Toon Owner Gonnabees

[Thommes]

I just bought a Sylvan Signature Sport 8522 with a Mercury 150 Optimax. With cover, ski tow, cockpit lighting, depth finder and a few other goodies... I got it for $31K new....It listed for over $36K. It has the RPT tubes and should do 42 mph. Check it out....google search Sylvan Signature Sport 8522 boat reviews.

I can't wait - I take delivery in 2 weeks - I live in NW Indiana....hope this helps

Yes that helps IMMENSELY... Sounds like the boat I want with the RPT tubes. I'll likely settle on a Mirage series though. So did you negotiate the price or did the dealer do a, "well the MSRP is $36k... but we'll sell it for $31... " job on you? I think the Mirage 8522 FNC LE with a 50HP was gonna run us $24k. My wife would freak if I said I wanted tubes that would make us go faster.... she doesn't want to ever use the full 115HP that I want.

So was your model an FNC or just a regular 8522? You said fishfinder so I'm going to assume that you fish. My issue is that I just didn't feel right sitting in a seat facing AWAY from the water when I fished on the boats. What dealer did you use? I might see what they have in stock and or order. Sorry for the questions but here's another, did you special order and when? Just trying to figure out deliver time if we went that way. Sylvan manufacturer is in Indiana if I recall correctly.

[Thommes]

You could also look at the Manitou line. I'm thrilled with mine.

My dealer was about 250 miles away from me. I drove up to buy the boat, drove up to pick it up and do the first on water drive, and then took it back one time to have some updates done. Haven't been there in about 4 years now.

I sent my rebuest for bids to about 30 dealers within 500 miles. This is the guy who responded with the best buy (Casey's Cove Marina in Angola IN. North east corner of IN).

Since then I've had any servicing done at my local marina. Face it, there's not a whole lot that needs to be "serviced" on a pontoon and an outboard is an outboard is an outboard. The local Marina is a yamaha service center so why should I go way back up north to get the motor the same sevice I can get here?

So don't worry about how far the dealer is away from you. It's really a non-issue in the long run and, for most people, in the short run too.

yeah I'm not too concerned about the maintenance issues on a new boat. My wife will insist that we have the winterization done at a dealer/marina and that doesn't have to be the dealer that sold me the boat. Never owned a boat, but I figure I can do regular maintenance on the ob to my wife's disagreement.. hey I LIKE doing it.

So when you contacted all the dealers did they have your model or did you special order from the dealer that offered the best deal. I think I might end up going your route, if we have to order. Hope not though. Bad thing is the wife wants to check the seating out again. She recalls sitting on the edge of the seat in the Mirage and the seat starting to tilt up since it overhangs the bottom. Any of you Sylvan owners want to comment on that one so I don't have to drive an hour to sit in the boat?

[Thommes]

What part of Ohio are you in? Charles Mill Marina has several Premire rentals from last year.
What lake you going to?

We are in Columbus... Have dock space at Deer Creek Lake. I've seen Charles Mill website. Will give it another look. Thanks!

[Thommes]

Thommes, first off, welcome to the club. As far as buying a new boat, my friend there are alot of good brands out there and of course they come in all price ranges. From my own experience I would suggest you look at the bennington 20 Sfi. Got mine new last year with a 75 horse yamaha 4 Stroke, trailer, tt&l, slightly under 21K. It dosn't have all the bells and whistles of the more expensive boats out there, but it's very comfortable and great for fishing. Just a suggestion.. Good luck boat shopping.

IF this is the model I think it is. We got a quote on one last weekend. It was the third boat that we looked at. I'm the type that won't buy something that costs that much on the first day I see it. After the very NICE sales guy at Spend a Day Marina wrote up the quote, both the wife and son agreed that they didn't think it had enough seating. The one we looked at was a 3 pt fish model. We've decided that one of the top ten things we want is 2 and only 2 fishing chairs. We're flexible whether they are on the bow or aft, inside or outside the railing. So that model was out for us and then the Bennington's start to get out of our price range.

[Thommes]

Not sure where you are in Ohio but there seem to be a lot of Toons available. Both of these are under $25k with 115hp, The JC is also a Triple Tube. Not sure about the SouthBay

http://boats.iboats.com/2010-jc-manufac ... 38111.html

http://boats.iboats.com/2011-south-bay- ... 24632.html

YEAH I hit that site everyday. See the numbers going down.... we are pretty particular on it being a FNC model with 2 and only 2 fishing seats.

[BobL]

Yeah the South Bays are Voyagers if I remember correctly. We have seen them at shows. The closest dealer only stocks the 400 and 500 series, if I'm remembering the brand models correctly. The lower end boats. I'd like to see a 700 series I think it was, but I don't want to wait 8 weeks for delivery.. Did I mention we have our dock space already... LOL

I just purchased the 522CR SouthBay (had a Bentley) and am very impressed. The Voyagers are not SouthBay and the middle of the road series is the 500, not 700. Based on what you have described (budget, what else you are looking at, etc.), the 500 series is comparable. You can get a 500 series with 115 4-stroke AND tandem trailer within your stated budget. Here is a link the the floor plans for the 500's:

http://www.southbaypontoon.com/product.asp?page=sb500

I did a quick dealer search for Akron OH and came up with this:

http://www.boatmastersmarine.com/pre_ow ... 48964&nv=y

EDIT - After looking closer, not sure why the guy is quoting price with a 9.9EL motor - that must be a typo. Probably add about $8K to his quoted price and you should be in the budget with a 115hp.

Would not hurt to look and good luck in your search!

[JohnO]

So when you contacted all the dealers did they have your model or did you special order from the dealer that offered the best deal. I think I might end up going your route, if we have to order. Hope not though.

