High hours on a boat?

[Norris_Boating]

As I just hit 500 hours on my boat I find myself wondering, At what point on boat hours do people consider it "high" hours to the point that the value of the boat drops? I feel like it is around 100,000 miles on a car, maybe 1000 hours on a boat?

Also, would you be concerned about too few hours? I Probably wouldn't by a 5 year old boat with 20 hours on it. I feel like I would want more use than that (20 hours per year??) to make sure all the minor issues haven't turned into big issues.

[Krob1114]

No real advice here but my two cents worth: I don't worry about the hours on my boat. I bought it to use it. When my wife says she wants to ride, we ride. I do make sure maintenance is up to date and the boat looks new inside and out. As far as 100k miles on a car, in my life I've purchased at least 3 cars with that many miles and drove them with no issues, with the '88 Acura Legend Coupe sold at 275k, mainly because it had the older freon in it.

My Mercedes ML350 diesel will probably pass 200k on this weekend trip to the lake, and it's still one of the best highway vehicles I've ever owned. Sometimes, I look at something and realize that this boat or car is worth more to me than to someone else.

Our 2019 R3 had 287 hours when we left last weekend. You must be having more fun than we are.

[Whitney220s]

No real advice here but my two cents worth: I don't worry about the hours on my boat. I bought it to use it. When my wife says she wants to ride, we ride. I do make sure maintenance is up to date and the boat looks new inside and out. As far as 100k miles on a car, in my life I've purchased at least 3 cars with that many miles and drove them with no issues, with the '88 Acura Legend Coupe sold at 275k, mainly because it had the older freon in it.

My Mercedes ML350 diesel will probably pass 200k on this weekend trip to the lake, and it's still one of the best highway vehicles I've ever owned. Sometimes, I look at something and realize that this boat or car is worth more to me than to someone else.

Our 2019 R3 had 287 hours when we left last weekend. You must be having more fun than we are.

My thoughts exactly. I do 100hrs/yr and am sitting at 600+ on a 2018 220. On land it’s the same with Toyotas.

[billk2632]

I feel like people still see 100k miles on a car or 1000hrs on a boat as high. Personally I disagree, maintained properly, most cars can go much further - 200-300k. I have had several cars approaching 200k miles (Volvos and Lexus) -- currently I drive a Lexus LS430 with 160k that I would not even consider replacing at this point. Boats - I have had several boats with 800+hrs and one (the Correct Craft) had right at 2000hrs when I sold it - original engine, regular maintenance and no major repairs. My current R5 has a little over 300hrs - I don't even really think about the hours I put on it -- just enjoy it. The reality is most GM based marine engines can run 1000's of hours if maintained - the death of a marine engine is usually water intrusion through a failure in the exhaust system or freeze damage due to improper winterization. They rarely wear out - things like water pumps, alternators etc, yes expect those to wear out over time, but the engine - no.

I know this is not apples/apples due the constant load a marine engine is usually under, but if you figure my Lexus is run at an average speed of say 45mph, then at 160k miles, that engine has roughly 3500hrs on it. So at 1000hrs that's like 45k miles - a rough illustration, but does put some perspective on it.

I am not worried about a few hundred or even 1500hrs on my boat - I know the maintenance on it.

[Table Rockin]

I've casually wondered the same thing Norris but ultimately I really dont care. I keep my boat in great shape and have my marina do all the recommended service each and every year, whatever that is. I've owned this boat for 7 years now (crazy!) and have had no problems at all (knock on wood). I bought this thing to enjoy, and will happily throw hours on her any chance I get. I have over 400 hours on her which equates to roughly 50-60 hours a year. W

I assume perhaps your asking because your thinking at what point do you sell it for a new boat? In that case I think it depends on your personal situation/budget. Only you can decide if the market hit is worth keeping a couple more years vs selling soon and getting a theoretical better price. If it were me, I'd be basing my decision on whether a new boat is worth it based on my intended usage. If your current setup is adequate I'd keeping throwing hours on her. Or.....if you want to use hours as an excuse to buy a new boat and you have the means go for it! Life is short

[NautiWeasel]

So far.. I like all of these answers. And I agree with them all, pretty much down to a T.
We have 335 hours on our 242m, which is just now 10 years old. That's ONLY 33 hours a year, and what I would consider to be light use. I won't hesitate one bit to put 1,000 hours on it before I would start to worry about something expensive needing to be replaced. I'm not scared of maintenance, and I know from experience in the trucks that I drive that the engine in my boat will last an equivalent of 250k miles plus, with no major issues.
I've pondered that same question as to what equals too many, or at least high hours for the boat to take a considerable dive in value. Then I thought some more, and realized I really didn't care. The boat is the ONLY place I can go to where I'm not constantly worried about something else I should be doing or could improve upon/fix. I can't even get away from those thoughts camping anymore, as there's always something to be fixed or improved there as well (especially with kids). Our boat was purchased mainly because we say my in-laws pass away too soon, and realized that life was too short for us to put around on our former boat and worry about being safe on the water, or having enough room for people. We could afford it, so we jumped in head first on our Cobalt, and never looked back. To us, it's worth every penny, and I just ignore the hour meter until it comes time to think about what maintenance item is next on the agenda, when we get back home.

[Anchor86]

Awesome timing for this thread for me. My `99 Searay 230 bowrider only has 480 hours on it and has been awesome but I’m at the point where I want to upgrade to a 2018-2021 R7. Seeing way more average yearly hours on boats makes me I realize I need to use my boat more , which is the plan as i transition to “retirement”.

[Jimmy Buoy]

The number one killer of boat engines is water intrusion (according to marine mechanics). Boating in fresh water vs salt also makes a difference especially if your engine is raw water cooled. Most likely water intrusion is from rusted exhaust manifolds or risers - again not as much of an issue in fresh water.

Other than that, overheat issues can be an issue causing an early death as well. A diligent owner will recognize what the normal operating temps are and if those temps begin to rise it's time to check your pumps impeller.

Unfortunately I've know other boaters that just turn the key and run the boat like they stole it! Some of the newer engines store data about how many hours were run at various RPM ranges. Still, doesn't tell the whole story.

Another friend had a 35' express with twin 7.4's that ran over 3000 hrs in the time that he had it. He was a maintenance freak and most of the engine run time was at 1500RPM. Engines were still decent compression and ran well. That being said, he had to deeply discount the price since most assumed that they'd be looking at engine replacement sooner rather than later.

[Krob1114]

I just ignore the hour meter until it comes time to think about what maintenance item is next on the agenda, when we get back home.

After reading this forum for years, I tend to look at out boat maintenance in seasons rather than hours.
Right now oil changes are every season.
Rear end and impeller is every other season.
Someone needs to tell me about the bellows and gimble bearings because I've never had to replace them.