which brand

[jack]

Hello all. I am looking to buy my first pontoon. Am looking at bennington and aquapatio. 22 ft triple toon 150 hp yamaha on both similar layouts and options. Pros and cons on either? Thanks

[cwag911]

I can only speak for Bennington.....I love my Benny !! And welcome jack.

[steveiam]

Cant help ya with your choices but---
WELCOME and you have come to the right place for some knowledgeable, strait answers.

[jack]

Thanks,
is the quality of these two brands equal or close to each other?

[Cycleman07]

Quality is very similar. 2 great choices. Can't go wrong either way. I would let the dealers know you are looking at a different brand at a different dealer and let them fight for your business.

[ROLAND]

Jack, don't think you would go wrong either way.... like Carl, I can only speak for Bennington... I have an "entry" level bennington fishing toon and we absolutely love it... bought it 2 and a half years ago and to date, no issues so far..... is the cost of both rigs similar.... I kinda like what someone else said... let both dealers know your looking at a competitors boat and see if they can't "cut you a better deal".... just a thought... Good luck with your purchase.

[cwag911]

And remember that Bennington now has a 7 year warranty. Bow to stern and everything in between.

[1roadking]

Are you going to do any water sports? If so, are you getting the ESP package in the Bennington? Both brands have great ratings and happy owners, so I would choose based on layout, price and fitting my needs for usage. I have a Bennington with ESP and a 150 hp engine. It has been great and turns really sharp for tubing and picking up down skiers, wake boarders and tubers.

[Bamby]

Sometimes I'm inclined to think I'm on the Bennington Forum, anyway a lot of folks here are real satified with their Bennie's. But as far as warranty issues are concerned between the the two the OP is considering I can discern no real differences between them myself.

http://www.aquapatioboats.com/warranty

Warranty

5 Year Carpet & Canopy Fabrics
Carpet, canopy fabric and canopy frames warranted free of charge for materials and labor.

5 Year Furniture & Upholstery
Foam seats and vinyl upholstery warranted free of charge for materials and labor.

5 Year Bow to Stern
Coverage of gauges, electronics, and all other factory installed components.

Lifetime Structural Warranty
Limited Lifetime coverage against failure of all pontoon tubes, rails, StrataTech Chassis (under-deck structure), and gates. Free of charge for materials and labor.

Lifetime MarineDeck PTP deck panels
Transferable Limited Lifetime coverage to repair or replace any MarineDeck PTP deck panels and related PTP products free of charge for materials and labor.

http://www.benningtonmarine.com/About-B ... t=warranty

BOW-TO-STERN WARRANTY

As a Bennington owner, the first five years are on us. All materials and workmanship on your Bennington are covered – including carpet, upholstery and electronics. No hassles, no worries. The engine is covered by the engine manufacturer's warranty.

LIMITED LIFETIME DECK WARRANTY

As a Bennington owner, you receive a Limited Lifetime Warranty on the 7-ply, pressure-treated, marine grade wooden deck. Since we fasten the rails and deck directly through the under structure, Bennington decks flex less and will provide you with a lifetime of enjoyment.
LIMITED LIFETIME STRUCTURAL WARRANTY

As a Bennington owner, you receive a Limited Lifetime Warranty on the structure, pontoons, gates, channels, motor mount and seat frames. If anything goes wrong, we'll fix it. Season after season, your Bennington will be ready.

TRANSFERABLE WARRANTY

Bennington warranties are transferable through your local Bennington dealer adding to the resale value of your boat. The warranty period begins on the original owner's new boat purchase date. When the boat is sold, the same warranty coverage will carry over to the new owner. The Lifetime Structural Warranty is transferable to a second owner for the balance of 10 years from the original retail date of purchase.
NO HAND-OFF TO OUR SUPPLIERS

Bennington doesn't hand off warranty responsibilities to our suppliers. When it comes to warranty claims, your Bennington dealer will take care of it directly with Bennington. After all, no one cares more about your satisfaction than we do.
NO PRO-RATING

Bennington boats carry the same valuable warranty whether it's the first day or the last day of the warranty period. We do not use a declining scale of value in our warranty, also known as pro-rating.
PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR DEALERS

Bennington dealers receive 100% of the retail shop labor rate for warranty repairs. This ensures that your warranty work is a priority and completed quickly with your satisfaction in mind.

In essence both manufactures make fine boats so choose the model that you think will best fit your needs.

[cwarends]

As of August 2012, the Bennington warranty went from 5 years to seven years.
Bennington would have a higher resale value.
Aqua Patio is a good toon. It would probably compare to the G series of Bennington.
The San Pan model would probably compare to the R Series of Bennington.
Structurally both are fine. It's up to you decide which amenities you like best.

[Cycleman07]

I sometimes wonder why other manufacturers make pontoons at all...How could they ever compete with Bennington?

[Jack65K]

I can only speak to Bennington and I love my Benny!
Jack

[JohnO]

Truth be told almost all brands of pontoons are good. There is very little that can go wrong with these boats and if it does go wrong it's normally within the first year anyway.

I've had my manitou for 6 years now with no issues at all. (So I'm not a big believer that warranty really adds much. If it hasn't broken in 3 years it proabbaly won't break in 7 years either)

What you need to decide is what level of performance and what level of "luxury" you want. Several lines have great performance (Manitou tends to handle best but the others are , or maybe even have, caught up) playcraft I believe is the fastest. Within each manufacturers lines you can find varying levels of performance and luxury. Find the level you want and then compare lines for such things as price, performance, fit and finish, floor plans etc.

JD Powers rates consumer satsifaction. Bennington comes in first (usually) and Manitou comes in second (usually) and the difference is in fractions of a percent. Within the top 10 percent of the ratings are probably 20 other lines.

The main problem with any of these boat would be with the motors. So make sure your motor warranty is good (although I've not had any problems with that either).

So, get the best boat fo ryou. Something that will serve all the needs you ask of it, with enough engine to get you where you want to go and doing what you want to do. After that it's all personal opinon for the most part.

[redbeard]

Well said JohnO.

[jack]

thanks again for the input. I think I will definitely go with a triple for the performance. now it is just a matter of the price and the layout. Both brands were close on the two factors. ???????????????