Lipstick on a Pig?

[Nando23]

Thanks all for your comments. The dealership has been great and very responsive (not Seattle Nautique btw). After reading all these post I believe Nautique can gain a big deal by focusing on relatively small things, all around providing more clear and simple user guidance and information. My list: 1) provide clear guidance on winterization (now is in two separate documents and it is misleading/wrong) 2) Similar guidance on oil changes. Ideally don't block access to oil filler cap and PLEASE don't glue the cover to the (very hot) engine - really bad engineering. 3) A single, clear and updated manual from the user perspective, though I can see dealers opposing this. 4) require PCM to break in engines at factory (these are truck engines anyway). 5) Focus more of their attention to "under the hood" reliability. Include more "under the hood" sensors into their flashy graphical interface. 5) Get a better battery supplier (one that can stand winter).

[NautiqueJeff]

- Damaged heater: 2 weeks parked. Having two manuals (one for the boat, one for the engine) I didn't realize I needed to bleed it. In any case, impossible to release those hoses

This was clearly an issue you missed during winterization, as noted in your thread about this issue here. If you take it upon yourself to winterize your boat, and you don't do it correctly, and something freezes and breaks, how is that Nautique's fault? It is on you to read the manuals that came with your boat, or hire a mechanic to take responsibility for maintenance.

- Damaged battery: Led to non-operational sound system. So long for those 8-inch speakers!

Batteries are NOT included with the boats when they leave the factory. They are installed by the dealers (although this is changing in 2018). While I doubt this could be pinned on the dealer either, it certainly isn't Nautique's fault!

- Cover literally "glued" to engine block. They care about putting an LED and then GLUE it to the block! Literally lipstick on a pig

While this is certainly possible, I doubt this is the case. The engine covers are glued to the mounting bracket that attaches to the engines with four push pins that pop into place. If the engine cover is pulled up in a certain way, the engine cover can disconnect from the mounting bracket for the cover, leaving the bracket on the engine with the cover coming off. Maybe stronger glue should be used, but your engine cover in all likelihood was not glued to the engine. Even so, this is a PCM issue, not a Nautique issue.

- Outdated engine manual. BTW seems a clerk photocopied it. I need to be careful not to spread all pages when I read it. Funny that for a $120k boat they couldn't care to print a decent (and combined) manual. Not to mention update it (latest is from 2014). Did you get two manuals when you bought your Camry?

Actually, like one other poster mentioned above, I did receive a separate engine owner's manual with my Ford Excursion. Since my engine was manufactured by Navistar/International, not Ford, they included a manual from that company for the engine. This is common when engines are not manufactured by the vehicle manufacturer, such as PCM making engines for Nautique. Pleasurecraft Engine Group makes engines for many other towboat companies, as well as airboats and offshore applications. I would fully expect their manual to be separate from Nautique's. As for the binding, that can certainly be improved, but really, that's a small detail.

- Defective v-drive: 4 weeks parked (the whole season here is 12-16 weeks)

This seems to be the only major relevant complaint here in my mind. While it is unfortunate that this happened, it sounds like if you had been taken care of promptly by the dealer, this whole bad feeling you have for Nautique could have been minimized. I assume PCM warrantied the part correctly (if not, that's certainly an issue), so while parts like that should not fail and you certainly have a right to be upset about it, I see this as more of a dealer issue for keeping you waiting so long. Honest question -- If the part had been replaced in, say, three days, would you still be upset?

[Nando23]

BTW, isn't the PCM engine on my boat an "open-cooled" one? The manual states that only "closed-cooled" engines need heater winterizing (see attached).

[NautiqueJeff]

That's certainly an incorrect statement in the manual, as discussed in your original thread about the heater.

[Nando23]

Thanks Jeff. On the glued cover. Please see picture attached. The dealer confirmed they use epoxy glue. Also just posted a misleading section on their manual about heater winterizing. Sorry the break the spell for some here...

[RTS DC]

So what I have learned from this topic is the guys on here are great. The other thing I learned is that I need to have the Polk Audio checked for the intermittent loss of blue tooth/auto volume dysfunction.
With that, the entitlement is heavy. Boats are work. I am handy, but I will let my dealer do the winterization, if it fails its on them.

