Looking at buying a brand new boat Ranger/Crestliner/Tracker

[Tundah]

Exact reason I jumped out of mine. Their customer service went steadily down hill in late 2015 and beyond. Funny, I am now getting the same, better in many ways, customer service since buying my 1980. Go figure, I wonder why

Weird I don’t share your experience at all, I wonder why

[Jonesslk]

Weird I don’t share your experience at all, I wonder why

Brand loyalty and denial. I was once there. Brand loyal for over 10 years but had enough.

[Tundah]

Good try but not at all. I would say the same thing about Tracker when I owned one and you can see that in my past posts. Your post lacks anything qualitative whatsoever. If you’re gonna make a blanket statement, at least provide some anecdotal evidence at the minimum. That’s a lot for helpful to the community than a “trust me”-type post.

Also, I was going to buy a Vexus but didn’t care for the dealer.

[LargeSackJ]

Love my Crestliner. Checked on all three when buying, and chose the Crestliner. I didn't notice that much difference besides the price. Decided against Tracker only because my previous boat was a Tracker and I had issues with it. But it was a 2004.

[ZethKinnettFishing]

crestliner has been horrible to work with. my boat started falling apart from day 1 cracked in multiple places on transom. cracked bow, cracked hull. cracked console parts falling out all over. the pt18/20 are pieces of garbage. i am waiting to get my money back from them or so they say. they know the pt series have problems or at least the pt20. the pt20 and likely 18 are discontinued boats. no longer made. you can buy 2019 but they will not be avail in 2020. multiple people have also sent me photos of their pt20 boats. cracked boats that is. these are not tiny cracks but rather large gaping life threatening cracks.

[alli ss]

Just get a good mainstream brand. You get off into the fringe, budget boats youre going to have issues- even evidenced on this thread.

[Jonesslk]

Good try but not at all. I would say the same thing about Tracker when I owned one and you can see that in my past posts. Your post lacks anything qualitative whatsoever. If you’re gonna make a blanket statement, at least provide some anecdotal evidence at the minimum. That’s a lot for helpful to the community than a “trust me”-type post.

Also, I was going to buy a Vexus but didn’t care for the dealer.

I will fully agree with you on the Tracker as that was by far the largest amount of buyers remorse that I have ever had. Per your request, as personal testimony on my issues, I am not going to the lengths of providing a pareto of the issues and complaints that took >3 weeks to receive a response on. Simply put, the person that bought my boat, got a 2 year old boat that was completely rewired, bow to stern. The factory install was disastrous. I had a weld crack on the nose clip where they come together. The time without my boat was more than most anyone would tolerate. These are the deal breakers, however there was a lot more due to the piss poor wiring causing a multitude of other issues. And the factory response in 2016 was defensive and deflective of blame. Polar opposite of the standard that was set for so many years.

My Vexus is not perfect, however put it side by side with any other aluminum boat and you will see the difference in quality. Vexus is on a playing field of their own. On top of it, the ride is phenomenal, comparable to any glass boat of equal size. The customer service is top shelf. Very responsive and helpful. The Sr team responds to most issues and drive the support, so things get done quickly. That is what I was used too and grew to appreciate pre-2015.

[pfisher]

I tried calling Crestliner and there wasn't an option for a human. I emailed and they sent me a dealer link. I'm all for that BUT in this case the dealer had sent me to Crestliner :-(

My Ranger 188 will be here Tuesday. My dealer has been great.

[SOONER*REDNECK]

You would be happy with any of them. If money was no object Id go Ranger.

[Panama]

Of the brands you asked about, I recommended Ranger. Here are some reasons....

I have had dealings with their customer service on a few occasions since they were bought and I have had NOTHING but excellent results. Maybe the dealer I use had a role in the experiences. I admit that I was surprised because I expected a different outcome since the purchase. I was wrong. I have had Ranger boats for over 30 years and I believe their customer service is still as good as ever. I even had dealings with them last week and the experience was excellent. Just as good as in the past.

