2006 Air Nautique 206 vs Ski Nautique 206

[tlarocque]

Hi all-

I'm pretty sure these boats share the same hull but I'm hoping someone can chime in and confirm that for me. I have owned 2 SN 206s in the past and I have located another boat about 6 hours away from me that I want to go see. It's a 2006 Air Nautique 206, which I think just means different graphics and maybe a small amount of factory ballast. I like the ski wake and versatility of the 206. Don't care about surfing.

Appreciate any comments.

Thanks!
-TL

[SilentSeven]

I have a 2004 "Air" Nautique 206. My notes match yours. Same hull. Different graphics. Very likely to have the tower installed. Single, small ballast tank in the aft trunk.

Importantly, my buddy has a 2005 Ski Nautique 206 (no tower, no aft tank, Ski graphics) and it skis the same as my Air Nautique.

I seem to recall that 2006 was the first year the hydrogate was available...and that Nautique dropped the trick tank option? There's small change in the bottom of the hull by the prop in the hydrogate years. My recollection is that this change is all related to trick wake speeds. Never skied a 206 with the hydrogate. Would ask the seller what this boat has.

I understand (but have never seen) that the aft tank was available in two sizes. A smaller and more common size is the 200 lb tank - this uses up 2/3rds of the aft locker space. Supposedly there was also a larger tank that used the entire after locker. Likely model year specific. Also worth a look on your prospective boat.

To sus out model details, go to the manual/brochures section and pull the 2006 Nautique overview and it should list out the 2006 options for that year.

Finally, if the boat happens to be in the Seattle-ish area and you want someone to go put eyes on it, happy to take a look. PM me if interested.

Good to see another interested 206 owner! We love ours!

Edit: If you really want to geek out on ski wake variations with hydrogates, etc, head over to ballofspray.com and do some searches. Lots of hardcore course skier's....

[tlarocque]

Thanks SilentSeven - The boat is in North Phoenix/Scottsdale area. My dad lives there but he doesn't know anything about boats or what I'd be looking for. The listing pics are horrible... taken from too far away and low resolution. It appears to be a Limited Edition so I assume it has the 5.7 PCM 330. Cant't tell if it has Perfect Pass but probably . Do not see Hydrogate in the pics. I'm waiting on some additional information and pics. Seller did send a pic showing what appears to be scratches on the left side of the hull by the registration numbers. I'm just trying to decide if it's worth driving over from San Diego to take a look.

But, yes, I loved both of the 206s I previously owned... one was a 2007 and the other a 2008, both had Hydrogate.

[SilentSeven]

Probably 'captain obvious' here...but can you have your dad use his phone to do a video walkaround with closeups of the things you need to see? For an AZ boat of that vintage, I'd be curious to get a close look at the upholstery.

99% sure the 2006 year has the 330 HP and not the 343 engine. But if it's not an LE or Team it could have a downgraded engine. Mine's the LE and I have the 330 - never felt under powered. I run the Acme 422 standard prop. We're mostly slalom skiing with some occasional tubing/wakeboarding/kneeboarding/barefooting. My boat came with the early version single line PP running off a paddle wheel which I updated to a stargazer. If I recall, you can run the zero-off starting in 2007 but not before. You need the later model 343 engine for the zero-off. The 2006 model year may have the Stargazer from the factory....

[tlarocque]

The thought about my dad crossed my mind but he's nearly 80 years old and not very stable on his feet, no way he could climb into a boat. The seller hasn't really responded to answers to even basic questions so I'm going to sit tight for now. You buy the seller as much as the boat, in my experience. The boat is a Limited Edition so the 330 PCM was standard. My neighbor two doors down has a 2006 SN 206 for sale but it has the base 5.0 275hp motor and no Perfect Pass. It's parked outside his house and I don't think he can give it away.

I have a few months so I'n going to keep up the search. Would love to find another 2008 PCM 343 with ZO.

SilentSeven - where do you ski?

[SilentSeven]

Yeah...when I was looking, I tried to find an 07+. They are out there but for some reason much less common than earlier models. I did find an OK one but it was a salt water boat that needed some R&R and the prior owner was a bit too price proud to cut a deal - looked a lot the one you linked on the wanted ad.

Ski around Washington state - Lake Washington...sometimes Lake Sammamish...a small lake down in Mason County...and some summer trips to Eastern WA on Banks Lake or the Columbia. Sadly, too much work these days is impinging on my ski time.

Sounds like you are back and forth...when you're up here...where might you be?

BTW - love the comment of "you buy the seller as much as the boat". So true.

[tlarocque]

I found an '07 and an '08, both for more money of course. But they are both very far away so I'd have to buy sight unseen. I'm trying to get both of those sellers to send me better pics/videos as well. The '07 I found does not have a tower and I really prefer to have one because 1) we do some novice wakeboarding and 2) it really helps free up some space in the boat when you can put skis and boards on the racks.

I live in San Diego but all of my boating is on Mason Lake where we have a cabin that we use in the summer.

[SilentSeven]

Ha! We're just down the road on Lake Limerick. Have a good friend on Mason Lake in "Little Hoquium" area. Maybe we'll have to try to connect one for these days.

Good luck on the later model hunt. Right after I bought my 2004, a really neat 08 popped in Portland...wanted that one so bad but the deal was done. Super happy with my 04 - got a great boat.

+1 for the tower and getting some gear storage.

[tlarocque]

Oh wow, yeah, Limerick is close. And I think you have a ski course there! I'm just a free-skier but there was a course set up on Mason Lake late last summer down on the south end by the Simpson campground. We are on the on the south east side of the lake, just around the corner from Little Hoquium.

Let's keep in touch!

[SilentSeven]

Lk Limerick has a lot of "rules". There is a ski course setup at times and the best runs are when the lake is only open for course runs. But this only happens only a few weekends a summer. I'm like you...mostly free skiing but still can work through the buoys when warmed up. You up around the 4th? That might be a good time to connect on either lake.