Buying an older STRATOS... opinions?

[bigbronc23]

Looking at an 87' Stratos 201 Pro this week, boat is priced at 4,000 and is posted as : 200HP Mercury, Stainless prop, fuel injected, newer Minnekota bow mount, dual livewells,hydrylic jackplate tilt works trim does not i think it just needs to be wired in,runs good could probably use a tune up paint is a little faded but overall in good condition

I have emailed him a couple of times and gotten this in response : the trim hasnt worked since i owned the boat ,doesnt seem to be any major electrical problems except for the trim and speedometor does not work, all livewells and bilge pumps work , structurely the boat is in excellent condition no cracks or soft spots gel coat is a little faded as is the motor feel free to call or e mail any more questions thanks,Dan

2nd email) I have owned the boat for three years,the boat is an 87,trailer is an 88 magnum , motor is an 85. sorry i should have clarified that in the ad. I am around any night after 5 or 6 i could meet you in baldwin there is a lake north of baldwin a couple miles that we could take it to thanks ,Dan call ahead on whatever day you would like and i will make sure to be avalible

Wondering what to look for when I do go check this boat out and if this "trim issue" is a big deal... and if so how much it would cost to fix??? Thanks ahead of time for any help!!
Alex
***Soon to be boat owner hopefully!!***

[bass57348]

Might want to post this on the Merc or Stratos board. Good Luck!

[DJDeron]

My last boat was an '88 201 Pro. It was a great boat to fish from and rode pretty good, mostly because it was heavy. Not a speed demon by any means. The 200 might push it to around 60 MPH if the motor is healthy.

I didn't think Mercury made an EFI motor until 1988 so you may be looking at a carb motor. I would DEFINITELY have the motor looked over by a trusted marine mechanic before buying. The minimum of a compression and spark test should be done along with checking the lower unit. The trim will need to be fixed to properly run that boat. Could be expensive depending on what's wrong.

Look closely at the transom for any signs of water intrusion. They had wood core transoms back then and any signs of water seeping in would be bad. As long as the gel coat is not real rough feeling, you can sand and buff the color back pretty good. Mine was pretty rough when a I got it and it was a "labor of love" type project cleaning and fixing her up.

Stratos made a really good boat back then (Earl Bentz who designed my Triton was with the company at that time). As long as it's in good shape without too many problems, you'll really enjoy that boat. Good Luck!

[cw95bronc]

I baught a 90 201 DC, 200xp I love it. It has taken me several months to get use to it because all I had before were tiller steer flatbottoms. Now I can fish watters that were unaccessable and windy conditions that would not even consider going out in. Good luck with the purchase. BTW Test drive it no matter what!!!

[unclemark]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bigbronc23 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
2nd email) I have owned the boat for three years,the boat is an 87,trailer is an 88 magnum , motor is an 85. sorry i should have clarified that in the ad. I am around any night after 5 or 6 i could meet you in baldwin there is a lake north of baldwin a couple miles that we could take it to thanks ,Dan call ahead on whatever day you would like and i will make sure to be avalible
</TD></TR></TABLE>I hate to be the negative one in the bunch but first the motor is 23yrs old, don't just run it have it checked out by a competent mechanic.... check compression check the ignition check the whole nine yards, A boat that age can have a ton of hidden issues that are sometimes hard to find with the naked eye take a friend with you that knows boats and let the mech look over it as well. I wonder if what the seller is sayin is the lift on the hydro jackplate doesnt work cuz the tilt trim is the same function really and if it is the tilt/trim that can be a coslty fix... I cant imagine somebody having a boat 3 yrs and not have worked the bugs out of it.... especially if they are simple fixes... buyer be ware he might be asking 4000 and that sounds good but if you have to put another 4 in to get it all right then your already upsidedown and probably wont get your investment back if you resell it... be carefull with whatever path you take and also check the forsale pages on the board and see if their might not be a better deal avaiable. Good luck.

[Greenhorn]

I don't like descriptions like the one you were given or read. They are somewhat contridictory as far as I see them. Always check it out and have the motor looked at as possible.


Runs good could probably use a tune up...

It generally either runs good OR needs a tune up.


Paint is a little faded but overall in good condition...

Paint is either faded or good.

[weedhopper]

RUN

20+ year old motor and boat with problems. Sorry, but for $4k you can find something that is ready to fish..................