Willowhaven

Hello Everyone (or should I say anyone!!).

Hopefully someone is reading this and may provide some advice.

This question has likely been asked before, but I'll be darned if I can find much information. The question is why do I see people referring to older boats with so few hours on them. I am considering a 2004 Sportster 150hp purchase. The owner claims is was very well maintained and has "probably around 300 hours on it". The dealer indicated about 40 hours per year is average, so I figure this boat should have 200-240 hours and that 300 is a little high.

Having said that, I understand that the Rotax engines can last a fair amount of time. What confuses me is when I hear so many people talking about their boats and making reference to 40 hours, 60 hours, 90 hours etc. If the average is 40 hours per year, I would imagine most people would be boasting of several hundred hours on some of these older machines-but this does not appear to be the case. I am completely new to the world of boating but believe that the Sportster is the best boat for me for reasons that I will not get into. I will be going to view this boat (which is out of town) in the next few days, I was just wondering if there is anything someone can tell me about expected engine life and this number (300) of hours as advice. I cannot find any information from Bombardier or Rotax on this issue - not even a vague reference. Being a complete newbie, any information/opinion is greatly appreciated.