Advice sought re 1998 18' Shabah
 

Hi

Feeling like an imposter - not yet an owner but thinking hard!

I have seen adverts for a 1998 Shabah 18' with a 3ltr mercruiser on 140hrs.

Rather fallen for it, lovely deep racing green colour.

Before I take the steps of driving for half a day to see the thing, could I get some advice from you guys?

Firstly, and assuming I'm in the right forum... :
Is there anything I should be looking out for on something like this?
Is there a big difference between the 3ltr and any other engines - in terms of real world user experience?

Does anyone know how much it weighs? Will I need a new car to pull it!? (Mines rated to 1750KG in the UK).

And finally, these boats look like enormous fun, I take it as owners you all agree, and would punt the Mariahs over eg a seadoo or larson? :p


Cheers all,

Rich

Re: Advice sought re 1998 18' Shabah
 

Hi Rich,
My previous boat was a 17 Sea Ray with the 3ltr engine. I had it for 16 years and not one days problem. That engine, at least for me, was bulletproof. It would run about 44 MPH at full throttle. I had a four blade SS prop and it would pull a skier OK with a full throttle out of the hole.
The Mariah brochure shows the weight of yours at 998KG. Add fuel, toys, trailer and you would be close to your rating.
And finally, yep, the first generation mariah rates for me over most other brands.
Good luck, post up a photo if you do get her.

Re: Advice sought re 1998 18' Shabah
 

Thanks for the positive reply Jay.

Just one more question - I know these are built for considerable speed, but one of the places I am likely to use her has a 6knot limit for miles around.

Would that knacker it, or will it be ok trolling around lazy rivers for a few hours at a time?

Re: Advice sought re 1998 18' Shabah
 

It will be fine Rich. Might wander a little bit at that "no wake" speed, but I think a set of Smart Tabs will tame that. Check it out during your test drive. Have fun!

Re: Advice sought re 1998 18' Shabah
 

Hi Chaps

The boat above fell through, but yesterday I found a nice looking blue and white 180 - same model as far as I can tell - on ebay!

Now sat in the folks drive, hoping to get out to play today:)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...view=all&tid=0