what to look for
 

I'm going to pick up our boat this weekend. what are some common problems I should be looking for. 1998 shabah 180

Some of the things I can think of are:

Fluid Leaks in the engine (check the bilge area for oily stains), damage to the lower unit of the outdrive, slack in the steering, spongy spots in the floor, and if you can drive it, check for engine hesitation throughout the power band, a regular oil pressure under throttle, watch the battery gauge to see if the voltage raises when you give it a little throttle, and definitely keep your eye on the temp gauge to make sure it stays under 210. All these things are expensive to fix.

things like dings in the prop, upholstery blemishes, stereo & electronics issues, etc are usually easy fixes and are relatively cheap to fix.

Be sure to take your digital camera with you, It's good to have a "before" set of photos of your boat for reference, and be sure to post some pics for us too!

the only thing I've noticed is about a half gallon of water.

Hi Lawman

I'm assuming that you meant that you found about a half gallon of water in the bilge. That's not unusual and you could have that after a heavy rain. Most boat tops aren't a perfect seal & rain water always seems to find a way in somewhere. Just make sure your automatic bilge pump is working and use that blower!! We dont want a Mariah to go boom when you start her up! :)