Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Saw this new 24' pontoon in a showroom today with a new 2.3hp two stroke motor. ( Yes 2.3hp )









Just kidding, it was a joke the dealer set up

Hey,
It'd be great for trolling.

That's a good one... But, I do like the coozie holders mounted on the stern. That's a really good idea for water lounging!

Hello, I am new this this site and have a few questions.

I am about to buy my first boat, a 2013 Bentley Cruise 200 SE (50 HP Mercury 4S). The motor has less than 50 hours on it. Seller advised the boat has been used 4 times since 2013 and it has been sitting since. Questions are:

1- The seller wants 12K for the boat. Is this a good Deal?
2- Will I l have to spend a lot of money each year for maintenance. I will to buy a pontoon boat for the less money and not have to spend a lot to maintain it each year?
3- I also have no boating knowledge. Is a pontoon boat easy to learn.

Bdietsch wrote:Hello, I am new this this site and have a few questions.

I am about to buy my first boat, a 2013 Bentley Cruise 200 SE (50 HP Mercury 4S). The motor has less than 50 hours on it. Seller advised the boat has been used 4 times since 2013 and it has been sitting since. Questions are:

1- The seller wants 12K for the boat. Is this a good Deal?
2- Will I l have to spend a lot of money each year for maintenance. I will to buy a pontoon boat for the less money and not have to spend a lot to maintain it each year?
3- I also have no boating knowledge. Is a pontoon boat easy to learn.

Pontoons are not hard to handle or learn all it takes is practice and to take it slow/easy...

With that being said a 50 HP motor is much too small for a 20 foot boat... all you will be able to do with that is putt putt around... Not going to be entertaining at all pulling a tube and will be dead dog slow with a boat load of adults on board.... You don't have to go fast but a slow boat can never go fast whereas as fast boat can always go slow...

Ok thanks. Pppl told me for the price I should buy it and can always upgrade the motor later on since all I would being the first year is cruise around

And for being a brand new motor just to keep it for a couple of years and upgrade-

Only reason to have a small engine on a pontoon boat is if the lake has a maximum horsepower limit. Then, it's time to find another lake to have your house or boat on.

I like to get up and go somewhere. Not putt around at 10 mph or less.

Bdietsch wrote:Ok thanks. Pppl told me for the price I should buy it and can always upgrade the motor later on since all I would being the first year is cruise around

While the price indeed ok it is just that ok... No matter how little use the motor has it is still not brand new and has already lost a lot of resale value... I bought an 18 with a 60 thinking that I would never need anything more than that... It did not take me long to figure out that I was WRONG namely in the MOTOR department... While I wish that I'd bought a 20-foot boat I can truly live with the cozy cockpit but I was very disappointed in the lack luster motor... I bit the bullet and traded in the motor that was only one year old and bought a 75 which is max name plate data and then secretly upped the output to 115 so that when I've got a boat load of people on board that I can get up and run from bad weather or pull with zest a tube with screaming kids on it....

Again, I cannot find a pontoon boat for that price around here. Everything I've seen go for about 15k with the same motor . With a 75 or a 90 it's like 17k. That's why it's still cheaper to buy this boat and upgrade the engine at a later time. Please I want feedback or thoughts.

Bdietsch wrote:Again, I cannot find a pontoon boat for that price around here. Everything I've seen go for about 15k with the same motor . With a 75 or a 90 it's like 17k. That's why it's still cheaper to buy this boat and upgrade the engine at a later time. Please I want feedback or thoughts.

Everyone here will tell you to get the biggest engine you can afford. With that said, if this is a great deal and will get you into a boat, I'd go for it. Just know that you might be wishing you had more power real soon.

I have a Bentley 220 and love my boat. But it's got the 115, and I don't think I'd be happy with anything less. I'm certainly not the slowest boat on our lakes, but I'm also far from being the fastest.

Can you take the boat for a lake run before purchasing? That's the only way you'll know whether or not you'll be satisfied with the performance of the 50.

solidhadriel wrote:Everyone here will tell you to get the biggest engine you can afford.

Not everyone.....
I have a 20ft with a 50HP motor on it and it's good enough for us. So much depends on where and how you will use the boat.
For us, we have no kids and like to cruise around, raft up with people, hide in a quiet bay and crank the tunes or read a book. Everyone always seems to say 'buy the biggest' but big is (more) expensive and I know we went with the 50 as it was a special price a lot less than the 60 or 90 options.
18mph is enough for us.

If that boat is in your budget, I say buy it and you'll at least be on the water. Next year, once you've experienced your boat and a season on the water, you may want to upgrade your motor. You can always sell the old one and offset the price or a bigger new or used motor.
If you're happy with it the way it is then even better for you. #1 thing is get on the water and enjoy your boat. You can work on speed and other mods later.

Thanks everyone