My friend's inlaws have a 1999 Skeeter ZX185c they are wanting to get rid of to free up driveway space. It sits on an original/matching EZ loader trailer, has the original 1999 Yamaha VMax on it, as well as a matching cover. I was told it has sat in their driveway for 7-8 years, although it does have 2020 registration stickers on it. The man who owns it is in pretty bad health and will never be able to use it again. The wife and adult kids want it gone. I was hoping maybe guys on the forum could give me some advice on the value of this rig as is as well its potential if it was fixed/cleaned up. I am a jon boat guy and really have a backlog of projects but this one intrigues me and would hate to pass up a good deal. Ideally I would like to fix it up and sell to help fund some newer electronics for my tin rigs. I only snapped and attached a few pics and none are the greatest for forming much of an opinion but I'll give quick run down on it.

Motor: The motor is pretty clean on the outside aside from the sun faded plastic air intake. Under the hood it is also very clean aside from a couple dirt dobber nests. Looks like the head bolts all have factory paint on them and doesnt appear to have been wrenched on. I went and looked at it on a whim and did not have any tools to do a compression test or anything. Starting battery was dead as a doornail though as expected so would have had to have one with me to spin it over. Odds are the motor just needs a bit of work on the fuel side to get it going but you never know if the reason it sat was because they ran it hard and lean and did damage and that they never got around to getting it fixed. Until I'm able to do any real checks on it I guess I have to assume it is a parts motor at the moment.

Boat: Really the boat doesnt look too bad. That Skeeter cover did a pretty good job all these years. Of course its damp and mildewy smelling in every hatch but it seem to stay clear enough to stay mostly drained all this time aside from the cockpit floor where the drain was a little stopped up. Hatches all open and close and the lids feel solid. The lid struts feel shot though. Captain and passenger seats are in pretty good shape too but the middle one which doubles as a step seems janky. The boat has zero electronics on it and has 3 batteries which are all trashed now. The trolling motor is a newer MG X3 24V/70 lb thrust model that looks good in appearance but untested. Not sure how much value that adds. Has a hotfoot too. I don't know enough about gelcoats to say much about it other than it looks like it could be buffed. It does look a little better in the pics than it does in person. I also am unsure about the carpet. Would need a good power washing to really see how it stands. At least it isn't torn and totally sun faded.

Trailer: Was told the trailer may have a broken axle (yikes) but I didn't see any evidence of that. The left fender is bent in the front of it (can see in pics) and the carpeted piece acting as the wheel well on that side is dangling. Looks to me like it was backed into a curb or something. So I guess the jury is still out on that. I really would need to jack it up to inspect it better. Tires actually look ok and not dry rotted, just low on air, and it has a decent looking spare. The trailer has surge brakes but the line up at the coupler is cut off and I dont see the actuator piece that actually works them. I have zero experience with a trailer with surge brakes so the whole coupler assembly was new to me. I actually couldnt figure out how to get the ball hitch coupler to open so I would even be able to hook it up which made me feel pretty stupid. Overall the trailer seemed pretty straight and I didnt see anything that wasnt cosmetic aside from the surge brake components that were missing. All that said, if the axle actually does have a problem that wont be a cheap fix and would knock the trailer down a lot in value.

Overall it seems like its in good shape given the circumstances. Just a lot of unknowns for a 25 year old boat that has sat outside. The fact that it doesnt have a really nice trolling motor and has zero electronics has to negatively factor in as well. Still iffy on the trailer after the talk of a broken axle and then the surge brake components being removed. Any opinions on what it may be worth as it sits right now factoring in the risks due to unknowns? What about if the motor turns out to be in good shape mechanically/electrically and just needs a tuneup and carbfuel delivery side cleaned? Or on the flip side if the motor has a serious issue that led to it sitting all these years? If I was going to fix it up and sell it I definitely would not add any electronics as that would be zero return on investment so I'm not really sure what's its max value could ever equate to. Weighing risk vs reward is may main thing. FWIW I'm capable and enjoy working on outboards so I would do the basic tuneup stuff myself, including other things like cleaning carbs, setting linkages, checking/setting timing, etc.

Would love some opinions from guys with way more experience than me with not only with glass bass boats in general but the Skeeter hulls and Vmax outboards particularly.

1 - 4ZV2217.jpg

2 - 2LCnrvK.jpg

Skeeter ZX185c_TM.jpg

3 - ZRrEHAF.jpg

5 - pSOBXTQ.jpg