First time boat owner. Looking at 2003 Maxum 2700 SR

[AlexG]

I am very glad to have found this forum for Maxum boats, and look forward to finding other Maxum owners in my area.

I have been looking to get a boat for a while, and someone in my area has a 2003 Maxum 2700 SR with 400 hrs on engine (Mercury 350hp).
I don't know anything about boats, and I am looking for recommendations on things to look at while testing it.
Also, I read that Maxum boats are discontinued. Is that an issue to get parts, or are they still available and fairly easy to find?
By the way, what's a decent price range for boat like that. Again, I don't know much and just want to make sure I am paying fair price.

Any info will help.

Thanks in advance,
Alex.

[biggerseagar]

Welcome aboard!

First...whatever boat you buy get a full survey done before you buy ! A mechanical on the engine and system survey on the rest of the boat. Be ready to walk away if necessary. Find a mentor to help you. Take a save boating course.

I have an 01 3000 and for the most part if I can find out who the manufacturer of a part is I got a good chance of getting that part. Engine and outdrive parts come from mercury. Easy to get. There are also many outside vendors for mechanical and general use available.

Whoever you buy from take the boat out for a trail run with your surveyor and make sure they go through all the systems on the boat ( how the a/c works,plumbing, the head, going through the engine compartments.and so forth) with you.

Maxum are a pretty good boat and if maintained properly will last you a long while.
And have fun this is adventure!

Roger

[mmwjr]

Not sure where you are located so it hard to say what’s a fair price in your area but I would use www.yachtworld.com to see what others have this model or similar listed for. Remember list and sell are two different things. Since you don’t know anything about boats get it surveyed. You may also want to have a marine mechanic look it over. These cost some but much cheaper than replacing a bad engine or outdrive. On these engines the exhaust is water cooled and needs replacement every 5-10 years depending on the body of water the boat is used on. I.e. saltwater shorter life. Any pictures of this boat? Where are you located?

[shrew]

Maxum made the hull and the deck. They purchased all 3rd party parts and installed them and assembled the boat. There really are no Maxum parts.

Engine and outdrive: Mercruiser.
talbes and posts: Todd Industries
Windshield: Taylor
Cleats and Nav Lights: Perko
Head: Jabsco
Fridge: Norcold
guages: Faria
Hatches: Bomar

And so forth and so on.

[AlexG]

Hi biggerseagar,

Thanks for the response. Very kind of you to help with the info you provided. I contacted a surveyor and they charge $750 to review the boat. Is that within the range of acceptable prices?

[AlexG]

Hi mmwjr,

Thanks for the advice. I am getting quotes on surveyors and it seems to be $700+.
Something that caught my eye was your note "the exhaust is water cooled and needs replacement every 5-10 years". I will be using it on salt water. How expensive is the replacement of the exhaust? Is that something that you can do yourself or I will need a mechanic for that?

[AlexG]

Originally Posted by shrew

Maxum made the hull and the deck. They purchased all 3rd party parts and installed them and assembled the boat. There really are no Maxum parts.

Engine and outdrive: Mercruiser.
talbes and posts: Todd Industries
Windshield: Taylor
Cleats and Nav Lights: Perko
Head: Jabsco
Fridge: Norcold
guages: Faria
Hatches: Bomar

And so forth and so on.

Thanks shrew,
Very useful information to keep handy if I move forward with it.

[yahoo82]

In my experience those prices are competitive. Also, one of the most valuable parts of the survey is the moisture analysis … knowing if there is any moisture intrusion into stringers, transom, hull, etc. Make sure you know what the surveyor will need to do a complete analysis. At minimum, the boat will need to be hauled out of the water, but I also learned the hard way that the boat needs to be out of the water long enough for the hull to dry below the waterline to get a good reading … that could mean getting it out of the water a few hours or maybe a day ahead of time. No matter what, make sure you and/or the surveyor can see the hull out of the water … serious hull damage can exist even if the boat is floating … ask me how I know . Coordinating the haul out with the owner/marina can be difficult because after the readings are taken, it needs to be launched for a sea trial. The sea trial is the next most important thing, followed by functional checks of the systems. I put that last because it’s 1) the easiest to check without a surveyor and 2) just because it works on the day you close doesn’t mean it will work the next day … there are no guarantees in boats (at least not used boats)!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[biggerseagar]

I would call around to see what the going rate is in your area. Go from there ,but I paid $350.00 for mine 20 years ago.

