I've started looking around kicking tires on new boats after being boatless for 20 years. Stopped by one of the local dealers the other day. He was pushing G3's Sportsman series hard. I thought I'd ask for feedback here, specifically on the 17 series with the 90 Yamaha SHO. Always ran glass boats in the past, so I know nothing about this size aluminum. Thanks.
I have a couple of friends that have owned them and put many many miles on them without problems. When I was thinking of and shopping for a used aluminum boat before I bought the new RT, I had a very short list of brands that I would even consider, the G3 was on that list. I would not have a problem at all with one. My buddies that owned them live on a lake, and I assure you they got a LOT of use.
And you can't go wrong with a Yamaha....except for maybe the high HP SHOs at one time. That 90 in my opinion would give you reliable use as long as you decide to own it. They also have good resale when and if you trade.
Last edited by Panama; 02-01-2020 at 09:14 AM.
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The bitterness of poor quality is remembered
long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten - Benjamin Franklin
2013 RANGER RT188 - YAMAHA F115 - ULTREX - LOWRANCE GRAPHS
LOCK-N-HAUL Transom Saver, ALL ABOARD Emergency Ladder
1996 RANGER CHEROKEE - 40 YAMAHA
What G3? You are located in MS so you have them all to consider. Lebanon in the center of the big three. Tracker, Lowe, G3. My only feedback would be buy a Mercury.
I looked at a couple at a Skeeter/G3 dealer prior to purchasing a new rig last year. Personally I did not like the front deck set up for rod storage and other storage compartment configuration on the 17 series. That of course, is strictly a matter of opinion, however. Durability, hulls,welds, etc. may be fine but I also thought that the seats, carpet, dash, etc. did not compare to others. I thought the G3 was definitely lacking in those areas. A Yamaha motor is your only choice and you can't go wrong there.
I purchased my G3 HP180 in 2002, it has been a great boat. I do admit G3 has made some changes to the front deck, storage compartments and rod lockers that I don't agree with. But then again I tend to carry more tackle and rods then I require simply because I have the room. If I were seriously in the market G3 would still be at the top of my list as the other brands layouts are not as well planned in my opinion.
G3 HP180
Yamaha 115 4 Stroke
My brother bought his G3 new in 2002 or 2003 and after a few years it started taking on water from a crack in the hull. He called G3 and thjey replaced the whole boat with the current year, 2006 I believe. Now to me it speaks to taking care of the customer. They could have welded it but instead they replaced it, Top Notch Service in my book. They also did all the rigging of his motor and electronics from the old hull to the new, free of coarse. They stand behind what they sale. His 90 Yamaha was a 2 stroke buy it never missed a beat and he sold it like 13 or so years later with the original water pump still going strong.
1995 Viper 201D
1995 Johnson Venom 200
Gas mileage is for sissies
The ones I have seen looked to be a very nice boat. Beam is smaller than I would prefer but that can be a plus if you have s small garage or fish timber. Not a fan of only offering foreign motors on them.
Yamaha bought G3 quite some time ago. Do they only sell prepackaged rigs? If not, I suppose you could bolt on what you want.
I've always been a fan of Yamaha when it comes to atvs, utvs and motorcycles. I was disappointed in the quality of the welding and the general cheap feel of the seats, flooring, etc. I've been away from the game for a long time and don't know what to reasonably expect. I'm still trying to figure that out.
I haven't looked at Lowe, but have never been very impressed with Tracker quality. Maybe they are better than the Tracker of old. Maybe I should look at them as well. Xpress and War Eagle factories aren't that fast from here either....Originally Posted by texoma
Since Yamaha owns and builds G3, probably not gonna see anything but a Yamaha engine on them. That being said, I have a 2018 sportsman 17 in camo that has been great. Not a tournament fisherman, just a weekend bass fisherman, a lot of crappie fishing, and a lot of duck hunting. Plenty of space for me. I use double seats up front for spider rigging, and long line 16 poles for crappie. Upgraded to a terrova 80 lb up front and the F90 gets me going at 42.7 mph on GPS. I am extremely satisfied with my G3 and would buy another in a heart beat.
