3 Most-Common Problems With Cobalt Boats (Explained) -

Cobalt Boats have been known for quality, craftsmanship, and performance for over 50 years.

They build the perfect day boat that can handle cruising and watersports.

Cobalt has a reputation for boats with style and innovation. In addition, their boats are well-known for having a good amount of luxury features.

They have always been known for building superior boats, and the lineup this year will not let you down.

If you are shopping for a Cobalt Boat, you have come to the right place. In this article, we will share the most common concerns faced by boat owners.

We have searched through all the Cobalt information to find the issues you might face with a Cobalt Boat.

Table of Contents

1) Difficulty With The Engine

When your engine does not work, neither you nor your boat is going anywhere. Therefore, it is essential that your engine functions properly.

Engine Does Not Crank:

There could be several reasons why the engine does not crank. First, you want to ensure that the battery switches are in the ON position.

You want the make sure that the levers are in neutral or start. It would be best if you verified your battery is fully charged.

Check your starter connections and tighten them. Also, make sure all of your battery connections are tight.

You should make sure that the circuit breaker for the engine in ON.

If none of these fixes work, or you think there is a problem with the ignition switch or the engine, visit an authorized Cobalt dealer.

Vibration in the Engine:

This vibration could be caused by a problem with your engine or a problem with your propeller.

Once you turn off the engines, you want to check your propeller for damage, such as being broken or bent.

Also, you want to clean weeds and debris from your propeller. If this does not help, contact Cobalt.

Loss of Performance:

There are many reasons why you may experience performance loss from your boat. For example, your throttles may not be fully open.

You want to check both throttles to ensure they are fully open at that engines.

If you do not have the proper fuel in your tank, your performance can suffer.

If you know the engines are overheating, turn them off and contact your authorized Cobalt dealer.

If your boat is overloaded and this is causing a reduction of power, lighten your load and ensure that your load is evenly balanced.

If you notice that you have excessive amounts of bilge water, check to determine why you have this much water in your boat. Then drain the bilge.

2) Electrical Concerns

Electrical Components Not Working:

If the circuit breaker has been tripped or is OFF, you want to fix the problem and reset the circuit breaker.

Once reset, turn the circuit breaker on again. If they are overloaded, the breakers will activate. If that happens, turn off the power to the switch.

Be sure to clear the fault before resetting. If you cannot clear the fault, contact your Cobalt dealer immediately before resetting.

Dim Lights or No Lights:

If the circuit breaker has been tripped or is in OFF, you want to fix the problem and reset the circuit breaker.

Once reset, turn the circuit breaker on again. If they are overloaded, the breakers will activate. If that happens, turn off the power to the switch.

Be sure to clear the fault before resetting. If you cannot clear the the fault, contact your Cobalt dealer immediately before resetting.

Your battery could be discharged. If so, charge the battery.

Generator Does Not Start:

You want to check the battery switch. If it is in the OFF position, switch it to ON.

If the battery switch is in the ON position, switch it to OFF and then back ON.

If it is a problem with your engine, contact your authorized dealer.

There is No AC Power:

If the circuit breaker has been tripped or is in OFF, you want to fix the problem and reset the shore power inlet breaker. You can also reset the breaker on the cabin panel.

If they are overloaded, the breakers will activate. If that happens, turn off the power to the switch.

Be sure to clear the fault before resetting. If you cannot clear the the fault, contact your Cobalt dealer immediately before resetting.

You want to ensure that the shore/generator selector switch is in the correct position. Make sure Ground fault circuit interrupter tripped.

Reset the button on the outlet and test. If a problem exists, contact your authorized Cobalt dealer.

3) Cosmetic Damage

There have been some reports by owners of cracks in the gel coat on their boats. It is important to note that there are some reports in the forums, but not a significant amount. Most often, these stress cracks are on older model boats.

While the information is being posted to the boating forums about this particular concern, most of the time, this is not a structural concern, just a cosmetic one.

This is mainly a cosmetic issue that does not allow water in; however, some boat owners do not like it.

You can reach out to Cobalt to have them fix the stress cracks for you. Or, you can correct cracks in the gel coat on your own. Following the steps below will guide you to filling in the cracks.

The first step you must take is to wash and thoroughly dry your boat.
After that, you want to focus on the small cracks by gouging them until they are wide enough to fill in with gelcoat paste.
It would be best if you considered a miniature grinding tool to open up the crack to get the gelcoat in.
Sand the area lightly and clean it again, but this time with acetone.
Once you match the color of your gelcoat, mix up a batch of the gelcoat to fill in the areas with the paste using a putty knife.
You want to ensure you get out all the air holes and overfill the hole.
You have to wrap the area to keep the air out of the area because it will not cure properly.
Sand the area again and finish with a high quality polish.

General Pros and Cons for the Cobalt Boat

Pros

Cobalt has a reputation for being an industry leader with innovative features.

Cobalt has an easy-to-use swim step that folds into the water with a push of a button.

The boat is designed to be sleek, effortless, and simple.

They built boats that are best in class for recreational boating.

Cons

There could be vibration or loss of power issues.
Stress cracks cause cosmetic damage.
You may find the circuit breakers trip often.

What Do the Reviews Say?

While Cobalt Boats have few problems, Cobalt stands behind their boats and works hard to make sure all problems are resolved.

“Just wanted to drop a note letting everyone know that Cobalt stepped up. Within a couple of hours of writing them, Dwight McElroy of their Customer Service team called me directly and is going to try and make things right.”
[Source: cobaltchat.com]

Cobalt is known for having innovative and luxury features.

“With quality in mind, I hunted about the vessel and found plenty of signs of top-notch construction, from lined interiors, thick laminates, oversize SST deck gear, and upholstery closer to luxury automotive than nautical.”
[Source: yachtandboat.com]

What is the Resale Value on the Cobalt Boats?

There is not a large amount of solid data about the resale value of Cobalt Boats.

All of the information shared across the forums indicate that Cobalt holds its value well.

For example, a brand new 2014 Cobalt 302 Power Bowrider Boat sold for about $194,955. In 2022, that same boat resales for $165,000.
Another example is a brand new 2012 COBALT A28 Power Runabout Boat sold for about $128,003.

Today, that same boat can sell for about $109,850.

While there may not be sold data to prove it, anecdotally, Cobalt Boats hold on to their value.