5 Most-Common Problems With Ranger Boats (Explained)

Ranger Boats builds premium bass boats. They fall into the mid-tier category of boats. Ranger Boats are well-known for their construction, design, and finish.

These boats are among the most durable and reliable bass boats in the industry.

If you are shopping for a Ranger Boat, you are in the right place. In this article, we will share some of the most common concerns faced by boat owners.

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

You should also check our article on how reliable Ranger boats are these days.

1) Electrical Wiring

Many Ranger Boat owners state in the forums that they have problems with the electrical wiring. These statements range from the battery draining to the pumps not working.

For some owners, they experience problems after installing a new battery. The specific problems were that there was no power to the keypad or at the dashboard.

Some owners have reported problems with the livewell and aerator. In addition, there have been problems with the trailer lights not working properly.

For most of these owners, they states that Ranger Boat resolved most of these concerns under warranty.

2) Outboard Motor Problems

Several owners mentioned across the forums that their Ranger Boats had outboard problems.

While these motor problems are more often the fault of the manufacturer, since they are in Ranger Boats, it is essential to note it here.

Some owners state they have to run their boats 3/4 – full down on tilt to remove the chance of porpoising. This often happens with the rear live well is empty. The typical response to porpoising is to balance out the weight or to get the trimming right.

However, some owners stated that taking those steps did not always correct the problem. Some stated that porpoising occurred again when they slowed down or slowed down to get into a spot.

If you cannot correct the porpoising is not corrected, it usually indicates that the motor is mounted too low.

Sometimes this can happen when the motor is mounted too high. If the motor has to work really hard at a low trim, it indicates that the motor is too low.

3) Problems with Leaking on the Boat

Many Ranger owners discuss problems with leaking on their boats. These leaks cover a wide range of areas. Some of them are related to leaking hoses.

Others are related to problems with the live wells.

Some owners state that when the live wells are left on the water or full, water can leak over. The water might splash over into the bilge area when the water is rough.

When the water in the bilge forces the auto pump to turn on, random items or fish can get sucked into the drain hole. When this happens, it can cause a blockage in the live well, which forces water to overflow.

Another owner suggest that you first empty your bilge. Then you want to fill your live well with water and check the hose connections for leaks.

You should also check the hoses for cracks and the pumps for leaks. These are the most common problems.

4) Gel Coat Cracking

Many Ranger Boat owners state there are problems with gel coat cracks.

While some gel coat cracks are mostly cosmetic and can easily be repaired by yourself, there are some other causes for gel coat cracking.

In some cases, the damage to the gel coat on the hull was caused by trailer bunks that were misaligned.

If you find there are cracks in your gel coat, it is possible that you can fix it on your own. These are the steps you should follow to correct the cracking gel coat on your own.

• Before anything else, the first step you should take is to completely clean and dry your boat.
• After that, you should use a grinding tool that you can use to open up any of the cracks more.
• Using the same grinding tool, continue to open up the small cracks making them wide enough to allow you to fill in the hole with a paste you will make from the gel coat.
• After you open up the holes, you want to sand the area using a light and careful touch.
• After the area is thoroughly sanded, you should use acetone to clean the areas again.
• Before you fill in the holes, you want to be sure to match the color of the gel coat. Once you have the correct color, you should mix the gel to match the color of your boat. When you do this, no one can tell you fixed the gel coat.
• Once you mix up the gel coat color, you will use it to fill in the gouged area with a putty knife.
• When you fill in the holes, you want to carefully overfill them to guarantee that you do not leave any air holes.
• After that, you should wrap the area to keep out the air to ensure it cures properly.
• Once it cures, you should sand the area and polish it with a high quality finish.

5) Locating Older Parts

Ranger Boats has been manufacturing boats for over 30 years.

They are still making most of the parts for their entire line of boats back to the 1990s. When looking for older replacement parts, you can directly contact the parts department at Ranger.

If that does not yield a positive result, you can contact Ranger dealers to find the right parts. Ranger has a locator on their website to help you find dealers. In addition, you can locate their phone numbers to contact them directly.

Your best bet is to contact a Ranger dealer that has represented Ranger for a long time.

If you are not able to locate parts this way, you can search various online retailers where you can find replacement parts.

General Pros and Cons for the Ranger Boat

Pros:

Ranger Boats has what they consider a five star advantage. This philosophy includes performance, quality, safety, innovation, and resale.

Ranger has a quality design and construction that is built upon a stable platform, with maximum comfort and efficiency, which is based on large amounts of boat construction experience and customer feedback.

Cons:

• Ranger Boats is known for having problems with their outboard motors.
• They have problems with gel coat cracking.
• Owners have numerous leaking problems that cannot always be located.

What Do the Reviews Say?

Ranger owners love their boats and are loyal to them. They believe Ranger backs up its warranty.

“I did have one small spot on the hull fixed under warranty, but other than that I’ve been very happy with the fit and finish. To me, its typical Ranger quality and if I had to do it over again, I’d buy the same exact boat.”

[Source: bassboatcentral.com]

What is the Resale Value on the Ranger Boats?

Ranger Boats are known to be incredibly durable and long-lasting. As a result, it is incredibly common to see these boats at fishing tournaments, even older model boats.

They have quality fiberglass or aluminum boat construction that promotes they will be functional for decades, long after other boat competitors.

Ranger Boats have a great reputation for maintaining their value, especially when compared to other bass boats. While these boats hold their value well, the better the boats are cared for means they have a higher resale value.

In 2015, a Ranger Comanche Z520C-DC, a 21 foot bass boat, sold for $69,840 brand new. Today, that same boat has an average value of $58,450. This is a depreciation of 17%.

In 2015, a 18 foot deep-V hull VS1780SC sold for $24,919. It has a current resale value of $21,790. This is a 13% depreciation value, which is an excellent depreciation.

 

Model Year	Price
2015 Z520C-DC	$69,840 (new)
2015 Z520C-DC	$58,450 (used)
2015 VS1780SC	$24,919 (new)
2015 VS1780SC	$21,790 (used)

 

Sources:

www.bassboatcentral.com,

www.westernbass.com