Buying a 2016 310EC?

mattn

Hey gang -- first time poster, here.

I'm thinking about making an offer on a 2016 310EC, and wanted to pick your expert brains. The listing is here.

I went to see it today. The cabin is showroom perfect -- I don't think it was ever used. The most significant problems that I noted, while minor-ish: the canvas was in surprisingly bad shape, and the blue gelcoat was also remarkably oxidized. I'm guessing that it must have been stored outside, uncovered in Michigan winters. Otherwise, I have no idea how it got so bad in just 4 years. I'm guessing that the previous owner didn't love this boat. Not great.

136 hours on the engines -- started great, stuck my head in the engine compartment, smelled great, sounded great.

Obviously, will have it surveyed, but interested in your thoughts. This will be my fourth boat, but the most $$$, by far. So, I'm still a little skittish.

Any thoughts on an opening offer? Any gotchas or considerations I should think about? Or should I just shut up and hand over my money?

One thing the listing broker suggested to me was that I could re-order new canvas from the factory? I've always owned old boats, so this was a foreign idea to me. I have great canvas guys, and I know that it would be $8k+ to do new custom. Cheaper from the factory?

Anyways, would appreciate any and all advice you might have.

Thanks in advance,

  -- matt

Aqua_Aura

I just ordered replacement canvas to replace my windshield portion and I used Darren at pmwinterboatcovers as most others have, It is surprisingly cheap in my opinion. He is a dealer for Ameritex which is the supplier of most canvas. He should be significantly lower than 8k. I was expecting to pay twice as much as he quoted me for the piece I needed. 


Looks like a gorgeous boat. Just make sure to run all the systems through all of their functions and don't be easy on anything to make sure there is no hidden problems. 

reneechris14

Don't make an offer to you spend some time on the boat, the longer you look the more you may find. Take you time.

TonyG13

Welcome to the forum! As far as I can tell from looking at the specs and pics we have the EXACT same boat except ours is a 2014 and has a genny.

We bought our 2014 in 2018 (so four years old when we bought it) with ~100 hours on the engines. We paid $135K.

As for the canvas isinglass, ours was also shot. I think Rinker might have just spec'd cheaper glass which didn't hold up. Part of our purchase deal was the broker had to replace the rear canvas. (The front was fine, but this year it's also bad, so we will replace over the winter.) $8K is way high for an entire canvas set. Follow @Aqua_Aura's advise about that.

Anyway, I would get a survey and look in every nook and cranny - and there are a lot of them. Run the A/C and the heater. Check the electronics, GPS, radar, etc.

IMHO - I think it's overpriced. I would think more in the $130K range? Your surveyor can - and should - get you Bluebook comps to compare. But everyone is saying it's a sellers market.

Good luck and if you have any more questions, just ask - we're all here to help.

Aqua_Aura

No generator? That seems like it would be standard on that size. We don't use ours often but we do use it and it's nice. 

YYZRC

Probably $4k for canvas. What was your most recent boat? I wouldn’t buy a boat without a genny but everyone’s needs vary. I also agree that it’s expensive. 

LaRea

mattn said:

... stuck my head in the engine compartment, smelled great ...

Funny you said it that way, because I think engine room odor is good indicator of overall health.  And the ER does look clean ... a bit of water in the bilge, but that's common. 

Yes, you can buy that canvas direct from Ameritex but we've had some threads here lately about them being slow to respond.  

Dream_Inn

Nice looking comment and I agree with most comments.  I think the owner posted a higher price because it's a sellers market.  If after going thru it thoroughly, everything looks good, I'd offer probably $125k and maybe go up to $130k if things looked great.  Just my opinion.  Although for me, not having a generator is a big turn off & will definitely make it harder to sell (so it'd be a no go for me).  

mattn

Hey guys!

Thanks for all the comments. At the very least it's nice to have some confirmation and know that I'm not entirely crazy. In fairness, no one entirely sane buys a boat.  

To answer some questions:
I think the generator is just missing from the listing. While I didn't have the broker start it on my first, quick walk-through, I saw a switch for it along with the battery switches, so I assume it exists. Obviously will follow-up.

My last boat was a 1968 Chris-Craft Commander 42'. I think I actually paid $6k for the canvas on that, but I was upscaling in my mind because the Rinker has a lot more little fiddly pieces. But, what do I know. Good to know that $4k might be more realistic, and might be interesting to try and negotiate replacements up-front, so I don't have to deal with it.

I was thinking a $130-ish offer sounded right as well. The listing broker was suggesting $138, so I knew I needed to come in under that.

mattn

Nope, you guys were right. No generator. Arrgh ...

Does anybody have any idea what that option cost new and/or price to add? The broker says "it's wired for the generator," but I don't think the wiring is the hard part. Figuring the unit is $10k+installation.

Ian

Gens often were an option but wired ready. However mine just has the changeover breakers, no wiring back to engine room so check if actually “ready” with wiring. Not sure of cost but you could install yourself. 

mattn

icoultha said:

Gens often were an option but wired ready. However mine just has the changeover breakers, no wiring back to engine room so check if actually “ready” with wiring. Not sure of cost but you could install yourself. 

As a software engineer, installing it myself is probably a bad idea, unless I was looking to make a quick insurance claim after it burns to the waterline.

Handymans342

You may have to remove a motor also. 

