Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

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We are looking for a Pontoon. Honestly best deals we have came across are at Bass Pro / Cabelas, however; I’ve read on here and heard before to try and find a local dealer and not go through them.

What’s the reasoning behind this? Honest question as I have no clue. Thanks for any advise!

TurningTwo wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 14, 2020 5:21 pm

If not aloud Mods please delete.

We are looking for a Pontoon. Honestly best deals we have came across are at Bass Pro / Cabelas, however; I’ve read on here and heard before to try and find a local dealer and not go through them.

What’s the reasoning behind this? Honest question as I have no clue. Thanks for any advise!

I would assume the biggest reason is you should end up having any issues with the boat. A lot easier to take it back to a local dealer to take care of warranty work then to maybe have to drive it 150 miles or more, drop it off, and then have to go back and get it again when the work is completed. That's my thought anyway.

Cabela's and Bass Pro have a fixed price model. The price they show is the price you pay. No different than if you were buying a fishing lure. Other dealers operate more like car dealers where you negotiate the final price. You shouldn't pay anywhere close to "sticker price" at a boat dealer. For example, the sticker price on my boat was a little over $53K, plus taxes, etc. My total out the door price was $39,900. That's not some amazing deal, that's just typical of what you'll find. If you start negotiating you'll find that there are plenty of other boats that offer value that is often better than Cabela's/Bass Pro.

The other key area is service. It's a whole lot easier to have your boat serviced with a dealer who at least has access to testing a boat on the water. If you have a service issue, you (or Cabela's) won't really know if it's fixed until you've picked up the boat, taken it to the lake, and tested it. That can be a real hassle versus having a lakeside marina/dealer.

And finally, did you buy your last car without a test drive? If you buy from Cabela's/Bass Pro, that's what you'll be doing. There's no way to get an idea of how a boat reacts on the water when it's on a trailer in a showroom or parking lot!

Roland made the point about having a dealer nearby for warranty issues.

Please note that most issues you will have with any pontoon is going to be with the motor/rigging and a local dealer who deals with that motor brand can fix that for you.

I bought my bought about 250 miles away. My local marina does all my motor service. I've never had anything break on the boat itself that I couldn't get shipped to me and replaced myself.

If you have a local dealer for the brand you want then use them (a few hundred dollars greater price is a small cost to have a friend (dealer) to help you out) Most dealers want you to be happy with your boat and service (happy boat owners tell their friends!!). When I bought mine my 'local' dealer (2 hours away) demonstrated that he had no interest in selling my the boat I wanted so I went elsewhere. (That local guy dropped my brand shortly thereafter)