Sunsetter Xti opinions

[Daddyodaman]

Hi all, I took the family to look at a malibu Sunsetter xti yesterday, and I'm wondering what people think of it as a crossover boat. The unusual seating arrangement is the bit we aren't sure about, I was wondering if anyone here had experience with this model. It's an 03 with the carby indmar 310hp engine on the diamond hull. It's got a wedge and its in fairly good condition, though it does show signs of salt use (has new risers though). At the moment I'm thinking between the Sunsetter Xti and the Sunsetter lxi, there is a 2000 model I've looked at recently. I'm wondering if the layout of the XTI is annoying to live with, especially for skiing, prof it's better than the traditional setup of the LXI. Any thoughts on wake/ practicality/ suitability. It would be a family boat with a mix of ski/ boarding.

[blagrata]

@Daddyodaman A friend of mine has a wakesetter xti... 2004 I think. I'm not sure how much that would differ from a 2000 xti... maybe just has ballast tanks and a tower included. I've skied behind it a few times. It's not bad for a crossover at 31mph+ With the wedge and factory ballast the wakeboarding wake is pretty nice (if you're into that). The layout is fairly user friendly. There's a decent amount of space/seating. It's pretty similar in capacity to my VTX. It has a little less storage than a v drive .... but more than a direct drive. I would say that it would seat 6-7 adults or 4 adults + some kids very comfortably. I'd say the xti layout is nothing to be worried about.

[Daddyodaman]

Sorry, I wrote that a bit confusingly. It's a 2003 xti, the same hull as the 04. It's the diamond hull, not sure if the wakesetter xti is on the diamond or wake hull, but either way, your experience is a good sign. The only malibu I've skied behind is my friends 06 V ride, which is less than enjoyable, even at 32mph, so I'm confident the XTI would be better. I'm no gun at either skiing or boarding, but having just purchased a $1000 ski I want a boat that will help me advance beyond beginner. Thanks for your comments

[ncskier]

@Daddyodaman My $.02 if you bought a $1000 ski you probably want to get pretty serious about skiing. A boat that big is great for the family, but will not give the best skiing wake and a carbureted boat with only 310hp is going to be sluggish and have a hard time moving that much weight at 34mph. If you are into wakeboarding too I would look more serious at it, but for serious skiing I would look a fuel injected moomba outback, a nautique 206, a malibu response open bow or even a prostar 214. I have a 2001 moomba outback ls throttle body fuel injected at 320hp and I can ski and wakeboard with it, but it is more of a skier's boat. If I could change anything about it I would probably want it to be more skiing oriented and have a smaller wake. Point is the sunsetter is a really great multisport boat, but if you really want to ski I would look for something smaller and more powerful.

[MISkier]

Prostar 205 is another option. I previously had a 2000, which was based on the 1995-1997 Prostar 190. 310 HP fuel injected and plenty of power, especially with the 4 blade prop. Wakes are good at 15 off. 22 off has a bump that is still actually less than what the Prostar 197 had. 28 off and shorter is as good as nearly any other boat.

 

Open bow and the hull was used on many X Series boats, so it can be a good wakeboarding boat with some ballast.

 

I'd still have that boat, if I didn't want Zero Off a few years ago (before zBox).

[Wayne]

The Sunsetter LXI is arguably the best family crossover boat Malibu ever made. I had a 2002 Sunsetter, it's the same boat but 6" shorter which cost you a bit of rear ski locker space.

 

The XTI is another great crossover but gives up in the slalom department for an "interesting" seating lay out. If you are slalom skiing from the pylon the rear lounge ends up not useable (as does the rear bench in a traditional direct drive).

 

If you want slalom capability that is good for the kids I would lean towards the LXI. If you are not as concerned about wakes I would go towards the XTI but then I would start to argue is a compromise of a Vdrives storage and say look for a 21LSV on a diamond hull if you were staying in the Malibu brand line up.

