Confirming the year model in a new boat?

Gusnyc · #1 (**permalink**) 09-08-2010

Hi!

I am about to get a new boat. There is any way to confirm the year "model" of a boat the dealer has in stock?

This boat is offered as a 2010 model, but it lacks some of the features introduced in that year. Should I be suspicious about it?

Thanks for your answers.

G

olson34 · #2 (**permalink**) 09-08-2010

Sure. Look at the HIN molded into the top (usually) of the outside transom.
Note also that the HIN is molded in at the month/year the hull in actually... molded...

A hull could be molded out in October and the whole boat finished out for a January boat show.
The HIN is the primary determiner of the "year" of the boat.

sailingdog · #3 (**permalink**) 09-08-2010

Check the HIN. That will clearly say what model year the boat is...

kd3pc · #4 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

the model year has nothing to do with the "model" of the boat, and if it does not match the HIN, it can be a pain in the tush...MY HIN shows a 1991, but the docs have it listed as a 1991...the bank and the CG have tried for years to settle it out...

In my case a year makes no difference, in your case, your boat could be almost two years old when you purchase it - and that could make a difference in your decision to buy, your tax rate (if it is based on model year), etc, etc.

Many models of the same boat will be improved upon as that series is built, but YMMV.

I would get it settled before you put the money down, at least in your mind.

JohnRPollard · #5 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

There is "model year" and there is build-date, both are reflected in the HIN. Manufacturers have some latitude with model year, but the build date reflects when the hull was actually laid up and finished out.

Let's take a hypothetical HIN, then break it down:

HIN= PCS34054I495

Parsed out = PCS 34 054 I4 95

PCS= Manufacturer code, in this case Pacific Seacraft

34= Model (usually represented by length), in this case the Crealock 34

054= Hull number, in this case the 54th Crealock 34 built

I4= Month and Year of BUILD**

95= Model Year

** The month and year of build are what you really want to know. To decipher this code, you need first to know the "model year", which tells you which decade you're in. In the hypothetical above, the model year is 1995. So you know it was built in the '90s. Looking at the "I4", you then know that "4" represents 1994. The "I" corresponds to the month of September (A=January, B=February, C=March, and so on, L=December).

So the above boat would be a model year 1995 Pacific Seacraft Crealock 34 built in September 1994.

I have seen instances where the model year was really quite a stretch. For example, I have a friend whose boat was built in January 1990, with a model year 1991 designation (in other words, the last four digits of the HIN are "A091"). My boat is actually younger than his by several months, but is still a 1990 model year.

sailingdog · #6 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

What exactly is the problem...the HIN says its a 1991...the CG and bank have it as a 1991 presumably, since they have the docs.

BTW, the HIN has two YEARS listed in it... one is the model year, the other is the actual build date of the boat, which may or may not be the model year. It could be the year before or the year after, depending on what the manufacturer uses as its model year start and end dates.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kd3pc

the model year has nothing to do with the "model" of the boat, and if it does not match the HIN, it can be a pain in the tush...MY HIN shows a 1991, but the docs have it listed as a 1991...the bank and the CG have tried for years to settle it out...

In my case a year makes no difference, in your case, your boat could be almost two years old when you purchase it - and that could make a difference in your decision to buy, your tax rate (if it is based on model year), etc, etc.

Many models of the same boat will be improved upon as that series is built, but YMMV.

I would get it settled before you put the money down, at least in your mind.

kd3pc · #7 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

depends on which docs you look at...

HIN shows 1991, CG shows "build date" 1990, bank note shows 1991, state of VA shows 1991, insurance shows 1990, etc, etc...

it has only been a problem to the local county tax people and the state of VA...THEY don't talk to each other and they simply don't seem to understand how boats are described and want to tell me the boat I have is not the one THEY are taxing...why? Because the dates don't jive, and their tax book doesn't address it...

told them the only number they need to be worried about is the HIN...but they still want to do something else..

sailingdog · #8 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

What are the last six digits of the HIN. It is very possible that the boat does have a BUILD DATE of 1990, but is a 1991 model year boat. If you took a print out of this image to the idiots in question, you might be able to straighten things out...

Quote:

Originally Posted by kd3pc

depends on which docs you look at...

HIN shows 1991, CG shows "build date" 1990, bank note shows 1991, state of VA shows 1991, insurance shows 1990, etc, etc...

it has only been a problem to the local county tax people and the state of VA...THEY don't talk to each other and they simply don't seem to understand how boats are described and want to tell me the boat I have is not the one THEY are taxing...why? Because the dates don't jive, and their tax book doesn't address it...

told them the only number they need to be worried about is the HIN...but they still want to do something else..

Gusnyc · #9 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

Thank you very much for your answers.

My point is that if the dealer advertises a 2010 model, and send the brochures about the 2010 model, I should expect to have and improvements introduced with that particular model, besides if it was completed at the end of 2009, right?

The hin number shows "10" at the end.

It seem the year model works like in the cars. You can get today the 2011 model of several cars.

hellosailor · #10 (**permalink**) 09-09-2010

" I should expect to have and improvements introduced with that particular model,"
Not necessarily. Odds are the brochures say the same thing that car brochures say, about "equipment changes..." because there are running changes in equipment and features during the model year. Make no assumptions and ask the seller in writing if the specific features you want will be in the specific boat (by HIN) that you are buying.