2018 G3 Sportsman 17
2018 Yamaha F90
Garmin Ultra 106sv bow/console
Ionic lithium batteries
I bought a 2019 G3 Sportsman 1910 last spring. It's been a good boat and I have no regrets. I've tried to second guess myself and come up with another boat that I wish I bought instead and I couldn't come up with one without needing a major budget increase. I did have an issue with the Yamaha 115 SHO making oil early on but it got resolved after I ran it wide open as much as possible over a few trips.
It looks like they changed the storage layout of the 1910 this year. I think I prefer the previous layout. 1710 looks the same.
I bought my G3 specifically for fishing some small back waters that my glass rig could not navigate very well or not at all. I have no complaints with my 1710 so far and it has served it's purpose very well. I did make some upgrades to the troller, graph and went with the 90hp. when I ordered it and I'm going to add a power pole and another graph very soon. I would not hesitate buying another one when the time comes.
2007 Bass Cat Pantera IV
2018 G3 Sportsman 1710
Had a 175 many years ago. When I was towing the boat I would hear a noise every time I hit a decent bump in the road. Turns out the trailer needed stiffer springs. They sent me the whole axle assembly on a pallet to my house. Loved the quality and the customer service. Welds were top notch.
I have a 1910 Sportsman, I'm stuck with it, I wish I had looked around a bit more. The list of issues is long and tedious, I'll only list what G3 wouldn't warranty. First, and the one that took the longest to fix, the fuel cell mounting screws came out or became loose. All but two were missing when I did my pre departure inspections. When I took it to the dealer it sat for five weeks waiting for G3 to give the dealer permission to do warranty work, it came back disapproved. So I spent three days disassembling the aft storage bay, lots of rivets had to be drilled out. Another day finding all the hardware that had fallen out, then cleaning the bay of all debris. Another two days repairing the the pulled holes, tears, and cracks, good thing I had friends who were sheet metal repairmen on helicopters in the Army. Once the hard part was done I spent four days getting everything reinstalled correctly and mounted using proper hardware. One day short of two months not being used. The Battery Charger failed two weeks later, I also had to pay for a replacement part since G3 couldn't or wouldn't cover the charger under warranty. This charger that failed took out two of the three batteries, once again the dealer wouldn't cover this cost because I had removed everything in the aft bay.
There are six other items that G3 did cover, not one of them cost more than $100 for the parts and less then one man hour of labor. Of the six, four were electrical, that took the dealer days each time to figure out. The hydraulic steering servo failed at 80% throttle, motor went full right and threw me across the boat, was very glad I had my tether hooked up. Three weeks to get new servo from Canada.
If you contact G3 directly they will only tell you to take your boat to your dealer, no help.
Think before spending any money on any Sportsman series boat. I'm not the only one with these kind of stories, the Sportsman series has issues. Love the Yamaha motor, dang thing is amazing, runs like scalded monkey!
Go read the reviews on G3’s own FB page. It’s not pretty.
I have a 2016 Sportsman 17 that I purchased new and I have not had a single problem. No problem with the boat or trailer, but I am very OCD on the care of my stuff. I do not have the 90 SHO, I have just the regular, and that thing is AWESOME on fuel consumption.
Now, could some things be better? Of course, but when I look at what I paid for mine in compared that price the similar boats, I am very pleased with the money that I spent. For the rod locker, take out the plastic holders. I can fit at least 12 rods in my locker.
Bought mine new in January 2010 - No Problems at all!
2009 G3 Eagle 180 / 2009 Yamaha F115 / Minn Kota Maxxum 80 / Helix 7 Chirp SI GPS G2N on Bow & Console
Bought mine new in 2016, have been pleased. Not a hiccup yet.
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