Zodiac - problems with new models

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Yacht Breeze

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I ordered a Zodiac Cadet Aero 270 during the London Boat Show. Delivery was due 14th. February. The dealer can’t get a delivery date from Zodiac although they were quoting ‘imminent’ three weeks ago! That turned out to be rubbish. Apparently Zodiac has moved all production to China and we are now wondering if there are quality issues that are delaying the supply. Does anyone have any inside information on what’s happening and why the new models are not being shipped?
 
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Strange. I paid for the Zodiac 2.6 aerodeck on display (the actual one on show) for delivery in March for my convenience. An email dated 28 Jan said the one on display was a 2.4, so the wrong length. The 2.6 would be arriving late April, so I phoned and was told that they would supply me a 2.7 in March.

The other strange thing was I was told by the Zodiac rep that the existing stock was welded seams and new stock would be glued, so I was getting a better boat. Yet when I queried that on the phone I was told the reverse, the new stock was welded and the old stock was glued. Anyone know the truth?
 
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Yacht Breeze said:
I ordered a Zodiac Cadet Aero 270 during the London Boat Show. Delivery was due 14th. February. The dealer can’t get a delivery date from Zodiac although they were quoting ‘imminent’ three weeks ago! That turned out to be rubbish. Apparently Zodiac has moved all production to China and we are now wondering if there are quality issues that are delaying the supply. Does anyone have any inside information on what’s happening and why the new models are not being shipped?
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I ordered the same model from a local Belgian dealer for delivery end of March. No mention was made of any delivery problems. We'll see what happens.
 
I bought a new Cadet Aero 240 last summer. The Zodiac brochure at that time said the Cadet has welded seams, whereas the cheaper Zoom (which was already sourced from China) had glued seams.

Incidentally, the Cadet Aero is a great little tender!
 
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Zodiac order cancelled

We have now cancelled our order because no one is able to tell us when we can expect delivery. It appears that when Zodiac switched manufacture to China from France they also changed from welded to glued seams. Talking to a number of dealers we are told the new models with glued seams are considered to be not as good as the older models with welded seams - and that's the view of Zodiac dealers - not competitors!

We suspect there are quality control issues with these new Chinese-built boats and wonder why Zodiac won’t, or can’t, give delivery dates. We have now cancelled our order for the Cadet Aero 270 and bought an ‘old’ French-built Aero 260 model – with welded seams.

If you’ve ordered a new Chinese Zodiac, or are about to, then it might be wise to quiz suppliers closely about guaranteed delivery dates and quality issues.
 
Yesterday I received a Zodiac 260 Aero (old model), as per my order from the London Boat Show. I have not yet unpacked it, but the box clearly states this one was manufactured in France.

Looking at the latest Zodiac website. It does state that all 2015 model Zodiacs have welded seams. I also noted that the new models are slightly lighter than the old models. Where they are manufactured is not mentioned.
 
My understanding is that the 'new' models are made in China and have glued seams.

The 'old' models were made in France and had welded seams.

The consensus of opinion is that welded is better than glued....however against this the new models with glued seams are significantly cheaper than the old models.

Time will tell whether the move to China and glued seams proves to yield better or worse inflatables.
 
I am wondering whether Yacht Breeze's comment mentioned about glued seams is correct for the Zodiac range for sale in the UK.

In my earlier post (#6) I read the English version of the Zodiac leaflet for 2015 models and it said welded seams. Here is the link. http://medias.zodiac-nautic.com/pdf/00/00/01/21/tender-liferaft-gb-2015-12162.pdf Look at the paragraph under the title Cadet, it only mentions " internal welded tube seams by thermobonding." Also the Zodiac website clearly states welded seams for the Cadet range (this thread started with the Cadet range). http://www.zodiac-nautic.co.uk/boat/4/cadet-260-aero

The previously mentioned Zoom range that had glued seams is no longer offered for sale according to the leaflet, but is shown on the Zodiac website. No mention of welded seams suggesting this more budget priced range does have glued seams. Checking on Google I cannot find any Zoom models for sale in the UK.

It seems comments about the glued seams of the Zodiac Zoom range are being applied to all Zodiacs, which appears to be untrue. It seems a little knowledge is a dangerous thing and Yacht Breeze's "understanding" shows he is clearly making comments that are wrong on the basis of Zodiac's literature. If he had done a little research, then perhaps the disinformation he has been commenting on would have never been made.

