Do you have an older outboard? Get the feeling that somebody has left you out in the cold? Well, don't despair! MASTERTECH is the place to find expert service information on your older motor, and help in locating the parts you need to keep it in top shape.

I grew up with the fun of boating on small lakes in outboard boats, and I know lots of folks still enjoy using the old family outfit on summer weekends. Not to mention the renewed interest in earlier, simpler mechanical things, both from a practical and nostalgic point of view.

As a veteran of over 34 years dealing in marine product, I have determined that the boating "industry" has lost sight of one very important fact, that is PEOPLE DON'T NEED BOATS! They would like to have one, but it is not a necessity. But the MBA's in marketing have attempted to create megadealers to football out new boats just like the auto dealer down the street. This has created a number of interesting, and fatal problems for the manufacturers.

First, boating is a seasonal business, even in warm climates. This creates a period of time that the dealer operates at an apparent loss, so they cut back on staff, and lay off techs for the duration. The tech then is probably going to look elsewhere for a steady job. Thus, most dealership techs are seriously inexperienced in servicing. Many of them weren't even born when your boat was new!

Second, all these large dealerships are sales oriented - - they have to be in order to achieve the quantity discounts and volume deals required to make selling product profitable in the competitive marketplace. Their service shops are primarily set up to take care of rigging, pre-delivery and warranty. I know of one large Northwest mega-dealership that will not even consider servicing any boat over 3 model years old! Under these circumstances do you think they are going to be interested in taking care of your 1978, 85 HP that needs a tune-up, water pump, gear case reseal and has an intermittent miss?

Third, these large dealerships survive only if they sell. I got out of the rat race when the Washington state sales taxes I had to collect exceeded my net profit on a new package. If the economy slows, where will these dealerships gain revenue? the margins are so thin, they will no longer be profitable, and serious problems will follow. After all, nobody NEEDS a boat...........

Lastly, drive down price, you eventually drive down quality. OMC found this out the hard way when they tried to outsource everything. Cost them their entire operation. A lot of today's newer boating product is not up to the standards it should be. Some current outboards are almost a throwaway product, difficult to diagnose, repair and obtain parts thereto. Imported engine parts are difficult to obtain and expensive. The motor manufacturers refuse to cooperate in any significant way with independent service shops. Boat manufacturers come and go. Package units are offered with poor compromises for power in order to sell for less. As the old saying goes "You buy cheap, you get cheap"!

If you've read this far - - here's the point. There is a growing group of us who have spent our lives as marine dealers that disagree with all this hype and BS currently spouting from the megamarketers. Our commitment is to YOU, the customer, not the corporate stockholders.

I have a commitment to service, not to sales. It takes a certain mentality to be a good salesman, and I for one don't like that sort of pressure atmosphere. Those large selling dealers? In most cases I feel sorry for them. They could sell out, get a better paying job in the IT industry, and sleep at night.

On these pages, and this site, you will find the definitive source for:

PARTS
SERVICE TIPS
VINTAGE MOTORS

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