Help me decide...Z1 vs Mobius LSV vs Vride!

[2thdoc01]

How do you know that???? So this was a first run boat??

Hmmm, maybe I dont want that one????

[DieselPWR]

I bought the Z1, but i did look at the Vride pretty hard. They were priced comparably but i felt that i would get a lot more with the Tige and that the vride seemed very cheapish. Like you said, plastic cup holders, no racks, etc. Check again on the throttle, i was told by the malibu dealer that all their boats had the electronic throttle EXCEPT the vride.

On the wake, The vride only achieved the good wake with a full ballast system. The Z1 has a pretty good wake without it, and you can always add a ballast system and coupled with the Taps and convex hull have a wicked wake. I liked the idea of not having to worry about a ballast system, and getting a good wake without it.

The Z1 has the digital gauge and the perfect pass cruise control as well.

I thought the vride sat too low and would take took much water on in chop. I also thought it looked very cramped compared to the roomy Z1. The vride says it fits 10 but i think that would be tight. The Z1 is rated for 10-11 and thats sitting very comforatably.

To be honest i looked into the Mobius but didn't think it was a great quality boat. You get a lot for your money but felt I rather go with quality. That is just my opinion.
You can also upgrade the captains chair to a vision air seat which if def worth it.

I dont know what are you are in but if you are in Colorado, that would be another reason to go with Tige. The dealer here is fantastic, great customer service. I thought the guys from Malibu were douschebags. Just my opinion again.

I would say if you could get a great deal on a Z1 then go with them. They have been around long enough to where i don't think you should feel worried.

http://www.tigeowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6526

Here is my page on my Z1.

[DieselPWR]

This link has a good buyers guide and has a spiel on the Z1 and Vride.

http://www.waterskimag.com/article.jsp?ID=21031447

[DieselPWR]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYvaiMsDaQs

video review of the Z1

[2thdoc01]

Cool, Thanks alot.

The dealer did say this boat was the photo shoot boat.....Should I be concerned it was one of the first off the line??? I DO NOT want a lemon!

[sjbaron@shaw.ca]

I test drove the X2 from MC and the VLX from Malibu and ended up buying the Z1. Have been riding behind my buddies X Star with full ballast and a cost of 85G plus the Z1 was very comparable. A little biased but any Tige V-Drive impressed me over the competition. Any questions do not hesitate.
Crazy Canuck

[dogbert]

Cool, Thanks alot.

The dealer did say this boat was the photo shoot boat.....Should I be concerned it was one of the first off the line??? I DO NOT want a lemon!

All the mechanics have been used on their other boats. What's new about this boat is the hull construction and the interior. So, it won't be a mechanical lemon. Structurally, you won't find a better built boat than a Tige. Fit and finish, well you can figure that one out.

BTW, my '99 2100v limited was one of the first boats out there of its type as well. It looks a heck of a lot better than the BU's and SANs that my friends own, and some of these are newer. And it's not like we don't take care of our boats or use them.

About your dealer comment. Good dealers don't come and go, only the bad ones do that. Every brand has their share of bad dealers. The dealer is an important part of your boat ownership experience. Ask yourself how the dealer rates compared with the other dealers and then ask around. Our SAN dealer in Austin sucks. I'd never buy a boat from them, even if it was a Tige. My Tige dealer is really good, which is super important when those little things go wrong and threaten to ruin your day on the lake. So, don't forget the dealer!

[FIC]

The only other thing I would compare when shopping the boats is resale value, do a comparison of the price percentages after three years of ownership thats where I noticed a big difference . Tige resale has been right up there with cc, and mc, and much better than bu and moomba.

[Top Heavy]

Definitely looked at Moomba when we got the Tige. Could have got a brand new Moomba for the price of our used Tige. Glad we made the choice we did. By far the quality of the Tige was better. Did not do much looking at the Bu's. As diesel said, the dealer here..... Well. Looking now I like what I see for the resale value. Much better than the Moomba we would have had.

[Sapiens Omna]

I haven't been in the market for a new boat for a while, but in my opinion the design and performance of the Tige is supreme. Tige seems to think of everything- I love the walk-through transom and the activity center with its storage compartments. It really makes getting ready to ski or wakeboard easy. As far as performance- I don't think you can beat a Tige. Tige's seem to ride better than most other boats in rough water. I also love how fast a Tige gets out of the hole when skiing. Everytime I get in the water to ski I get ready for a fight, but the Tige seems to pull out so fast I hardly remember even standing up!

[chpthril]

I drove the Malibu V ride and the Moomba Mobius today. Still need to drive the Tige Z1.

