So, should I buy a Cobalt?

[Big Block Power]

Myself I wish I got smaller. Ok no I don't. I agree with Norris. Get as big as your pocket can afford. If you are good with the 22 then jump on it. The ft will make a diff in the water on the ride.

[psoundboater]

so, BBP. I see you have a 220 - basically the same hull as the CS22. Would you fork over this much cash for an extra foot and 20 hP if you were buying today? I see you have a honking big engine so guessing I can figure out your response to the second part of that question!

[Big Block Power]

so, BBP. I see you have a 220 - basically the same hull as the CS22. Would you fork over this much cash for an extra foot and 20 hP if you were buying today? I see you have a honking big engine so guessing I can figure out your response to the second part of that question!

That's a silly question. 300hp v8 vs 280 v6 all day long.
You will get it back in resale so don't worry about it
I also feel very confident in my boat in most situations. Bfun has the same boat as me and lay year on table rock he was in the washing machine spin cycle and he flew right through it. If your smart you can get off the lake in any situation. I was on Michigan and it was not nice. I turned around but I was ok. If I had to get somewhere I could have. I've had mine on superior and it was nice but still I took it out. Be smart and your ok. I would get the cs23 though. Just me. I guarantee you will say at 1 time or another that you wish you went bigger in both categories. Just my 2 cents. I've had a 4cyl to the 4.3 v6 to every v8 made to this point. And yes it's never enough. I still want more.

[Norris_Boating]

Let's play a little devil's advocate here.
If you aren't worried about power:" I must clarify that I was quite impressed with the power in the V6 when I tested the CS22 "
And you aren't worried about size: "For our expected use, it will be unlikely we will have more than 6 people in the boat much, if at all. So space is not an issue."
Then why even consider the CS23?
Will you notice a difference between power/size? Yes
Do you want more power/size? Yep (or you wouldn't be asking that question
Do you need it? Nope, then again nobody buys a boat on need. I got the 380 on my R7, knowing that 10k for 50 more horse power isn't worth, still find myself wondering if I should have just got it occasionally...

[psoundboater]

Thanks BBP and NB. Maybe I should have rephrased. Will I even notice the difference between 280 hP and 300 hP if the boat is 14" longer and over 200 lb heavier? Well, I can answer that now! I arranged to test both boats back-to-back last night. We did repeated speed ups and slow downs, tight corners, driving through some decent sized wakes. I could not tell the difference. Bit of a different sound from the V8, maybe a bit quieter at idle. In fact, the sales manager did not feel I was pushing the boats enough so we swapped seats and he pushed both boats hard. I had to hold onto the grab handle. Pretty impressive handling for sure. So maybe I will be banished from the forum, but the 22 is extremely close to the 23 in terms of ride quality and I would say at least equal in terms of acceleration and performance. To me, it seems to be the sweet spot in this range of Cobalt. It is about $12kCAN less too. This one is about $10k less than a 2020 and not really any change over these two model years. But it is White! The only colour I really did not want is white. Blue stripe and blue accent on the swim platform. I am slowly growing to accept it. Hard to believe that for such a major purchase, it comes down to colour! My wife also had only one request - anything but white. So there is that too.

So after the dealer lowered the price a bit, I have finally committed and made a counter offer - will see how it goes.

[Norris_Boating]

Nice! Congrats, and there is never a wrong answer when buying a Cobalt!

[akorcovelos]

Fingers crossed they take your offer! Just keep it clean so you can trade up to the CS23 next year.

[jma2@fuse.net]

... To me, it seems to be the sweet spot in this range of Cobalt. It is about $12kCAN less too. This one is about $10k less than a 2020 and not really any change over these two model years. But it is White! The only colour I really did not want is white. Blue stripe and blue accent on the swim platform. I am slowly growing to accept it. Hard to believe that for such a major purchase, it comes down to colour! My wife also had only one request - anything but white. So there is that too.

So after the dealer lowered the price a bit, I have finally committed and made a counter offer - will see how it goes.

Cobalt? Excellent choice, BUT, if neither you nor your wife wanted white, then you might want to think twice. Owning a Cobalt, for me, is a long-play, i.e., I plan to have it for a long time. If that is the same for you, then you'll both be boating in a color you really didn't want and after time, you'll probably be wishing you had a different color. This will cause "new-boat fever" and the prescription will be shopping for a new Cobalt in the color you like, and probably in the longer length, e.g., CS23. In the long run, it's probably less expensive to buy the CS23 now, presuming it's a '19 model year and available in a color you like.

I almost did the same thing a few years ago and settled for a white Cobalt 220S, but fortunately the dealer did not accept my offer. Less than a week later, I ended up purchasing a navy blue CS3 (now CS23), and I've never looked back. Bottom line is that Cobalts are gorgeous boats, and you should be thrilled each time you're out with it. The lines of the CS series are classic and will be timeless. Heads turn when you pull it into a marina for dinner. Don't sell yourself short here--get the Cobalt boat in the color you like and the length you want.

[Big Block Power]

Guys did you miss his signature

I agree with JMA I was working my way up to the 220 with a bb. I found a 1 owner classic white with blue boot stripe. Bought it. After having my blue hull on my 200 I shouldn't say hate but I washed a colored hull. 2 or so months later guess what. I bought my black beauty and 3 years later I don't even think of selling it even though it just sits in my garage.

Congrats and I think you made the right choice.

No you will not be banned from here. It's great to hear opinions from others on how a certain package performs to you.

So I have to ask once the salesperson got behind the wheel was there a diff between the 2 or did you still feel the same?

[psoundboater]

BBP - that is creepy that you figured this out!

2019_Cobalt_CS23.png

At some point I might have time to tell the full story, but the short story is that the dealer was more flexible on the 23 than the 22. In the end, it was $4kCAN more for the 23 with the V8 and likely less than a 2020 CS22.

2019_Cobalt_CS23_19_3094_Sandstone_&_Ebony_engine.png

The white CS22 did not have docking lights and dual battery that the CSD23 does, both of which I wanted. It is a sandstone/ebony/white colour combo and it looks awesome.
I am not sure if I would have regretted the white one or not, but now it does not matter. Delivery is Monday. Seagrass flooring, electronic compass in gauge cluster, interior LED lighting (would not have been my choice).

2019_Cobalt_CS23_19_3094_Sandstone_&_Ebony_4.png

I opted for the Cobalt mooring cover after surfing through the forum. My boat will be stored on a lift outside so figure it is worth it. It also comes with both snap on covers and the fender clips with fenders, four mooring lines and a full tank of fuel which matters up here in Canada!

Looking forward to testing it out! Thanks again for all of the help.

[BobRae99]

What a great result and a super classic look. I have the VP 350 in my R3 and it rockets onto plane in under 3 seconds. the VP300 has the same torque and HP to about 4,500 RPM so you will have the same performance as the 350 getting on plane and in a lighter boat. What could be better from a performance perspective.

You are all set, so enjoy the summer


PS Are you sure the dealer can't deliver it today? It's the weekend!

[psoundboater]

BR99 - not a long weekend here in Ontario. Monday is just a regular day. They confirmed Monday so hoping they stick with it! Not the end of the world if not. I will not have much time to use it until next weekend anyway. As long as they deliver it by next Friday, I will be happy. The boat is new so it just needs a good once over, I think. The dealer is only 90 minutes from my place.

[psoundboater]

BTW, I did ask for Saturday - they almost laughed at me. They have a ton of boats coming out of winter storage today and tomorrow!

[jma2@fuse.net]

Congratulations! Great color!

[Big Block Power]

Not to much gets passed is. If one of us misses it Matt will find it.