buyer beware

I was so happy when the spousal unit TOLD me to buy a new boat. Even though my old '93 Skeeter still runs great (gave it to my son) I was really looking forward to more storage, extra deck space, a warranty, active target, spot lock, shallow water anchors, 4 stroke engine, etc.


Now...unfortunately there is not a Skeeter dealer nearby and the Skeeter was $10k more than a Nitro. Hey, the pros run Nitro so they gotta be good, right? Happily ordered my 2022 19Pro with all the bells and whistles. Sure, I had to wait 4 months for delivery, but hey, these are the times, right? Boat finally arrives early April, but the Raptor poles are on back order. Now sweat. I've fished for 40+ years without them I can wait a little longer. I pick up the boat and begin the break in period.

1st trip out I'm not doing any fishing, just breaking in the motor and enjoying a new boat. I'm not getting a depth reading when on plane, only when idle speed or stopped. Ok, I know the lake well and don't need the depth. I'll let them deal with it when I get the Raptor poles put on. I hear a rattle from the port console and find that nuts and bolts are falling out of it. Meh, no big deal. I'll let them deal with it when I get the Raptor poles put on. I trailer the boat and realize the no-slip pad on the port side trailer fender well is coming up. Again I'll let them deal with it when I get the Raptor poles put on. I also notice that water is draining from the hull when I remove the plug. Probably water over the transom well, no big deal. Get home and realize the Nitro logo on the starboard side fender is coming off, too. Ok, maybe a little perturbed now.

2nd trip - I decide to fish a little so I deploy the trolling motor only to find that while I paid for 36v and there are three batteries I can only get 24v. Meh, probably a connection issue, but I'll let them deal with it when they put the poles on. I realize the foot pedal is not mounted, but sitting loose in the well and you guessed it I'll let them deal with it when I get the Raptor poles put on. (sound familiar) Want to check out what this active target is all about, but Active target will not load because there is no source per the console and the bow unit. Ok, probably a loose connection somewhere and I haven't had it for 40+ years. I can fish without it. Say it with me now "I'll let them deal with it when I get the Raptor poles put on." Again water drains from the bilge when I pull the drain plug. This time I am certain there was no water over the transom well, but I did use the live wells so maybe their system drains to the bilge rather than out the two drains on either side of the bilge like normal.

I get a call from Bass Pro. "Hey your parts are in" so I drop the boat off at service. A week later "Why is your boat here?" "Y'all said the parts are in." "No, just the foot switch and the brackets. The poles will be at least another 3 weeks."

So I pick up the boat and take it out again still with all the above problems unrepaired. I realize the carpet on the back deck is beginning to buckle even though the boat is covered and garaged. I also see that one of the plastic vinyl decals on the starboard side console is peeling away. When I dock to trailer, I pull up a cleat to tie off and notice rust on the cleat already.
I get off the water and again water drains from the bilge when I remove the plug. Mind you no water has come over the transom well and there has been no use of the on board ice chest. I call Bass Pro and ask them about it. They confirm that water from the live wells is suppose to drain from the two side drains rather than the main drain hole from the bilge. BTW the bilge never kicked on to empty any bilge water.

What I'm trying to say is so far I am VERY UNHAPPY with my $70k Nitro purchase after less than a month and only four uses. I will keep you posted however. Let's see how Nitro and Bass Pro handle all the issues.

you better use the lemon law and get another boat, not a nitro.

No such thing as a Lemon Law in the marine industry

Although the Texas Lemon Law does not specifically cover boats or other watercrafts, a buyer of a new boat may still have recourse against the boat manufacturer under a different law.

The federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act can protect new boat owners, so long as the watercraft comes with a written warranty. The Act gives defective boat owners recourse against the manufacturer; namely monetary compensation, refund, or free replacement of a defective boat. At the same time, attorney fees and related court costs will be paid by the manufacturer, instead of the consumer.

Some boats that may be eligible for refund or replacement include: cruisers, fishing boats, sailboats, deck boats, bowriders, and yachts. Some boat manufacturers that our law office has handled cases against includes: Bayliner, MasterCraft, Lund, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Fairline, Sea-Doo, and Lagoon.

Please make sure that you keep all written documentation of repairs organized on your watercraft. The boat manufacturer and court will need to see all purchase documents and repair invoices/attempts to evaluate your case fairly.


https://www.texaslemonlawblog.com/does-the-texas-lemon-law-cover-boats-or-other-watercrafts/

appreciate the info. because it all seems fixable and there have been no motor issues (knock wood) i am happy to let them make the repairs. i'm just severely disappointed in what i thought would be a quality product.