Dream_Inn

$10k is probably a good estimate, which in my mind means the boat is worth ~$120k.  Again, just my opinion, which really may not mean much.  To me it is still a lot of $$ for a 4-5 yr old boat of that size (heck, it's not a whole lot less than what I paid for mine when mine was 4 years old).  But again, what do I know...

YYZRC

There are lots of good Rinkers out there. Sit tight and hold out for one with a genny. And maybe a hardtop too 

TonyG13

I'm not sure what @skennelly's take is on generators, but it doesn't seem to be a "thing" in southern Lake Michigan. I don't know of anyone on our dock or environs that uses one. Almost all boating is harbor-to-harbor, dock-to-dock, with ample shore power. Other than the infamous Chicago "play pen" -- most folks don't anchor out and find the need for a genny.

Other than running it to keep it in shape, we've never used ours. I almost wish we didn't have it since I'd have a ton more room to maneuver in the engine compartment to do other maintenance.

Ian

I agree with @TonyG13, we’ve had a need once in 6 full seasons for a gen and as he indicated, the space is of greater value to me. I have a small Ryobi I can use in a safe manner if really needed.

aero3113

It all depends on the type of boating you want to do. If you anchor out, a generator will definitely come in handy. If you just boat from the dock to other marinas than you might not need it. It will definitely help with resale though.

Aqua_Aura

A generator is definitely preference and if you decide you don't need one just make sure the price reflects that there is no generator. 

LaRea

@mattn where do you go boating, and how often do you anchor out or raft up?  

I always love hearing how boaters in other regions use their boats so differently from how I use mine.  Here in the Chesapeake Bay area, as @Dream_Inn implied, a genny is a must.  I anchor out almost every weekend, including lots of overnighters.  Slipping in a marina is a rare treat for me.  

trip_n

my = .02 =i would hold out out for a generator
a fyi
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2018/rinker-320ex-3593142/

J3ff

I'd offer much less and go buy a honda 1000watt or 2000watt generator and use that. 

Every single person I know who owns a boat with a built in generator does nothing but repair it. These are smart people who take care of their stuff. Water running through a generator is just never going to end well. 

YYZRC

trip_n said:

my = .02 =i would hold out out for a generator
a fyi
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2018/rinker-320ex-3593142/

That's a nice boat!

LaRea

J3ff said:

I'd offer much less and go buy a honda 1000watt or 2000watt generator and use that. 

Every single person I know who owns a boat with a built in generator does nothing but repair it. These are smart people who take care of their stuff. Water running through a generator is just never going to end well. 

Well, you do know a boater (me) with a genny that has always been reliable and well-behaved.  (Also, I've written before about my opinion that using a portable generator on a boat is not safe.  Some people disagree, but let's not get sidetracked on that debate here.)

Dream_Inn

I have over 1200 hours on my generator.  Yes, I've had issues with it, I believe most were due to the previous owner.  I love the fact that at a touch of a button, I can have shore power no matter where I'm at, and even if I'm underway.  

MarkB

trip_n said:

my = .02 =i would hold out out for a generator
a fyi
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2018/rinker-320ex-3593142/

Wow that's a nice boat!

Spyderweb

Agree that generator need depends on how you use your boat.  When younger we use to anchor out a lot.  Didn’t have genny, but didn’t use electric fridge, so never ran down battery anyways.  There’s so many good places where we boat within 7 miles from our marina, now we just take the sunset ride back to our dock for the evening.  It’s a nice ride.

This is my 1st boat with genny.  I don’t like the noise (despite a sound shield) and am always concerned of the fumes.  I run it weekly just to keep it up.  To me, the best part of staying on the hook is evening as it gets dark and calm and morning as the sun slowly rises.  If I were staying out now, those are likely the times I’d need to genny running.  The noise would spoil it for me.  

If I were shopping now, I’d have no problem buying a boat without one.  But I get it.  We all have different needs.

Aqua_Aura

You would or atleast I was surprised by how long you can actually run on batteries even with refrigerator,tv,stereo. Changing lights to LED will help as well. 

Here is a calculator for battery load
https://www.batterystuff.com/kb/tools/calculator-sizing-a-battery-to-a-load.html

trip_n

rafted up in june -august = sure is nice to have ac to cool off-eat-take a nap
also when you get back to dock cabin is cold

mattn

You guys are too awesome, I can't even keep up.

I told this story to my friend yesterday: There's a difference in how I actually use my boats, and how I want to use them in my imagination. In reality, I never anchor out. In my imagination, I want to spend a month in Georgian Bay (@yyzrc). It will mostly be a day-boat and base of operations at our club. I don't need the genny.

@markb, @yyzrc: That 2018 320 is a trap!! I already talked to that broker. It's "been in storage for years" and the "owner has been fighting with his insurance company" over something. I don't know what, because I dropped that like it was hot. How has a 2018 boat been in storage for years??? Don't know how they're asking 170. That should be a fire-sale. I dunno -- I should probably go see it. It's only 20 minutes away, but it smelled fishy to me.

mattn

Wait, I have a serious question comparing the listings/pictures for this 2016 and this 2018 we've been discussing.

There seems to be a conflict within the listings. The 2016 has the 350 MAG. I can do the math, that's 5.7L. In the pictures, I can clearly see the 2018 has 6.2L. But yet, both listings claim 300HP.

Clearly there were two engine options on these boats, and the larger 6.2L is ostensibly "better," and per Google rates 320HP, while the 5.7L rates 300HP. True? But then why is the 6.2L stamped "300?" I can't make heads nor tails of this.