1988 Sealine 285 Ambassador. Good buy ?

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Newman

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Evening all,

A friend (new to boating) would much appreciate your opinions on the following boat for sale:

1988 Sealine 285 Ambassador £26,500

Twin Mercruiser D530TA 150 HP diesel engines (700 hours) driving Mercruiser Bravo 2 stern drives which had new bellows fitted in 2011 and have just had their oil changed ready for 2012 season.

Equipment - Radar, Garmin GPS Plotter, Autohelm, DSC radio, Fish finder, Depth finder, Navtex, Electric winch fully overhauled in 2010, Electric trim tabs.

4 berths in two cabins.

Eberspacher diesel central heating, Sea toilet with holding tank with macerator pump out, Hot water system heated by engine and immersion heater, Shore power battery charger, TV Aerial with booster, Stereo Radio/CD player, Gas oven with separate grill and two burner hob, Microwave oven, Fridge, Twin sink and shower. New hood in 2009.

Unfortunately I am relatively new to boating myself and have a yacht, so am unable to advise him.

All replies will be gratefully received.
 
Sealine 285 is a good boat and the price looks realistic, however don't think they were ever sold with Mercruisers in 88 so may have been re-engined. Got to be worth a look.
 
Thanks for the replies for far.

Mind you the ad for the boat seems to be falling apart, judging by the comments above.

Perhaps the thread will provide enough comments for a list of questions to be raised with the seller ?.
 
I can't comment on the price as I'm not up to date on those, but from the ad and pictures I'd say shes defo worth a closer look!!

Good luck with your search and let us know how you get on.
 
Looks a nice clean boat.Best advice you could give him is to spend a few moments on this forum on the subject of outdrives and perhaps on the Thames forum if he intends using it on the upper Thames.
 
oldgit said:
Looks a nice clean boat.Best advice you could give him is to spend a few moments on this forum on the subject of outdrives and perhaps on the Thames forum if he intends using it on the upper Thames.
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I can't see the point in having outdrives if it is just going to be plodding along a river, rather than belting along as fast as you can with the wind in your hair (or in some cases wigs) on the open sea.

Mind you, at least it doesn't have the notoriously unreliable Volvo Penta outdrives that stop working if they so much as see a bit of fishing line.
 
lovezoo said:
I can't see the point in having outdrives if it is just going to be plodding along a river, rather than belting along as fast as you can with the wind in your hair (or in some cases wigs) on the open sea.
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Got to disagree having used outdrives and shafts on the river for many years, they are great for the river (when working of course). The manouveres you can do with outdrives in tight spaces make shaft looks cumbersome, you can turn the drive to hold the stern against a lock wall for instance like having a stern thruster, steer backyards in a straight line and loads of stuff. You can also get into shallow moorings by tilting the drive(s) that shaft driven boats can only dream of, also easily clear your props without going swimming. Not saying drives are perfect but if they are extremely usefull at times:)
 
Chris, my post to oldgit was slightly tongue in cheek (although I made no mention of cups of tea). ;)

Chris_d said:
Not saying drives are perfect but if they are extremely usefull at times:)
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Totally agree. Its really a question of whether the extra value you can get out of an outdrive is worth the extra complexity. Its the exact same argument with petrol engines versus modern diesels.
 
lovezoo said:
Chris, my post to oldgit was slightly tongue in cheek (although I made no mention of cups of tea). ;)


Totally agree. Its really a question of whether the extra value you can get out of an outdrive is worth the extra complexity. Its the exact same argument with petrol engines versus modern diesels.
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Agree but often you don't have choice, if you have say 20-40K to spend and want something that doesn't look like a 70's conservatory then most boats comes with outdrives.
 
Chris_d said:
Agree but often you don't have choice, if you have say 20-40K to spend and want something that doesn't look like a 70's conservatory then most boats comes with outdrives.
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Very true. Personally I do like a sportsboat and for me that is part of the pleasure of ownership - having the boat I want that I think looks good, rather than the boat someone else says I should want.
 
lovezoo said:
Very true. Personally I do like a sportsboat and for me that is part of the pleasure of ownership - having the boat I want that I think looks good, rather than the boat someone else says I should want.
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Yes spot on, gets the net curtains on the old Brooms twitching:D
 
"having the boat I want that I think looks good, rather than the boat someone else says I should want"

Austin_Powers_album.jpg


Just give a few more years and it will a Broom for sure :)
 
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