Help for a NewbeeMariah Shabah 202z 20' bow rider

wayhat · 05-14-2009, 02:19 PM

Hey folks great site. I am life time sailer who is only buying a motor boat so that he teenage daughter and son can ski and do some water sports. We where originally thinking about a 20 foot jet boat but we where concerned about reliability and we also want something that will be a ok ride in 2-3 feet waves as we live on a large open river that can get rough at time but is calm in the AM and evening. Our needs are for a reliable boat, one comfortable/stable for day trips and good enough for sking. Wondering what your thoughts are on a Shabah 202Z that is for sale. Should I have concerns that Mariah parts may be hard to come by, I under stand the outdrive and motor are a standard alhpa. Is this the type of boat

http://nh.craigslist.org/boa/1159467671.html

Many Thanks in advance for the help and support.

Wayne

***mikeyt*** · 05-14-2009, 06:02 PM

Hi Wayne

We have a number of members here with the Z202 model and all speak highly of that boat. The 'Z' models are nice boats with all kinds of options that will make your ride on the water comfortable. I would want a water trial for the boat though. Look to see if everything works (power hatch, seat, gauges etc) and ask to see any servicing bills to confirm what was done. Ask who winterized the boat too! I noticed a couple of upholstery tears that would need to be fixed asap but other than that the boat looked to be clean & well maintained with the original trailer to match. The 5.0L EFI is a good reliable engine that will provide all of your power needs, especially for you 'non-throttle' types.

$9500 seems like a reasonable price but i'm sure she is open to a little negotiation.

It's true that some 'original' Mariah parts (trim pieces / glass / seats etc) are a little difficult to come by but our club has been sourcing these parts and will help out wherever possible. The parts situation really isn't much different though for a 10 yr old SeaRay or Cobalt or whatever but with our help, most items shouldn't be a major problem. Of course the Mercruiser engine/outdrive parts are still widely available at any Mercruiser dealer or retailer.

blockp · 05-14-2009, 07:08 PM

It looks like a very clean boat at a lot better price than many of others I've seen. You won't be disappointed with it. They are much nicer handling boats than most others around. Mine has a few dash squeaks that I'm trying to get rid of, but other than that, I am pretty happy with mine. hopefully you like talking to people at the boat launch though... I have yet to make it through a full launch and retrieve cycle without someone coming up to me and saying "nice looking boat, what is it?"

Looking at the pictures, I'm curious if anyone knows the answer to this. The max capacity on this boat says 10 people or 1590 lbs. My '98 z202 capacity place says 8 people or 1275 lbs. I have the 5.0 carbed motor and this one is and efi. I can't believe there is that much difference in weight between the two motors to justify 300 additional lbs or capacity. Anyone know why the difference?