatless ever since. The hit on a $145k boat was just too much. Although the issues were covered, he couldn’t stand the boat after having it in the shop most of its life.

 

[Betik]

at the end of the day @McMark we are land creatures. If we want to play in the water we got to suck it up.

 

[McMark]

So true. I’m hoping to get across that no matter the boat, it needs wrenched on.

 

[Beachbummer]

Don't forget, if you buy used, after warranty is expired, you are free of Yamaha customer support, and the original owner(s) before you would have had to address the early bugs.

 

[LTM1964]

Don't forget, if you buy used, after warranty is expired, you are free of Yamaha customer support, and the original owner(s) before you would have had to address the early bugs.

That sounds good but I have started looking into how I could diagnose problems after the warranty expires on my '15 SX192. I don't see the cable or software for the newer engines. Does anyone know how an owner or independent shop can perform diagnostics?

 

[TS4811]

Let’s face it, part of the joy of ownership are the little things we can do to our boats.
But when you have a condition as I hear with the wake towers and the response from the factory it is alarming.
In my case, even after having to fix a few really stupid issues with my new boat, I find, I really do love the boat. I am glad I bought it. And if something destroyed it, I would go out and buy another one. Actually sounds fun, start all the tweeks and upgrades again!

Oh yea, did I mention how easy it is to winterize!

 

[OCMD]

I'm happy my 2008 SX230 POS would sell today for about what I paid for it 5 years ago. Nary a problem. Maybe the newer models have had issues; i'm juts happy I have a license,time and power to sue these companies whenever I want.

 

[FloJet]

I personally feel the greatest gripe at hand is their unwillingness to own up to the issues at hand, even if just to admit there is a problem. There is great competition on cars and most dealers are decent at warranty service. (only VW has kept a car over a single day from me, and when they did so (multiple times) they gave me a loaners.) This expectation does not appear to translate to boats at all.

Geez you sure are blessed. I don't think I have ever gotten a vehicle back from a shop within 3 days. I need your type of services.

 

[FloJet]

Let’s face it, part of the joy of ownership are the little things we can do to our boats.
But when you have a condition as I hear with the wake towers and the response from the factory it is alarming.
In my case, even after having to fix a few really stupid issues with my new boat, I find, I really do love the boat. I am glad I bought it. And if something destroyed it, I would go out and buy another one. Actually sounds fun, start all the tweeks and upgrades again!

Oh yea, did I mention how easy it is to winterize!

I so agree. I catch myself now working on my boat about 3-4 days a week on the off season. It really helps buy time and helps me learn as I go too. First boat I've done most of the upgrades and fixes on. Only thing I don't do is drill into fiberglass. I leave that to the experts. lol