Ballast Tanks on Surf Models

[Royk]

I just purchased a 2018 CS3 (now CS23) Surf. It was a demo model at a dealership about 170 miles from me, so it only had 32 hours on it and I feel like I got a great deal on it. Love the boat, rides so much nicer in the rough water than our previous boat which was a FourWinns 210 Horizon. We live on the salt water in Gig Harbor, WA (on the Puget Sound). But, we've had some quirky issues with the boat, so I'm curious if any of you have experienced any of these issues. The dock lights don't work. I'm getting power to them, I've confirmed that, so the dealership said they would send me replacement lights, but I still have not received them now almost 2 weeks later. One of the Ballast tank pumps keeps running when emptying and the last light on the switch never goes out, so I have to manually turn the switch off. The kill switch and lanyard now won't stay in, it just keeps popping out. Without that in place you can't start the boat, so I took the lanyard off and used some duct tape to keep it in place. The last thing is the center section of the windshield already has shifted and you have to forcibly move the windshield in front of the driver to get it to close. I'm so impressed with how this boat is finished out, but I did not expect to have all these issues on a Cobalt that is famous for its quality and that the dealer had put 32 hours on. They haven't been great in their response and I'm trying to avoid pulling it out of the water until the end of September and take it back down there for them to fix. Appreciate any input and suggestions for fixes. Thanks!

[AsLan7]

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Hey Royk. Welcome to the Cobaltchat forum. So glad you found us!

Sorry to hear about your Cobalt woes. We have others on the forum with similar experiences. They’ll chime in shortly. You can pick up the docking light bulbs on Amazon but it’s extremely rare for both bulbs to be burnt out. You said you’re getting power to those tested at the bow yet the bulbs don’t light up?

Btw, any pics of your Cobalt?

Again welcome aboard mate.

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[Royk]

Thanks for the welcome. I tried to post a picture, but it wouldn't let me. yes, I'm getting power at the bow. I'm just wondering if they were ever tested, I imagine the dealer was always using the boat during daylight hours. iI hate to pay for new ones, I feel like the dealer should supply those. when I Click on the insert image icon the following happens . I also tried to copy and paste, but nothing happens. Maybe I don't have the proper credentials????

[Big Block Power]

Thanks for the welcome. I tried to post a picture, but it wouldn't let me. yes, I'm getting power at the bow. I'm just wondering if they were ever tested, I imagine the dealer was always using the boat during daylight hours. iI hate to pay for new ones, I feel like the dealer should supply those. when I Click on the insert image icon the following happens . I also tried to copy and paste, but nothing happens. Maybe I don't have the proper credentials????

Lately you have to resize your pictures smaller or they won't post. Or a screen shot.
Click on attachment then click on add file them select a file and submit. Pretty simple. Yes you can post right away.
Oh welcome.
Do you have a grd at the plug. Hard to think you have 2 bad bulbs. Are they led? Maybe they installed them backwards.

[Norris_Boating]

Welcome!
Sorry to hear about your problems and obviously the dealer should take care of everything.
One thing you might want to look into is if there is another dealer close by that can do warranty work.

[Royk]

When I click on the insert image icon, I just get this
It doesn't lead me inserting a file as typically occurs.

[Royk]

That changed when I submitted it. I actually get img/img within brackets

[AsLan7]

When I click on the insert image icon, I just get this
It doesn't lead me inserting a file as typically occurs.

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Hey Royk. Your getting close. The img icon you are selecting in the tool bar is primarily used for website addresses with .jpg, .png, .jpeg, etc file extensions.

Instead, select the attachment tab at the bottom and then click the “add files” button. You will then be able to select from your device a picture file which will then upload.

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[Royk]

Thanks AsLan7!! Don't know how I missed that. Here's a picture of my boat.

Cobalt.jpg

[Big Block Power]

Thanks AsLan7!! Don't know how I missed that. Here's a picture of my boat.

Cobalt.jpg

Ok now that we have a picture let's go surfing. How does it perform surfing. Is the clip bad that it won't stay in. Can your dealer just send you a new one?

[Royk]

The boat rides so nice! We are on salt water here and live near the Tacoma Narrows Bridge which is the replacement for Galloping Gertie for those of who have heard of that bridge that failed quickly back in the 50's. We live on a Bay, so our water is usually pretty calm in front of our house, but we can get into rough water within about 10 minutes of our house. I'm just so impressed with how much nicer this rides on the rough water as compared to our 21 ft FourWinns. Everyone that has surfed behind it has loved it, I tore my ACL snow skiing this year, so I can't surf til next year. It isn't a "clip" anymore, it is like a button. I'm hoping it is just a bad button and they'll send me a new one, but with all the weird issues we've had with this boat, I'm concerned that is due to a bigger electrical issue.

[Big Block Power]

Does the 300 do real good surfing. No power issues? So cool one of these years I'll get behind one.
I'm not supprised how much nicer it is the the 4winns. I had a crownline and it's night and day also. It's funny when we were talking to Mr. St Clair he mentioned Winns made his hulls for him when he was just starting to get Cobalt going.
Ok back to the boat. See if you can run a grd wire to your docking light term and see if it lights. I Really think you may have a grd issue. I would star checking them. You have a grd bar back in the bilge and 1 prob by the helm behind a storage board.

[Ytmsn]

Boy, that Cobalt blue over black is sharp! Welcome from Oklahoma, and BB is steering you in the right direction, even if he talks code in BBspeak. The longer you're here the easier it is to understand him, which is both good and bad..

[CaptainTom]

It is very frustrating when new boats have these issues. It's also frustrating because their boats and you can't just drive them to a dealership and get a loaner while they are fixed IMHO, you can't get a better boat than a Cobalt for the category they compete in, but they are built by humans and are not flawless.

The bow lights on my 2018 also didn't work and were fixed under the warranty. I think all of your issues should be covered under the warranty but yeah it sucks to have to deal with this on a new boat.

[Royk]

Thanks for all the replies. It is actually the Pacific Blue and not the Cobalt Blue (I know the picture is kind of dark) We usually keep our boat on the lift until the end of September, so I'm going to use it as is until we take it out, then I'll take it down to the dealer and they'll repair everything under warranty and winterize it at the same time. If these are the worst things in my life, then I think I've got it pretty good! The issues haven't been bad enough that I've lost my love for the boat!!