Good luck

[AlexG]

Thanks yahoo82

[AlexG]

Originally Posted by biggerseagar

I would call around to see what the going rate is in your area. Go from there ,but I paid $350.00 for mine 20 years ago.

Good luck

Thanks biggerseagar.. I'll contact a few others and compare prices.

[mmwjr]

Originally Posted by AlexG

Hi mmwjr,

Thanks for the advice. I am getting quotes on surveyors and it seems to be $700+.
Something that caught my eye was your note "the exhaust is water cooled and needs replacement every 5-10 years". I will be using it on salt water. How expensive is the replacement of the exhaust? Is that something that you can do yourself or I will need a mechanic for that?

That quote seems a little high but not that far out of line for a 27 footer. If you are mechanically inclined changing the exhaust is not that hard to do. One trick is to use a piece of allthread on each end to support the new manifold then install the other bolts and finally remove the allthread and install the bolts.

[matteisj]

I purchased my 2004 2500SE 9 years ago. I wound up replacing the exhaust system shortly after. I did the work myself but relied on my mechanic to order the parts. I seem to recall it was approaching 1k for parts for my one engine. I've also had to contend with corrosion issues and water leaking in at the aft rub rail. Some of the stuff is easy to fix, some not so much. The couple electrical issues I've had required that I just run new wire, which can be a pain but easier than trying to follow the original wires. All the advice I see is very good. Presuming the boat checks out, the advice about finding yourself a good mentor is priceless. There is so much to learn about handling, docking, anchoring, mooring, etc. You can never have enough help. Best of luck.

[AlexG]

Thanks matteisj. I asked the seller to confirm if the exhaust manifolds, risers, and elbows had been replaced, and how long ago, but no response yet, which is not a good sign.

[viper12161]

Originally Posted by AlexG

Hi mmwjr,

Thanks for the advice. I am getting quotes on surveyors and it seems to be $700+.
Something that caught my eye was your note "the exhaust is water cooled and needs replacement every 5-10 years". I will be using it on salt water. How expensive is the replacement of the exhaust? Is that something that you can do yourself or I will need a mechanic for that?

I am in the process of replacing my exhaust system (Risers and manifolds). I run in salt as well. Look up some Youtube videos on it. Doesn't seem overly difficult, just wielding some heavy items. The allthread trick mmwjr mentioned is a great one. It cost me just under $1k for the parts.

[matteisj]

I tried to figure out what parts to order by going through the parts breakdown/list for my motor. When I sent the list to my mechanic, he had several corrections so I wound up just having them order the parts. Pretty pricey that way but saved me from ordering stuff I did not need.

Here is the note from the mechanic regarding the list I sent. I also attached the part order for the 5.7 L motor in my 2004. I just used the Mercury manual to answer any questions I had regarding the R&R. Seemed to go pretty well and without any issues.

From your list you do not need:
12524 - comes with
63835 - reuse
806926A1 - comes with
806608A1 - comes with
62706 - comes with
92499 - reuse
863804 - reuse

Note from RON:
New manifolds come with bottom drain elbows, plugs and gaskets. Riser extension kits come with upper and lower riser gaskets. The brass 1" water fittings are generally removed, cleaned and reused. Normally we would install new exhaust flappers when performing this repair. They are in the "Y" pipe just below the lower exhaust boot. Their function is to prevent inversion when stopping abruptly or operating in reverse.

Best of luck Alex!

[matteisj]

Also, I have the supplemental manual for that boat which has lots of info about the systems, including electrical. It's too large to attach here and I can't seem to find it on-line anymore. If interested, I'll be glad to email to you.

Steve