[Daddyodaman]

I am into wakeboarding as well, I'd say I intend to do about 50/50 boarding skiing depending on the day, and unfortunately a dedicated slalom boat won't do the family thing well. The wife wants a decent all round boat too. I'm not looking for a Moomba masters quality wake, just something noticeably better than a v drive

[Wayne]

All of the Sunsetters on diamond hills can server crossover duty. I have heard from some people that bought XTIs have a hard time fitting in ballast for wake boarding (this was back before the surfing craze hit). If you plan on putting weight in the boat for boarding there isn't much floor space in the XTI layout. A traditional direct is better (however you are stepping on bags all the time).

 

Based on your responses I would take a look at a 21 LSV too. If it's on the Diamond hull and you ski around 34 MPH it might have a better lay out for the family but will still have that 50/50 balance. I have seen people take those boats through the course (recreational) but they take as much weight out as possible for slalom (low on gas, keep equipment to a minimum and not too many people).

 

However the Sunsetter LXI is probably the best choice of all three. It's easy to take a good water ski boat and make the wake bigger. Not so easy to go the other way.

[Dacon62]

LXi or VTX w/diamond hull if budget allows.

[blagrata]

Vtx is a great choice.... But a little pricier of course

 

[escmanaze]

I can't imagine paying in that price range and not getting EFI. Then again, I live in the mountains with elevation, so maybe it is a bigger deal to me than it is to the average joe.

[skihacker]

A ski partner of mine has that boat, i feel like it ski's almost as well as my rlxi, I've heard several times over the years that it has the same wetted surface as an rlxi,the interior layout is great. Fuel injection and a few more horse power may be nice but I think if a low fuel load and just a few skiers it should do fine.

[Daddyodaman]

I went back to have a more detailed look at the Sunsetter and it's riddled with rust, especially on the motor, to the point I don't want it anymore. A salt water special. It's a real shame, as the interior was really good. However there is an 04 wakesetter xti for sale not far away, and it has the same diamond hull (from what I can tell of the crappy photos he's posted), but a 340 EFI monsoon motor, so maybe that is a better option anyway?

 

[Daddyodaman]

While I'm at it, what are people's thoughts on the 02-04 malibu sunscape 21 lsv? I know it's a v drive (!!), but it runs the sv23 diamond hull, the same as the xti, so I'm wondering, how much worse can the ski wake be? My friends v ride is the sv23 wake hull, and it's not great to ski behind, so I'm curious how much difference the diamond hull makes? I only ask because I've read good things about them. Bear in mind, I'll never ski a course, just aggressive social/ free skiing. I also want to wakeboard, but I don't need surf capability, so a family boat that leans towards smaller wakes would suit best. Looking forward to hearing your advice

[Wayne]

I mentioned the 21 LSV as a possible option earlier. As for a wake hull versus a diamond hull, it makes a HUGE difference. I test skied multiple VTX boats and did a wake hull versus a diamond hull back to back. The wake hull was unskiable even at 36 MPH and regardless of line length. If you just want to watch the scenery go buy and very gently cross the wake you "can ski" a wake hull but forget about doing any mild to aggressive cuts across the wake. I think I lost some teeth when I test skied a VTX wake hull.

[escmanaze]

If you aren't trying to surf, then now we have a chance at getting a decent ski boat. My buddy has a prostar 205 from 97 that seems to do pretty well. The wake is certainly good enough for recreational skiing, really, I've even done fairly well behind it in the course. But then all it needs is a little weight in it, and the wake really peaks right up for some good recreational wakeboarding as well. Whether or not it is big enough for your family inside is a different story. When equipped with a good tower to store all the junk, it was certainly big enough to have a good time with 6 adults in the boat.

 

I imagine a 206 and a sunsetter LXI would also be really similar and probably be right in the neighborhood of what you are looking for. The bonus to the sunsetter would be that you get the wedge so you don't have to hassle with sacks so much. Maybe the 206 would have their little hydrogate thing too? I know that with even just a little weight, my 196 gives me a wakeboarding wake that is large and well-shaped enough to at least have a good time with recreational wakeboarding and wakeskating, so I assume a 206 would just be even further in that direction.