Rust appearing below NSS plates

[Phil L.]

I had my boat on the trailer last week and gave it a good clean down. I was surprised to see that rust had appeared below my NSS plates (see pics below). Have any of you seen this before ? My boat is on a lift and we ride between 40 and 60 hours a year, weather depending. I am wondering if it's the screws or the plates that are rusting. I'll remove them before prepping for winter and see.

Also, the gelcoat around my surfpipe exhaust has stress cracks all around it. Should this be a concern ? or it's acceptable wear and tear ? My gelcoat warranty expires this automn...

[BasaltRMK]

That rust does not look normal to me - I didn't have it on my '18 or my '20. I'd have the dealer replace whatever is rusting this off-season, under warranty.

I'd also recommend that you have the dealer (or more likely their contract shop) fix any gelcoat stress cracks under warranty as well. During the warranty period, these should be covered and should not be considered normal wear and tear.

I'm a bit obsessive about issues like this, but these are expensive boats. The warranty is there for a reason. Just my $0.02.

- bob