Looking for a good brand for a family boat

[dezertrider21]

Grew up on the river and Havasu. Have a family now with two small kids. We would probably spend the majority of our time on the lower river with the occasional trip to Havasu. Since we have not had a boat in about 15 years, I was wondering what new brands are out there or peoples opinions on the bigger named brands? We are looking for recommendations for boat manufactures for a nice, quality built, and reliable boat. We are looking for something in the 21'-24' range, open bow, with an IO drive. So far we have looked at Ultra, Laser, Advantage, Cobra, and Essex. Is there a brand that stands out among others as better quality or reliability?

Thanks for the input!!

 

[King295]

Grew up on the river and Havasu. Have a family now with two small kids. We would probably spend the majority of our time on the lower river with the occasional trip to Havasu. Since we have not had a boat in about 15 years, I was wondering what new brands are out there or peoples opinions on the bigger named brands? We are looking for recommendations for boat manufactures for a nice, quality built, and reliable boat. We are looking for something in the 21'-24' range, open bow, with an IO drive. So far we have looked at Ultra, Laser, Advantage, Cobra, and Essex. Is there a brand that stands out among others as better quality or reliability?

Thanks for the input!!

First off, welcome to RDP. When you say lower river are you talking Parker or further south? If further south than Parker a 21-24' I/O isn't going to be an enjoyable experience for you. I have a 22' wake boat and know the water well (been on it for 20+years) and have to wait for the water to come up before going anywhere far.

In regards to brands you have a good list but I would have Lavey Craft, Eliminator and Hallett at the top of my list in that range.

 

[mash on it]

Texas Tunnel.
Bow rider.
Thru transom headers.
Berkeley pump. Or equivalent.
Your favorite flavor of big block.

Welcome to the madness.

Dan'l

 

[02HoWaRd26]

Seems hard to beat the Tahiti or Shockwave 22. About the most popular boat on the river these days, and there’s a good reason for that.

 

[SS-C]

Seems hard to beat the Tahiti or Shockwave 22. About the most popular boat on the river these days, and there’s a good reason for that.

Not so sure I'd go along with this statement

 

[02HoWaRd26]

Not so sure I'd go along with this statement

That’s what the old saying opinions are like assholes and we all have them. Just seems to be the most popular boat on the river this year. I’d say up here they are the equivalent to Magic’s in the channel.

 

[Ziggy]

Welcome to RDP.
I'd say you have a decent list along with others mentioned. You'll probably find the most popular ones are the more expensively priced ones....albeit, everything is priced really high right now.
Fyi..Essex and Laser are sister brands, Laser being the less "appointed" one more or less.

 

[yz450mm]

So you want something that's going to start every time, provide reliable service with nice amenities, and have a family-friendly seating arrangement? Perhaps the option to still get home under your own power if one engine fails or becomes out of service? And maybe something with a super low draft for the lower River, but also works well in bigger chop?

Yamaha AR 240
Yamaha SX 240



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[BUDMAN]

Welcome to RDP. I would suggest looking at Interceptor Boats. They are offering a great 25’ at reasonable pricing. Other than that I’m partial to Hallett

 

[WYRD]

One that float's and pulls a tube will put a smile on any kid's face. To make Mom happy you need one with a large sundeck area. To make Dad happy you need something that goes faster than 60 and has a good rumble to it.
Any of the manufacturers you mentioned would be a great boat if well taken care of. My suggestion would be a mid-cuddy open bow gives everybody a little bit of their own space for those days when you want to look cool without Mom and Dad hovering over you the kids can sit in the open bow to cruise the lake and and the mid-cuddy will provide a little bit of break from the sun if you have younger ones.

 

[Shrub Lurker]

Nothing is on sale right now, but by the looks of my local cl, things have cooled off a little

 

[Runs2rch]

Sea ray, bayliner, reinell, all the high performance ones.

 

[evantwheeler]

Cobalt or Monterey. I read something on here recently in regards to speedboats I have never considered as I'm young and don't have a family. The only one that enjoys going really fast in a boat is the Driver. Probably same could be said about a loud thru-transom exhaust - Driver & his bros and the folks on the shore are the only ones who think its cool. If I had a family to tote around, I'd look for a Cobalt or a Monterey.

 

[CoolCruzin]

As mentioned
Open bow ,mid -cuddy ,Walk thru.
Best right there .
My 230 cobra had all that .
Put a big Block engine in it and your set

 

[dezertrider21]

Cool, thanks to everyone for the input!! This will give me some more options to look at.

 

[Wedgy]

Welcome! Good Hunting!

 

[Smooth Mvr]

What hasn't been asked is what is your target price range, how often will it be used how much is your maintenance budget? Then we could narrow it down. I'm all about Schiada! But that's just me and my .02

 

[tkrrox]

Tahiti has a solid lower river boat and I hear with a LS motor they run pretty strong


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[Jay Dub]

Grew up on the river and Havasu. Have a family now with two small kids. We would probably spend the majority of our time on the lower river with the occasional trip to Havasu. Since we have not had a boat in about 15 years, I was wondering what new brands are out there or peoples opinions on the bigger named brands? We are looking for recommendations for boat manufactures for a nice, quality built, and reliable boat. We are looking for something in the 21'-24' range, open bow, with an IO drive. So far we have looked at Ultra, Laser, Advantage, Cobra, and Essex. Is there a brand that stands out among others as better quality or reliability?

Thanks for the input!!

Welcome to the forum. There is a huge difference below Parker in comparsion to Havasu. Most importantly, what is the budget? I would add Hallett and Howard to your search list. My three kids all grew up boating. Great family times. enjoy.

 

[dezertrider21]

Welcome to the forum. There is a huge difference below Parker in comparsion to Havasu. Most importantly, what is the budget? I would add Hallett and Howard to your search list. My three kids all grew up boating. Great family times. enjoy.

When I say lower river, I mean closer to Yuma (Fishers, Martinez, etc...) That part of the river is easier to make a quick weekend trip. As far as budget, I'd like to stay below $50K. I am trying to figure out the current market cause people are asking double what they paid (new) for a 15-20 year old boat!!

Thanks for the welcome and input!