Only issues on my 16 are the solenoid for the depth/water temp fails intermittently and a break light was out on the trailer.

I have three manuals, all are printed professionally and easy to read. All contain a link to a website for a PDF version. PCM even sent me a login ID and password for their online forum should I want further help.

So far expectations are exceeded.

[Beg4wake]

I do hate that you've had issues with the V-drive...that's just simply unfortunate. The 25hr break in period is what it is. However, my thought on this is that Nautique should offer, at very minimum, the first oil change for free as part of the warranty. I just recently purchased a new Corvette and it had a 500 mile break in period requiring an oil change. However Chevy offered free oil changes for 2 years up to 5 oil changes. That's a minimum cost to them compared to what they make off the car. With the costs of these new boats, you would think that is the least they could do. But in all honesty, that has been my ONLY gripe with my new G23. I've had 4 other branded boats including Moomba and Mastercraft, and I have to admit, my Nautique is WAY less maintenance than any other brand I've ever owned.

[MikeC]

Just FYI, our boats are held together with epoxy - the liner is epoxied to the hull, then the deck is epoxied to the lower section - there are no through bolts or screws holding this thing together. Using epoxy on an engine cover might sound unusual but at least it's easy to repair.

[Dandy21]

I work in the Auto industry and the markets are totally different. These boats are not comoddities like 99% of all vehicles we see on the road. A better comparison in my thinking is with the RV market.

Yes, the RV market is a WAY better analogy. They are all hand built and the sales of RVs have been climbing and the quality and build pride has been declining. RVs are $hiT built. We had one that had a hydraulic hose go bad on a slide. Contacted the dealer (still under warranty), they called me back and asked me to measure it. I stated that it was the hose from the pump to the living room slide cylinder, figuring the manufacturer would have a part number...nope. Some guy crimps on a connector, attaches it to the pump, runs the hose however they want - cut, crimp and attach. I am willing most of us could walk onto an RV lot and find multiple quality/fit and finish issues on each and every RV based upon how critical we are of our boats. Much like our boats, many of the RVs are $70-150K.

Rant over - thanks for the better analogy!

[vacooley]

I agree with Nautique Jeff except for a few items that we as owners should really pressure Nautique to do better on.

1. The 25 hour service should be included in the price of the boat. It benefits everyone to get this done by the dealer.

2. The manual is quite literally the worst quality I have had on a boat. ChrisCraft was pretty good, Malibu was acceptable, Nautique looks like a C average middle schooler wrote it. It is clearly written (like all the placards on the boat) by lawyer decree rather than focusing on the needs of the customer.

3. Nautique should provide a consolidated winterization checklist and a service interval checklist for each boat based on the factory installed options. It is just not practical to have the dealer winterize in a lot of situations (like keeping the boat in a marina). BTW - unlike a boat with an outboard motor the PCM drivetrain IS a factory installed option. No different from a BMW with a transmission sourced from Japan. No real reason other than 'boat tradition' and cost to NOT have a consolidated manual.

4. Please, PLEASE hire some professional software testers for Linc!!!!

Still LOVE my boat but there is definitely room for improvement in a few areas.

[a0128]

Dam|\| . . . my ultra-reliable 1999 Pro Air Nautique is looking better and better all the time!

[Nando23]

BTW, CC owns PCM so no excuses on a single manual...

[vanhanbr]

BTW, CC owns PCM so no excuses on a single manual...

I have to agree there, although the dual manuals is no big deal for me, the warranty should cover the boat and engine under one policy.

[vanhanbr]

"3. Nautique should provide a consolidated winterization checklist and a service interval checklist for each boat based on the factory installed options. It is just not practical to have the dealer winterize in a lot of situations (like keeping the boat in a marina). BTW - unlike a boat with an outboard motor the PCM drivetrain IS a factory installed option. No different from a BMW with a transmission sourced from Japan. No real reason other than 'boat tradition' and cost to NOT have a consolidated manual."

Maybe we could work on this as a group on PN? I was thinking about making a spreadsheet for myself to document my own oil changes, etc.

[functionoverfashion]

Basically, distill this down into a checklist...
https://www.planetnautique.com/vb5/f...2012-nautiques