fishingtvn

i honestly can't answer that because i've had no problems. i do all the routine maintanance myself and will let the dealer do anything that yamaha strictly states they have to do. i have been to the local yamaha dealer and make sure to buy my oil, filters and lube from them and keep up somewhat of a relationship. i spoke with g3, which is owned by yamaha and they assured me there would be no problem taking the motor, or boat for warranty repairs to a local dealer. about waiting...i don't know. the only dealer that told me about waiting was when i told the guy i was gonna buy the boat in 'bama. i figured it was his last second sales pitch.

i bought a g3 hp 180 in the spring and love it! i got a f115 and she goes 48 at w.o.t. gps which is plenty for me and she still sips gas. i was considering the tracker also and its not a bad boat but i've heard too many horror stories about them. in small waters i'm sure you will be fine. but it seems they start screwing up when they take a pounding from big waves. a friend of mine has a tracker pt 175 when he first saw my boat he couldn't believe the difference that the 7'' of beam width makes. and she sure is pretty too! if you already decided on the tracker this does not apply but for other brands shop around! i drove from jersey to northern alabama to save 3 grand on my boat. i got the yammy f115, 24v 65 maxxum, garmin 250 front and back, custom cover and spare tire for $20,500 after rebate. if you were to opt for a 2 stroke you could save more short term but the 4 is sweet. the HP series have no wood construction, but they make a cheaper model that has wood floors and is similar to the tracker in beam and price i would think good luck in your purchase i know how nerve racking it can be.

ran a 115 2002 thru 2004 great motor great warranty available.

new owner 2005 g3 180 hp dc f115 yamaha garmin 250 at console lowrance x97 at the bow 24 volt minnkota maxxum 65 never been in the water.

hey stump grinder i too am from our fabled state and feel you have misrepresented it. there are 4 lakes you can use better than 9.9hp that i know of ;D .a tracker will serve you well in our state i know lots of guys with them who fish tournaments and have no problems. from what i have read though you wouldnt want them on big water they can't take a beating. the live wells are small. one friend of mine has a dry storage box on his pro team 175 and he converted it into a livewell. good luck with your purchase!

i have the 40 pd and know exactly what you mean! what i've done is not make it tight but leave it loose. with it loose you can easily route the wire with your free hand when you pull the motor up so it does't get pinched and still be carefull!! you can damage the transducer wire real easy if you just pull that motor up w/o paying attention. also i wrapped the wire in a few layers of electrical tape just in case.

hey squid xpress makes a 22' with up to 300 hp!

hey wormy thanks for your help! check your messages i didn't want to bore the good folks with anymore of my ranting!

there a few issues with the fisher that bother me but the main one is they do not offer a dual console model. the livewell is 23 gallons not so bad. they are a division of tracker marine which gives me pause. the fact that the max horse power on this boat is 125 bothers me. not because i necessarily want a 150 hp or need it but because out of all the manufacturers of aluminum bass boats that i've looked at in the 18' class [triton,g3,lowe,alumacraft.tracker,fisher,xpress] trackers max hp is 115 and fisher is 125. now why that is i don't know but my first inclination is that the transom is not made as well as the other boats.i could be totally wrong but that is the feeling i get. thanks for you input!!!

thanks again for your info!! according to the catalog the g3 has a package width of 92" i have 94" of clearance and if i rip off the moulding on both sides of the opening i might gain another 1.5"but i've already ticked off the wife enough. well its either that or i replace it with rub rails for all the times i'm gonna scrape j/k. its a tight fit fur sure! actually about my wife i'm really lucky. and i'm not just saying this because she is reading over my shoulder : she fishes tournaments with me and is just as passionate about our sport as i am. its just the comparisons of keel and hull design, h/o versus 4 stroke vs carb, and my borderline o.c.d. condition about this purchase that drives her a little nuts especially when i expect her to listen to all of my ramblings on these matters of serious importance..what is wrong with her?..thanks again!

you are a 100 percent right about the frustration part i am driving my wife insane with all my time spent researching, and what really sucks is in new jersey and really much of the northeast this type of boat hasn't really caught on so dealers for g3, triton, and alumacraft don't carry any in stock so you can't test drive or go over in person. the only boat of this type that i've seen in person was the triton and that was in upstate ny. i have no doubt that this is a quality boat but the livewell is pretty small and it doesn't look to have the storage of the g3. i would store the alumacraft outside but i have no room. unfortunately i think its pretty much ruled out. i also think that it is more reasonably priced than the g3 and triton and the aluminum hull is even slightly thicker. for the g3 and triton with a 115 yamaha 4 stoke i am looking at $23g's. i'm pretty sure the aluma is a couple g's less. what power do you have on yours? and if you don't mind how much did they nail you for it? also i agree with you about the tracker i have heard too many nightmares about cracked welds and leaks. they actually are pretty popular in nj because 95% of lakes here are electric only but i plan to fish bigger lakes in ny upstate. thanks for all your info really appreciate it!!

what complaints do your buddies have with the G3? i pretty much have my mind made up to go with the HP 180 and i've even talked to their engineering dpt. about how the halves are joined along the keel but if you have any info please share! thanks

Crestliner, check out this site it will solve the myths of all the rating mumbo jumbo http://www.randlmarine.com/true%20story.htm

Thanks for you reply. The Alumacraft's beam is 92", I don't know what the package width is, but I only have 94'' of clearance.

Great site you got here! I could really use some expert advice. I am looking to get into some more serious tournament fishing to see if I'm good enough to compete in bigger waters and from there...well we all have our dreams. I really want to go with aluminum for the usual reasons. The one draw back that I see in aluminum bass style boats [not multi-species] are the size of livewells. I would like a 18 foot boat, and one with a dual console. I love Triton's 186 mag but the live well is only 20 gallons. G3's HP18 has a 27 gallon livewell, and Alumacraft's Invader a 33. I view all these boats as fairly equal in quality [if I'm wrong please let me know]. The only problem with th Alumacraft is the beam it is too wide for my garage. With a man in the back there's no way I could keep 2 seperate limits in a 20 gallon livewell. So my question to all of you is am I putting to much importance on the livewell and go with quality and of a Triton? Is G3 just as good? Or go with the Alumacraft for the largest livewell no matter what. Thanks for your help!!! ???