New boat pre-delivery inspection?

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Vronsky

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I'm expecting the delivery of a new Merry Fisher 605 next month by an official dealer near where I live. Boat comes from the factory in Poland, and the dealer installs the motor, AF, electronics, etc.
I wonder if I should hire a surveyor to check the boat before hand over?
All is under warranty of course, but I prefer to avoid the hassle to get things fixed afterwards. Perhaps I'm a bit too sceptical... and might be waisting money.

Any experience with the quality of new boats ??

THANKS,
V.
 
I don't think I'd worry unduly about the boat itself; I'd be more worried about the standard of work the dealer carries out. Not sure a surveyor is warranted, most of it you can check yourself.
 
Agree. Make sure you are clear who is responsible for what, particularly the dealer fitted items. Dealer will be the first contact for boat related items, but with a relatively simple boat like that unlikely to be anything serious to worry about. The dealer will have a check list provided by the builder so make sure you go through every item with him before you sign the acceptance.
 
My “hand-over” was pretty much a full day and included time on the water. Quite impressive really.

I was fully briefed on all of the boat systems with specialists called upon to brief engine and gearbox and the electronics. All very comprehensive.

I had a few warranty issues and disappointingly getting their attention was not as easy as it was pre-sale. I had 4 of the 7 batteries replaced and almost all of the electronics. Using Google, I found the contact details for the CEO of the electronics manufacturer so I contacted him to express concern over his customer service network. Unsurprisingly, my problems were resolved shortly thereafter.

You’ve spent a lot of money on your new boat. If you’re unlucky enough to need warranty, be prepared to push and assert your rights.

Congratulations on your purchase, I hope you enjoy it.
 
I probably wouldn’t bother with a surveyor for the OPs Merry Fisher. But based upon my experience I think it could be money well spent for a bigger / more complex boat before taking delivery, particularly any more specialist / low volume boats (and not just Oysters ;-)

We did surveys on two nearly new boats, and all the significant issues were ones from first build, which had not been spotted by the original owner at the time and therefore not rectified as part of the initial warranty period. In one case we walked, in the other the fixes were easily done but cost the original owner to fix before sale.
So my conclusion was when paying big money to buy a new boat it is worth a day of a good surveyor to give a thorough check over.
 
Vronsky said:
I'm expecting the delivery of a new Merry Fisher 605 next month by an official dealer near where I live. Boat comes from the factory in Poland, and the dealer installs the motor, AF, electronics, etc.
I wonder if I should hire a surveyor to check the boat before hand over?
All is under warranty of course, but I prefer to avoid the hassle to get things fixed afterwards. Perhaps I'm a bit too sceptical... and might be waisting money.

Any experience with the quality of new boats ??

THANKS,
V.
Click to expand...
I met a lady in Milford Haven when I was berthed there. Had bought a similar boat to yours, engine and controls fitted by the dealer. The control cables were too long so they coiled them, consequently the gear change and throttle were so stiff as to be almost unusable. They gave her the runaround, have to bring your boat to us to sort, they were a long way away. I advised her to write by registered post to them, to get to her and sort , or she would take it to a local place and back charge them!
They arranged for some one to visit her. The moral of the story? Make damn sure that it gets at the very least a good sea trial before accepting and make sure any issues are flagged.
 
Vronsky said:
I'm expecting the delivery of a new Merry Fisher 605 next month by an official dealer near where I live. Boat comes from the factory in Poland, and the dealer installs the motor, AF, electronics, etc.
I wonder if I should hire a surveyor to check the boat before hand over?
All is under warranty of course, but I prefer to avoid the hassle to get things fixed afterwards. Perhaps I'm a bit too sceptical... and might be waisting money.

Any experience with the quality of new boats ??

THANKS,
V.
Click to expand...

Check its got a keel, could be a problem with some.
 
skipper_stu said:
I met a lady in Milford Haven when I was berthed there. Had bought a similar boat to yours, engine and controls fitted by the dealer. The control cables were too long so they coiled them, consequently the gear change and throttle were so stiff as to be almost unusable. They gave her the runaround, have to bring your boat to us to sort, they were a long way away. I advised her to write by registered post to them, to get to her and sort , or she would take it to a local place and back charge them!
They arranged for some one to visit her. The moral of the story? Make damn sure that it gets at the very least a good sea trial before accepting and make sure any issues are flagged.
Click to expand...

"I met a lady in Milford Haven", come on tell the whole story.;)
 
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