Carver Owners Forum

Welcome to the group!!!!!

Here's three good tips:
- get a survey
- and while you're at it, it's a good idea to have a survey done
- and finally for peace of mind, have a pro do a survey

Since Viper cannot cover all bases I will add you should get a survey.

Really think about your desired use of the new boat, from what I saw when I was researching, the main difference between the Santego and the Mariner was that the Mariner had more interior room, while the Santego had a better designed exterior (rear in particular). If you plan to spend more time on the swim deck then the Santego may be better for you.

For me, and my families planned use, the Mariner made more sense since there was more interior space but still ample exterior space for cruising. I am speaking from the 36ft-38ft perspective but I think these comparisons hold up for the 32's as well.

Once you've decided on the layout/model that you prefer, the professional survey is your obvious next step, you really want to remove the emotion at this point and purchase the best boat that you can afford. If more repairs are needed than you can justify, walk away, another boat will become available soon enough. I would also say that its good to remember that even the boat with the best survey will require some sweat equity eventually, or at least a steady payment to a mechanic if you aren't 'handy'.

HTH, Ben in SC

Thanks for all the replies.
I should have included that the engines on the Santego are 5.7 mercruiser stern drives not Volvo and the Mariner has 5.7 V drive. I think.
I have wondered about that myself but am more familiar with stern drives than the direct drive type. I do like the better fuel economy aspect of the stern drives. Would it be significant?
A new survey is definatley going to happen wouldn't consider purchasing a boat without one. There is a survey a couple of years old for the Santego I have already looked at.
The Santego also has about half the hours of the Mariner.
I. Had a look at the Mariner and will be looking at the Santego soon. If their layouts are similar I may lean toward the Santego (lower hours).

Our Mariner 5.7L Crusaders had 1,300 hrs on them and were clean as a whistle on the inside when I put rebuilt long blocks in her. The rebuilds were not done do to the hours, but for a mistake I made installing a new distributor. There are those of us that feel low hours are not always a good sign, boat sat more than it got run and that can be worst than a lot of hours internally depending what type of water she sat in. IMO!

I like the idea of going with the lower hours when given the choice and here is my reasoning. If all goes well with the surveys , consider this, what is the first question anyone asks ( how many hours ).....so consider a boat with 1500 hours, well maintained etc and you keep it for 3 years at 100 hours a year, you are now at 1800 hours, so how would you consider an 1800 hour gas boat, what is it's value now ?? I know of course there have been many, many gas boat engines that go way beyond, but that doesn't help when you want to sell and are confronted with the hour thing.

Other side, same thing starting at 800 hours, so I think you see what I mean.A lot of this hinges on what you are paying for each boat, compared to market value. The fuel diff between v drives and i/o I believe to be very little, it is all dependant on how much HP you use when cruising anyway.

Good luck with your search...I guess you will have to sweat the three month wait to finalize....

Thanks to all.
This will be our first "Big boat".
Come on Spring!!

You can take two identical boats. One with inboards and one with I/O's. The I/O boat will always outperform the inboard boat in just about all aspects with the exception of low speed close quarters handling in most cases. BoatTest has tested over the years several boats identical with the exception of I/O's vs inboards.

My last boat a 30 footer like my Carver had twin I/O's. It got way better fuel economy and it was 1200 lbs heavier than my Carver. Both were powered by twin 5.7's. The 3055 Bayliner averaged 1.5 mpg over the 12 seasons I had her. The Carver .86 mpg over the 3+ seasons I have had her. The Bayliner topped out at 45 mph cruised at 30. The Carver tops out at 25 mph and cruises at 17.

Not an apples to apples comparison as the Carver is a sedan and the Bayliner was an express model. Both had 15 degree deadrise at the transom so that similarity is there too. While the Bayliner was a roomy 30 footer it does not compare to the 30 foot Carver. Of course the Carver is an aft-cabin while the Bayliner was not.

These are just my thoughts and opinions and others may differ in theirs, and that's fine.

This article comes to mind when discussing the advantages/efficiency of I/O vs Sterndrive. Bottom line is a sterndrive is much more efficient. https://www.boatingmag.com/boats/to-v-or-not-to-v