I knew exactly what I wanted, what the prices were for the same boat for last years model, what options I wanted installed etc. Laid it all out in a nice request for quote and emailed it to the world. I knew it would be a special order no matter where I went.

At the time there was a Manitou dealer in Indy (about 90 minutes from me). I expected the cost to be around 35K. they came in at 44K. I counteroffered 37.5K. they cam back with 43.5K. I figured they just weren't interested.

So I emailed out my RFQ. Casey's Cove came in at 36K. I figured 4-5 hours driving time was well worth 7K!! So I bought the boat from themn and added another 4K worth of options. I think we both won.

[Thommes]

Yeah the South Bays are Voyagers if I remember correctly. We have seen them at shows. The closest dealer only stocks the 400 and 500 series, if I'm remembering the brand models correctly. The lower end boats. I'd like to see a 700 series I think it was, but I don't want to wait 8 weeks for delivery.. Did I mention we have our dock space already... LOL

I just purchased the 522CR SouthBay (had a Bentley) and am very impressed. The Voyagers are not SouthBay and the middle of the road series is the 500, not 700. Based on what you have described (budget, what else you are looking at, etc.), the 500 series is comparable. You can get a 500 series with 115 4-stroke AND tandem trailer within your stated budget. Here is a link the the floor plans for the 500's:

http://www.southbaypontoon.com/product.asp?page=sb500

I did a quick dealer search for Akron OH and came up with this:

http://www.boatmastersmarine.com/pre_ow ... 48964&nv=y

EDIT - After looking closer, not sure why the guy is quoting price with a 9.9EL motor - that must be a typo. Probably add about $8K to his quoted price and you should be in the budget with a 115hp.

Would not hurt to look and good luck in your search!

Hmmm... did I mean Odyssey? Isn't South Bay made by the same manufacturer that used to may Odysseys?

I'll take another look at the South Bay. I thought they looked nice. Maybe it's just that a dealer nearby doesn't have any in stock.

[Thommes]

I knew exactly what I wanted, what the prices were for the same boat for last years model, what options I wanted installed etc. Laid it all out in a nice request for quote and emailed it to the world. I knew it would be a special order no matter where I went.

Special order says weeks to months delivery time to me. I don't have a truck yet but for $$$ in savings would be willing to pay for delivery to our destination.

Then again..I was scanning the forum and that one guy's new Bennington has me drooling..... I think I could lounge while facing the water and fishing.

[woolznaz]

South Bay is made by Forest River Marine http://www.forestriverinc.com/nd/defaul ... v=frmarine
They have no connection to Odeysey or Voyager that I know of. I could be wrong, but I think it's simply South Bay and Berkshire Pontoons under the Forest River Marine company. It's a Warren Buffet/Berkshire Hathaway company.

Lot of great manufacturers out there. Good luck on your search. By the way, I completely understand the benefits of buying new. I went with a 3-year old boat and paid a little under 50% of what it sold for new (by the same dealer) 3 years earlier. Since it's your first boat, that might be worth considering. That way if you miss the mark a little and end up trading you did not take those first few years of depreciation and you can probably get out of it without getting hurt and move up to the boat you have then learned will make you happy. New is always nice, though. Pros/cons either way. Best of luck on your selection.

[Thommes]

South Bay is made by Forest River Marine http://www.forestriverinc.com/nd/defaul ... v=frmarine
They have no connection to Odeysey or Voyager that I know of. I could be wrong, but I think it's simply South Bay and Berkshire Pontoons under the Forest River Marine company. It's a Warren Buffet/Berkshire Hathaway company.

yeah Forest River made Odyssey toons. Stopped in 2007 if I remember correctly. At least that's the last year model for Odyssey that I could find. Didn't know it was a Berkshire company. Will have to definitely take another look . Used to work for Warren.

[goldnrod24]

EDIT - After looking closer, not sure why the guy is quoting price with a 9.9EL motor - that must be a typo. Probably add about $8K to his quoted price and you should be in the budget with a 115hp.

Oldest trick in the book. Advertise a boat with a $2500 motor and weasel the buyer up to a reasonable motor at about, oh say..... $8K-$10k more.

If you aren't specifically looking for a boat with a 9.9, tell the dealer to pound sand and get real; be sure he knows you are on to his tricks.

[Pontoon Really?]

Regarding my Sylvan - it is the Signature Sport 8522 - comes only in black and only with RPT Tubes. No FNC option - but I will be fishing off it alot - I went to the boat show in Chicago and worked a dealer real hard...got a written quote and went to Erwins Marine in Valparaiso, IN. Scott (Owner) beat the price and through in free delivery to my lake - no dealer prep charges except a fishfinder I decided on after the deal was done. This was in February - the boat was built in March and is waiting to be dropped off at my Marina - I can't wait.....

[Thommes]

Regarding my Sylvan - it is the Signature Sport 8522 - comes only in black and only with RPT Tubes. No FNC option - but I will be fishing off it alot - I went to the boat show in Chicago and worked a dealer real hard...got a written quote and went to Erwins Marine in Valparaiso, IN. Scott (Owner) beat the price and through in free delivery to my lake - no dealer prep charges except a fishfinder I decided on after the deal was done. This was in February - the boat was built in March and is waiting to be dropped off at my Marina - I can't wait.....

Yeah I remember now. I don't think I caught the Sport thing at all. That's a nice model and not that bad of a price really. Less than what I was expecting it would cost.

When we fished off the rental toons it seemed very awkward sitting down facing into the boat and not looking at the water. Just seems odd to me.

I've looked at the makes that people suggested but still think the Sylvan is the make we want. Going to determine exactly what we want and send it to dealers for bids. Hopefully get it done soon.

[rrhodes]

I rushed on mine or I would have worked in more HP but my wife would have backed out if she had time to think about it.