I do not know where 2015 model Zodiacs are made. If they are manufactured in China in a Zodiac factory and with welded seams like the French built ones, does it matter where they are made? China produces some high quality products including computers and mobile phones for the likes of Apple. In a similar way Nissan and Honda, both well-known Japanese car manufacturers, have factories in the UK, does this affect the quality of the UK cars?

Please note I have just purchased a Zodiac Cadet and have no connection with Zodiac or any dealer.
 
Strikes me you don't know either.

If Zodiac won't give straight answers, it's up to the individual to find out before buying, but Breeze has done everyone a service by bringing this matter to general attention - the purpose of these forums.

This is not the first time I have heard ' Zodiac's ain't what they used to be ' which is a real shame as my 1980's 240 roundtail was a fantastic bit of kit, and lasted a fairly hard used 30+ years.

Also I'd be careful re ' place of manufacture ' labels etc, seems from other products this is open to EU interpretation as ' place of assembly ' or even place of last departure; take some British sailmakers for instance.
 
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Delivery problems of the new Zodiac Cadet Aero 270 seem to be continuing. My Belgian dealer was not able to give me a new delivery date for a boat that had been due for delivery by the end of March. The importer was unable to shed light on the matter as well.
Fortunately I have been able to obtain a stock boat of last year's model, the 260, which was produced in France. More expensive than the new and larger 270, one wonders why, but available which is more than can be said for the 270.
 
My understanding of the construction method is that welded seams apply to various grades of PVC and are preferred from a manufacturing point of view as it is quicker, less operator dependent and thus more reliable, and cheaper.

Hypalon, or some equivalent chlorosulfonated polyethylene, cannot be welded and is thus glued. The material has generally better weather resistance, is more damage-proof and thus is preferred by many users. HSS concerns over the effect of solvent release on those who manufacture by this method has forced production out of EU, to China and elsewhere.
 
I spent quite some time typing a long post here to clear up all the confusion regarding the new models, but it was deleted due to it being deemed an advert.

Information regarding the new Zodiac tenders is now available, so I suggest you contact your local Zodiac dealer for further details and clarification on the new range.

All the best,

Dan
 
dan from bhg said:
I spent quite some time typing a long post here to clear up all the confusion regarding the new models, but it was deleted due to it being deemed an advert.
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A post attached to a resurrected eight month old thread mentioning or associating your business six times in the process, including a link, certainly came across as self-promotion, if not out-and-out advertising.

We turn a blind eye to business info appearing in user's signatures (strictly speaking, against the T&Cs), but if users, like yourself, wanna argue the toss and abuse the process we can review that also.
 
Try again!

Hi all,

I can understand your frustration! It's been a tricky year for Zodiac tenders, but next year looks more promising!

Firstly, the brochure showing the latest range can be found here:

http://medias.zodiac-nautic.com/pdf/00/00/01/21/tender-liferaft-gb-2015-12162.pdf

So the old French Cadet 200, 240, 260 have gone. As have the old Chinese Zoom 200, 230 and 260. These are no longer available.

[Content removed]

The new Cadet range is assembled in China, but with German fabric. This may be where some confusion may have originated from. The tubes are internally thermobonded (welded).

Supply of these new models is still patchy. Some models are readily available and in stock at dealers, others aren't, so it's best to contact your local dealer for current availability.

Big news is that the Avon name is back! But unfortunately not as roll up tenders. Avon has been revived as the new Zodiac Yachtline range, so now all Zodiac Yachtlines (340, 380, 420 and 470) will bear the Avon name, not Zodiac.

Hope that helps.
 
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Well that was useful, at least we now know that real Avons are definitely long gone, a thing of the past, but as they last for ever (43 years so far in my case) then that is probably not so much of a problem.
 
Quandary said:
Well that was useful, at least we now know that real Avons are definitely long gone, a thing of the past, but as they last for ever (43 years so far in my case) then that is probably not so much of a problem.
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The Avon name never went - the Avon company still exists. But it got into trouble and flogged the dinghy business off to el cheepo Zodiac. Why would you want to buy a French brand dinghy made in China over any other brand dinghy made in China?
 
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