General Question - Novice Looking Between Nautique and Malibu

[JPF182]

Looking for a good all-around lake boat for wakesurfing and boarding. Perhaps some skiing but not the primary purpose of the boat. We are on a good sized lake that has both a Nautique dealer and a Malibu dealer. We are being shown a 22 mxz (2018) and a 23 lsv (2018) from the Malibu dealer and a GS20 and a GS22 from the Nautique dealer. We are currently at the beginner level in terms of surfing / boarding but our middle school aged kids are getting into it and we would like to buy something that would be a great all around boat that we can grow into.

any suggestions and/or pros or cons would be much appreciated.

[charlesml3]

Sounds like you're wanting to do all three (Surf, Wakeboard, Ski) and the GS line is where you'd want to look for that use case. Are you trailering or will it stay on a lift?

-Charles

[JPF182]

We’d be doing a lift.

[GMLIII]

Would recommend a GS 22 as an all round multi-watersport boat. The GS 20 would be fine but if you have multiple kids, a GS 22 would provide more room. You would not be sorry adding an additional 2 feet if it is within your budget

[Mike Fenton]

Nautique is going to bring you better quality and resell. Thats a fact. Can't go wrong investing in a nautique.

[SkiTower]

Nautique is going to bring you better quality and resell. Thats a fact. Can't go wrong investing in a nautique.

Also ask around about service support. Nautique is known for their service network. Hopefully for you both dealers are top notch but good long term service support is critical. See if one of the dealers will come to you if needed (both local CC and BU dealers have mobile service vans).

[lucky7t]

I suggest you try a 210 or 230 as well from nautique . You might be surprised


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[Bevostein]

Looking for a good all-around lake boat for wakesurfing and boarding. Perhaps some skiing but not the primary purpose of the boat.

If you're uncertain about how much skiing you will do and if skiing is entirely recreational with no course aspirations then I think you should look at the 210 or 230. Those are going to give you the best wave/wake for your primary purpose. Your kids are very unlikely to get into skiing.The GS boats are targeted at the crossover market and really for families who are going to do it all equally.

I have been down your road and in 2013 bought a used 2009 216V as a crossover because I thought I would ski and the kids might pick it up. They didn't and I didn't ski near as much as a I thought. Wife didn't like pulling me skiing cause of the speed and my mid-40 year old body couldn't handle extended sets of even recreational skiing. We moved on to wakeboarding and surfing. I still take a couple of sets each year behind neighbors 210 and its fine for recreational skiing with a little nose weight.

Would also point you toward the 230. Your middle school kids are going to want to bring friends and the extra room will payoff.

[Adrenaline1]

So you guys don't think the 2019 GS22 with pro or extra ballast will be a good enough wave/wake for surf and wakeboarding? The 210 is that much better?

[beamons]

To summarize, I think you are going to get almost exclusive Nautique over Malibu here on this site. That being said, I also think you are going to get a huge amount of variance of 210 vs GS20 vs 230 vs GS22. I would break it down into a few must haves.
First, the size, the cost will be slightly greater but it will likely last you longer because as your family grows so will your friends.
Second, I would consider the uses as stated above. This is tough because it could change but also it is highly preferential. I think to sort out the latter, I would try them out, but would only focus on drivability, surfability, and storage or function of the space/boat. The two hardest things are the skiing and the surfing. They just don't mix well, because they are inherently opposed - big wake vs no wake. Everything else in between usually just works with some adjustment.

[SoCal G-Man]

If you decide to go Malibu, the 23 LSV is a much better boat than the MXZ for all around water sports. Until my G23, my ski and wake boats have all been Malibus. Good luck!

[ClearAz]

If you're uncertain about how much skiing you will do and if skiing is entirely recreational with no course aspirations then I think you should look at the 210 or 230. Those are going to give you the best wave/wake for your primary purpose. Your kids are very unlikely to get into skiing.The GS boats are targeted at the crossover market and really for families who are going to do it all equally.

I have been down your road and in 2013 bought a used 2009 216V as a crossover because I thought I would ski and the kids might pick it up. They didn't and I didn't ski near as much as a I thought. Wife didn't like pulling me skiing cause of the speed and my mid-40 year old body couldn't handle extended sets of even recreational skiing. We moved on to wakeboarding and surfing. I still take a couple of sets each year behind neighbors 210 and its fine for recreational skiing with a little nose weight.

Would also point you toward the 230. Your middle school kids are going to want to bring friends and the extra room will payoff.

So do you think the surf wave is better on the 230 than a GS? I’m in the market for a Nautique as well but that surf wave will probably be my deciding factor as that is our primary use. (I’m testing a GS24 tomorrow so I can report back on that)

[Bevostein]

First a disclaimer.... I have no firsthand experience behind either boat. Hopefully others will chime in. However a few things to consider and some observations.

1. The GS boats are designed and marketed as crossovers. That means they are designed to do everything. As the saying goes “jack of all trades, master of none”. I don’t doubt they can surf well but I have doubts they can surf as well as a purpose built wake or surf boat like the 230.

2. The data and commentary on this website about the GS boats and particularly the GS24 is sparse. That’s not to say they don’t surf. You just don’t have as many people on here raving about the surf wave as you do other boats such as the 230.

3. That leads to my third point and that is there is an abundance of info on this site regarding the surf wave of the 230. Do a search and spend some time reading. Many rave about the wave.

However don’t buy a boat based on this website. Have your dealer take you out in both.

[GMLIII]

First a disclaimer.... I have no firsthand experience behind either boat. Hopefully others will chime in. However a few things to consider and some observations.

1. The GS boats are designed and marketed as crossovers. That means they are designed to do everything. As the saying goes “jack of all trades, master of none”. I don’t doubt they can surf well but I have doubts they can surf as well as a purpose built wake or surf boat like the 230.

2. The data and commentary on this website about the GS boats and particularly the GS24 is sparse. That’s not to say they don’t surf. You just don’t have as many people on here raving about the surf wave as you do other boats such as the 230.

3. That leads to my third point and that is there is an abundance of info on this site regarding the surf wave of the 230. Do a search and spend some time reading. Many rave about the wave.

However don’t buy a boat based on this website. Have your dealer take you out in both.

Summary on point

[Paxdad]

What lake/ state?


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