I would appreciate some input from anyone with experience in these boats.
Here are my Pros/cons:

Malibu V ride:
Pros:

Nice ride thru chop
Turns on a dime
Steers super easy and tracks straight at low speed
Swivel cptn chair
Nice storage
Led lit inside gunnels
Awesome tower design
Speedo is digital and adjusts easily with cruise. Holds speed nice.
Cable free throttle...really nice for control
Quiet and smooth
Lift up strut supported storage door in passenger area
Good upholstery and stitching

Warranty??

Cons:
07 I drove was pretty plain and priced at 42k..seems like 08 would be the same?
Manual wedge...please debate the taps, vs wedge, vs adjustable wake plate. I was told the floating wedge messes up handling when its doin its thing.
single axle trailer
Only 4 speakers
Plastic cup holders
No racks
Smallish, but not bad interior, seats 10


08 Mobius LSV

Pros:
All white w/ blk accent was sweet.
Spacious interior
Loaded with tower speakers, dual amps, wakeboard prop,hydraulic wakeplate, Gravity 3 ballast for 42k.
Seems to ride well thru chop, tracks well, quiet.
Nice carpet
Good storage
Rear seat pulls out for rear facing seating
4 year drive train, 3 year bow to stern warranty..due to show special

Cons:

Cable throttle system..seemed harder to control speed.??
Non Swivel cpt chair
Seemed to have more "vibration" initially on acceleration
Front passenger seat access pad squeeks when you lean on it and it opens into cokpit area vs opening up.
Sterring..is it different than the malibu? It seemed like the Malibu was 1 finger steering...??

Tige Z1

Pros:
Sweet looking
Nice area to sit on back of boat to put skis on
Digital speedo? with dial also?
Simple cruise...no look
Storage area opens in bow also, uses shocks.
Taps system...trimable...no need for ballast bags
I can get a smokin deal on one...cant say how much but its almost too good to pass up.
Supposed to ride better in chop, and quieter, with hull design and the way the two halves of boat are fiberglassed together???



Cons:

Seemed tight inside bow a bit, and in main area.
Semi swivel cpt chair
Seems as if dealers are coming and going
Will they be in business for years like malibu and moomba?

Havent driven....soooo

Yamaha 212x...

I dont have enough time..lets say it is out of the running

Ive sat in a bunch of Z1's, cptn's chair will swivel around to where I can rest my feet on the seats behind me.

As far a sbeing tight in the main cabin are compared to a ride:

Z1 = 100" beam, 21', 3714lb's
V-ride = 93.5" beam, 21', 3000lb's.

Malibu calls the vRide an "entry level" wake boat. I dont know if it's the length, base price, lack of "bling" or lower grade materials then the other Malibu boats. It is also a 12yr old hull design.

Moomba also feels they are the "entry level" boat of Skiers Choice. Not a bad boat for the price, I just see there being a lot of boat left after 5 yrs of ownership I've seen some 3-4 yr old Tiges bring close to original purchase price.

After looking at the Tige and a Moomba at the boat show when we where buying, I had no desire to put a Moomba in the water.

As far as dealers, I think it's more about the market right now, then about boat brands. Since last fall, around here, all the big brands, except Tige, played fruit basket turn over.

[da.bell]

How do you know that???? So this was a first run boat??

Hmmm, maybe I dont want that one????

Nothing wrong with the boat and I am sure there will be a model. However, the boat that you are probably looking at getting is probably not the first run boat off Tige's plant. Not to mention, a lot of the parts and stuff that they use in the Z1 can be found in all the models that Tige has. Tested and true.

[da.bell]

Cool, Thanks alot.

The dealer did say this boat was the photo shoot boat.....Should I be concerned it was one of the first off the line??? I DO NOT want a lemon!

Not one bit... Tige has stood behind their product and you are still getting a new boat will all the warranties. The breakin time is most likely done for you now.

[Ruune]

Let me be clear on this. TAPS WILL NOT GIVE YOU A BIGGER WAKE. If you want wakes that compare to the other manufacturers, get the factory ballast system or a custom job by your dealer.


That said, Moomba is basically a cheap supra. If you want to go with Skier's Choice, I'd seriously consider Supra. At least it'll be comparable to the build quality in the Z1 and V-ride.


V-ride. Havent been behind one, but the build quality on Malibu is great. Historically, their vinyl has been better than Tigé as well. From what I understand, Tigé is now using the same supplier for theirs. Not sure how much the V-ride is running for these days, but they're quite proud of their stuff. I saw a VLX at the Austin boat show for 75k. You can get a loaded Rz4 for that! FYI, the VLX is a 21' boat.

One other boat you might want to consider, thats still in your price range is the Master Craft X1. This is basically the original X-star hull, and is one of the best wakes out there. Its just too bad you have to deal with M/C's sales tactics to get through all the BS. But, I guess every mfgr has their own level of BS.

[Ruune]

Not one bit... Tige has stood behind their product and you are still getting a new boat will all the warranties. The breakin time is most likely done for you now.

And think of all the hot models that have already been in your boat!