Man, that sucks!

Anything tracker is not known for exceeding expectations.

That really sucks bud. We almost pulled the trigger on the exact boat. Had our money down already and everything. After sleeping on it for a night i just dudnt have a good aboit feeling about and canceled. None of the sales stuff had a clue about anything. When my build would start, when it would possibly be ready, warranty issues, they couldn't even provide color samples. Basically clueless except for how to take my money. Bought a slightly older, bigger boat and have been well pleased so far.

Should of bought a BASS CAT!!!! Sorry bout disapointment.

I've owned a Nitro I bought new back in the 90's and it was actually a pretty good boat. The only problem I had with it was the trolling motor kept leaving without the boat, did it three times.
I looked real hard at the Nitro's and seriously considered a fully rigged pro boat a; Z21, our local Nitro dealer had in stock this time around. There were two things that kept me from pulling the trigger on a Nitro. The first was I kept seeing trailers that were breaking in half at the center of the crossmembers that were fairly new and an abnormal number of them and the other: even though I've seen this in nearly every major brand, I saw a lot more Nitro's out here on social media delaminating. I wound up in a used Skeeter and so far it's had a few small issues that I have fixed myself but nothing major.
The electronics and trolling motor need updating as well.' but so far; given what I paid for my rig, I'm extremely satisfied.

I guess they didn't offer to fix the first problems when you had it in? Maybe you didn't pay enough for it.

This is quite unfortunate to read, I hope your dealer takes care of you. All silly, and unacceptable issues. Unfortunately, I don't think many will be surprised though about reading this as it pertains to a Nitro.

Man you are a lot more easy going than I would have been. .. One or two small problems ain't bad but couldn't handle what you are going thru with a new boat.

You are a very patient fella for all the issue that popped up...
Seems this might be a booger bear over the long run..

Make sure you document and get a written response on all issue possible via text or e-mail...

Very excited for the new boat you purchased hope it works out well...

brand new boats of any kind are a suckers bet every time.....that being said, I would already have an attorney with a demand letter in to Bass Pro headquarters

get your salesmans email address, and list all the problems you are having, do not take verbal agreements and always follow conversations with an email to the email trail you have going with "per our conversation"... this way when your patience is worn thin to the point of needing an attorney get involved you have a documented history to fall back on. Not to mention as a new owner your going to get a survey(s) take them and don't be nice and polite, tell it how it is, the cheap suits at corporate take them serious... good luck !

No one sets the bar very high for Tracker products. It's just the nature of the beast.

How can a z19 cost that much? A fully loaded z21xl cost 72k…

https://www.nitro.com/bass/z21-xl-pro.html

A z19 pro…..59k. https://www.nitro.com/bass/z19-pro.html

Either way stinks to have problems- but all new boats do. Everyone raves about bass cat customer service- well they wouldn’t need customer service if the boats never had issues with quality control.

The Millennials have arrived. QC is gone. It's all about the paycheck and what time they get off work.

That was the another thing that discouraged me rom buying a Nitro. If you print the list of standard features and then compare that; say to a Skeetet, Bass Cat, Phoenix, etc., you realize the base Nitro has the cheapest of everything on it. If you upgrade to what most of the other manufacturers install on their boats as base equipment the price goes up equal to what the otherts cost.

What time is lunch?

Exactly!

This combined with using the cheapest components you can put on the boat and manufacture trailer from gives you what this gentlemen is currently experiencing. Looking at the way this situation has gone; if I were to buy a Nitro, I think I'd rather just have them ship it to my home in parts and let me assemble it myself.

My wife and I just bought a new Skeeter. For the first time my wife wanted to go to Bass pro to go look at new boats. I told her no thanks. however, a little later I was there and she accepted the fact they where up selling big time. we talk later and said we should buy a Skeeter.

I was curious to see if the O.P. has been taken care of, and If you were satisfied with the outcome. After writing this I am going to go out to the barn and hug my Phoenix.

Bought a brand new Tracker PT 195 TXW in 2020. Had to upsize the recessed tray due to the pedal on my Tour Pro not fitting the factory one. Had to square up the hole they had slightly off centered, not that big a deal but they just dropped all the carpet trimmings and several stripped screws under the front deck. The boat had vinyl and it too was buckling around screw heads that felt to be raised as if they werent tightened all the way or backing out of the deck. The carpet had to come from the compartments as the floor and decks were vinyl. Previous boat was an aluminum FLW Ranger and it had excellent fit and finish. Makes me wonder how bad they are ruining Ranger. Sold the boat already, bought an older Viper with 27 YO carpet that is money.