Boat advice for a friend

[Tony Meola]

A friend of mine is looking at a 1999 28' Carolina Clasic with the Volvo k 43 @230HP. I know I have seen some comments about the Carolina Classic not being the boat some think it is. Other than it isn't one of beloved 31's, does anyone have any good input on this year Carolina as well as the engine. I am trying to convince him to look for a 31, but his son is hot to trot on this 28. Thanks guys. Tony Meola

[CaptPatrick]

Tony,

Kids are always hot to trot, especially when Daddy's pickin' up the tab...

Sorry, & it really has very little to do with be biased toward the B31, but there's just not a good word I can say about a Carolina Classic. 10 tons of crap stuffed into an 7 ton box.

Br,

Patrick

[bob lico]

tony we have a trade in recently of that boat.28 carolina classic with twin 4bta cummins.the boat has been back and forth to canyon many times and got caught in gale warnings and came back in 12' seas owner does roughtly the same business as brewster but restarant is on a much larger scale.always out hunting tuna and boat has 2800 hours.handles well in rough water but beam is a little narrow making it tender for overnight drifting.we have a buyer at 85,000 if that means anything to you.this is a express i don`t know if they make more than one model.this boat has a 30knot cruise with a hard top.owner was jim hahn owner of riverview restarant .

[Carl]

Take this for what it is worth...

Guy on Pops old dock has one and likes most everything about it, although he has had some engine issues.

Mechanic tells a different tale about the boat. He says boat has issues. The ones he most dislikes is there is a point where the boat comes up to plane and just kind of sits there lolly gagging about with the nose in the air till the turbos kick in then shes off like a rape date. Same thing coming off plane, she moves like holy hell, you ease back on throttles and she still skips along...then boom she's off plane nose in the air. Pretty much no middle ground. Owner runs boat like a gas runabout, shoves throttles wide open then backs off when he's at speed. Guess that is why the engines have had some big time issues.

Not really sure as to the power he has in it, but you can mention to your friend it can be something to look for. There are days you may need to run at a slower cruise, that boat with that setup pretty much cannot.

[waggles02673]

I like the Carolina Classic 28. From what I have heard those engines are marginal for the boat if it has a tower. have you checked out the Carolina Classic boat owners website. If not post the question over there. Below is a link to the website

http://www.carolinaclassicboatowners.com/forums/

Jon

[Brewster Minton]

there's just not a good word I can say about a Carolina Classic. 10 tons of crap stuffed into an 7 ton box.

Br,

Patrick

They are crap. I know because I went on one and it rode like crap.

[Dug]

There is one in my harbor and I know the owner well, as well as a bunch of guys who fish the boat with him.

The owner loves his boat. He hates his cummins engines, and I don't blame him. They are the 250 cummins and they suck. He has never ending injector issues, and bad dealer support. He has killed multiple engines and it has not been any fault of his own. Suffice to say I really don't want to ever go near that model Cummins. He has also spun props off, sheared shafts, and so on. Mechanically he has had nothing but trouble.

He loves the boat otherwise, and uses it whenever he can. that is not often, as it is always broken.

The guys on the crew like the boat, but have said it porpoises a bit (could be needing some tabs) etc. They have not be efflusive in praising it, and that says something to a degree. I think overall they are really frustrated with the mechanicals.

That being said I guess that Carolina is going to step up and do a re-power for him that will help him out cost wise rather than having him take the full brunt all on his own.

He has the tower, and otherwise it looks good from the dock and underway. I have never been out on her.

Dug

[John F.]

I haven't been on a 28, but I talked at length with the owner of one that had the 4bta 250 in it that were replaced with 6bta 300 or 330s. He really liked the boat, hated the 4btas mechanically and said it was marginally powered with those motors. He said it really ran well with the 6btas. I went to the factory when my friend's boat was being built, and was pretty impressed.

[Capt.Frank]

I know a few guys that have them, all love the boat. One hated the Vulvos, One is gas runs it hard, the other cummings and he does not use the boat that much. They all run too fast for me to keep up with but. When its rough I feel my ride is more comfortable. From watching them run by. Bouncing around running fast.

Frank

[Tony Meola]

Thanks for all of the input. Actually its all very helpfull. I will pass the pros and cons along to him and let him make the final decision. Its a choice he has to live with. However, the basic drift is those engines might be a little on the small side for that boat and that in itself could be a turn off. If he pays anything close to a $100,000 for it and doesn't consider looking at a redone 31 he would be foolish but then again I am prejudice. Again thanks for the information. Tony Meola