Ranger goes beyond what some other companies do regarding how they stand behind you as the original buyer/owner. I dont think that has changed at all and was pleasantly surprised. A good example and something I would pay a LOT of attention to if I was a potential buyer is what has happened with some problem hulls recently as evidenced on this forum. I know of three or so Ranger boats that developed a crack because of a bad weld or maybe something else. Ranger replaced the hull with a brand new hull. They gave the guys a brand new hull. I have a friend with one of the other brands you mention that had a cracked hull. The company took the old hull and tore the floor out and patched it and just replaced the carpet they removed. Now it's leaking again. Ranger built the people a new hull. To me that's a big deal and just an example of superior customer service.

Somebody else here brought up Vexus even though you didn't ask about them. I think they build a good boat and will probably stand behind their boat as well, but the problem I see is how far away the dealer might be. I think we only have one dealer in our whole state. When I was in Florida, I saw only two. Ranger will probably have several dealers in any given state if you are on the road or if you have a problem. To me, that's important for price competition as well as service. But I think they build a good boat.

[Tundah]

I will fully agree with you on the Tracker as that was by far the largest amount of buyers remorse that I have ever had. Per your request, as personal testimony on my issues, I am not going to the lengths of providing a pareto of the issues and complaints that took >3 weeks to receive a response on. Simply put, the person that bought my boat, got a 2 year old boat that was completely rewired, bow to stern. The factory install was disastrous. I had a weld crack on the nose clip where they come together. The time without my boat was more than most anyone would tolerate. These are the deal breakers, however there was a lot more due to the piss poor wiring causing a multitude of other issues. And the factory response in 2016 was defensive and deflective of blame. Polar opposite of the standard that was set for so many years.

My Vexus is not perfect, however put it side by side with any other aluminum boat and you will see the difference in quality. Vexus is on a playing field of their own. On top of it, the ride is phenomenal, comparable to any glass boat of equal size. The customer service is top shelf. Very responsive and helpful. The Sr team responds to most issues and drive the support, so things get done quickly. That is what I was used too and grew to appreciate pre-2015.

Its all good and I appreciate the details. The more info we have in the tin brotherhood the better. Wish you the best with the Vexus!

[Chelsea FC]

I am in the market as well. I own a 2004 Fisher Pro Hawk and I have to say it's been a great boat. In my opinion the layout/storage is better that a lot of the big glass boats I ride in. I am only selling because at 17ft, I feel like I have outgrown it. I had my heart set on a Crestliner, but the more research I do, the more it seems like that is not a good option.

From reading on here, people don't seem to have many bad things to say about the Ranger RT series, but it's hard not to feel like I'm paying extra $ for the name Ranger when another aluminum rig would be as good. I don't ever see people mentioning Triton? There was one for sale on here recently that sold within a week and looked like a nice boat.

[Panama]

I am in the market as well. I own a 2004 Fisher Pro Hawk and I have to say it's been a great boat. In my opinion the layout/storage is better that a lot of the big glass boats I ride in. I am only selling because at 17ft, I feel like I have outgrown it. I had my heart set on a Crestliner, but the more research I do, the more it seems like that is not a good option.

From reading on here, people don't seem to have many bad things to say about the Ranger RT series, but it's hard not to feel like I'm paying extra $ for the name Ranger when another aluminum rig would be as good. I don't ever see people mentioning Triton? There was one for sale on here recently that sold within a week and looked like a nice boat.

The Triton would be a good boat as well. The Triton hulls are the same as the Ranger so the fishability would be the same. The seats are different, the console is different, the trailer is different, and maybe a few accessories or amenities. The only thing is the Ranger might have a little better resale value and also maybe a larger dealer network if you travel much. One thing I love about the Ranger RT is the stability of the mod V hull they make when you are fishing and someone moves around. I think they would fish the same. I would not mind a Triton boat at all.